An exterior view of the Office Group offices located in Northwest Crossing in Bend Wednesday afternoon.

Since the Office Group began in 2014, the nonprofit has served hardworking Bend-La Pine Schools high schoolers who need academic support and college counseling.

Executive Director Corben Hyatt keeps things small: he finds students through word-of-mouth and the Office Group only works with 25 to 30 students at most at one time. He is the only employee and other counselors and tutors volunteer their time.

“We knew that what we were putting together would be something that every kid in Central Oregon would benefit from,” said Hyatt, who is also the football coach at Summit High School. “What we have done is kinda try to fly under the radar because we just want to find these kids that really fit our mission.”

The Office Group accepts sophomores, juniors and seniors who have at least a 3.0 grade point average. Students need to apply each year, even if they have been in the program previously. Applications were previously due in May but starting this year are due even earlier for the next academic year so students aren’t as burnt out by school when filling it out, said Hyatt. Students need to spend at least two hours in the organization’s Northwest Crossing office per week, working on homework, studying or getting help from tutors or college counselors.

“Who we’re trying to serve are these kids who are doing all the things that are necessary to be successful but don’t know what that next thing is,” said Hyatt. “What we try to do is we want to work with these students and kind of provide them a plan post-high school.”

Hyatt is looking for under-resourced kids throughout Bend who may have had some challenges and have good grades but may not feel as though there are possibilities for them after high school. The Office Group provides tutoring, academic monitoring, college counseling, mentorship and other resources. Organizers look at different pathways with students including two- and four-year colleges, trade schools, the military and others to find the right fit.

The Office Group has helped students succeed in high school and go onto college, including working with them on financial aid. Organizers take kids on college campus tours in the process. The Office Group continues to track students in college, and has even expanded to work with a few students on career counseling after college graduation, said Hyatt.

“It’s amazing to see the kids, their loyalty to the program and the loyalty to these students that are younger. We have almost a mentoring program of kids that are on college campuses that are older that kind of are resources for kids (in the program),” said Hyatt. “It’s super rewarding to see our kids take ownership of this place.”

There is no cost for students or families.

Volunteering and providing support

Betsy Koehler has been a volunteer math tutor for the organization for the past eight years. Last year, she was named student success director. She works with students most afternoons and believes that consistency is one of the most important things students can expect from her.

“I volunteered in the schools for years in math programs, and I started coming to the Office Group in the afternoon and offering my math tutoring services to the kids,” she said. “People always want help in math…It’s just turned into this great relationship between Corben and I and me and the kids.”

During the fall semester, she is in the organization’s office four days a week, helping with math and occasionally fielding questions about other topics.

“(Students) love showing up at a place and seeing the same faces every time,” she said. “I just decided that it was important to me to just be one of those faces that they saw regularly.”

Students can be reticent when they first start with the Office Group, and may not even know what questions to ask to get support. When working with students, Koehler makes a point to ask questions about what they want out of life or what they might want to know more about to help guide them.

Santiago Varela, 21, is a junior at Oregon State University-Cascades studying business administration. While attending Summit High School, he lived in Millican, 30 miles away. During the summer after sophomore year, Hyatt sought him out to join the organization because he felt it could be a good opportunity for Varela.

Initially, Varela wasn’t interested, and said he wasn’t the type of person to do extracurriculars. Hyatt convinced him with a second phone call, and he signed up.

“The Office Group changed my life,” he said. “They help you with absolutely everything, anything and everything you could ever need…I can easily say it’s been one of the greatest things in my life, ever.”

The Office Group provided gas cards for Varela’s family so it was easier to get to and from Summit High School.

“That was a huge thing just for my family, and for me,” said Varela, who still stays in touch with the Office Group and Hyatt.

He said his experience at OSU-Cascades has also been better due to the college counseling and support he received.

“It’s definitely my spot, I’m glad I decided to go here, I don’t think I would have enjoyed going to any other school, honestly,” he said.

More Information

The application for the Office Group can be found on the website at http://www.togbend.org, along with contact information for interested volunteers.

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