Eleven students at Downtown College Prep in San Jose made history Saturday when they were accepted into next year's freshman class at San Jose State during the university's on-site admissions day.

The 11, along with a few already accepted by Cal State Monterey Bay, became Downtown College Prep's first students admitted to college. For a charter school created with the brash assumption that all of its largely low-income Latino students could -- and would -- attend a four-year college, Saturday was the first big payoff.

``I'm very proud of my daughter,'' Hermelinda Brizuela, a soft-spoken woman, said in halting English after Gloria Medina received an official letter of acceptance.

She should be.

Medina had attended six elementary schools in San Jose in six years, as her mother, a single mom working as a janitor, struggled financially. Medina's attitude toward school, she admitted, had been as bad as her study skills.

Three years ago, in her freshman year at Downtown College Prep, Medina's grade point average was 0.8, meaning she failed many of her courses. On Saturday, her 3.1 GPA entitled her to automatic admission to California State University colleges.

The turning point came in her sophomore year, when her frustrated mother told Gloria she'd have to deal with the consequences of fooling around. ``I said to myself, `My mom is losing faith in me. I'll prove that I can be successful.' ''

Medina's transformation wasn't a miracle; it was a struggle, a victory of hard work over self-doubt.

DCP isn't for slackers. The demands are severe. Some in this inaugural class dropped out and enrolled in other high schools; others were kicked out for misconduct. The original class of 102 is down to 59.

DCP targets low-performing students, the ones who'd likely get lost or give up in larger schools. The average DCP student arrives in ninth grade with fifth or sixth grade math and English skills.

Charter schools are public schools freed from most state rules and regulations so that they can do things differently. In DCP's case, that means long days, intensive remedial work, one-on-one tutorials, small classes, constant encouragement and an unswerving, singular focus on college.

That's what Berenice Gonzales wanted. She had been diagnosed with a learning disability and put into a special education program in middle school. There she was miserable and determined to prove her labelers wrong. She enrolled in DCP. She now takes advanced placement courses, has a 3.5 GPA -- and a college acceptance.

A few of the 11 students accepted into SJSU will go there next September. Chris Garcia is one. With the death of his father, Garcia wants to stick around San Jose to be near his mother.

Others, especially those eligible for financial aid, will go away or aim higher -- Stanford, Berkeley, Connecticut College. They'll be the first in their families to go to college. DCP is encouraging them to leave home to do it.

There was more relief on Saturday than celebration after the official letters of admissions were passed out. Guidance counselor Vicky Evans had already assured them that they qualified for admission. Most are pressed for time these days. College applications elsewhere are due. Medina is working on the umpteenth draft of her personal essay.

What struck me was how many students mentioned, at the moment of their achievement, that they wished they'd worked harder as freshmen and sophomores.

Last year, some had toured good schools in the East; others visited more than a dozen campuses in the West. The trips had opened their eyes to new horizons and immense possibilities. But it also brought the realization, tinged with the regret, of what's demanded to get into the school of your choice.

The seniors -- DCP's bold pioneers -- want their younger classmates to understand this, and to learn from their mistakes as well as their triumphs.

JOHN FENSTERWALD is a Mercury News editorial writer.