Program offers passport to success: Ten local high school girls chosen for educational outreach this summer.

Byline: Sarah Tompkins

Jul. 5--In a bedroom strewn with hangers and suitcases, Megan Williamson tacked up a list that detailed pictures she wants to take while at a summer program at Choate Rosemary Hall, a private school in Wallingford, Conn.

"I've been preparing for this since November," Megan, 15, of Chattanooga, said in June before she flew to Connecticut.

Megan is one of 10 local high school girls selected for the Passport Scholars Program. The nonprofit program, a branch of the College Access Center, gives girls from low-income families the opportunity to attend educational summer programs. The summer curriculums run for three to five weeks, and the students study subjects ranging from theater to Spanish and fashion.

"Our goal is to empower …