Academy for Educational Development
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AED is a nonprofit organization working globally to improve education, health, civil society and economic development.
AED, Lumina Foundation Work Together To Send Disadvantaged Students to College — and Help Them Succeed
AED and the Lumina Foundation Work Together to Send Disadvantaged Students to College—and Help Them Succeed Sending a child to college has long been the dream of many American families. But for many, the dream can seem impossible to reach. Students who are from low-income families, students of color, students in families that have recently immigrated to the United States and adult students are the populations least likely to attend or complete postsecondary education. In order to address this problem and help underserved students gain access to and succeed in postsecondary education, AED has partnered with the Lumina Foundation for Education to conduct a grant-making and technical-assistance program that will assist partnerships in eight cities across the country improve the college access and success outcomes in their communities.
But since 1998, enrollment has declined. In addition, the gap between the rates at which students from different racial/ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds attend and complete college is significant, and it is growing. By their late 20’s, one-third of white students have at least a bachelor’s degree. Only 18 percent of African-American students and 10 percent of Latinos can say the same. And a child from a family in the top income quartile is five times more likely to earn a bachelor’s degree by the age of 24 than a child in the in the bottom quartile. “The notion that supporting someone in enrolling in college is sufficient is no longer acceptable. This is why the grant program focuses on both access and success in postsecondary education,” says Sandy Weinbaum, vice president and co-director of the AED Center for School and Community Service. “Our economic future as a country and as individuals depends on the levels of education which we attain over a lifetime. Both access and success need to be part of the partnership’s focus,” Weinbaum said. “And to tie those two pieces together, you need to have all the relevant partners working together to make this happen.”
Creating partnership among school districts, businesses, community members and organizations and colleges that have a influence in the community and represent the voices of the communities that are underserved was one of the founding principles of the program. “This is not about creating new and separate programs,” said Weinbaum. “In a holistic and systemic way, this program is about supporting communities to improve college access and success for underserved students and sustain the work.” The eight organizations participating in the grant program are: Chattanooga-Hamilton Public Education Foundation in Chattanooga, Tenn.; COMPASS Guide/University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Center for Urban Initiatives and Research, Wisc.; Linking Education and Economic Development, Sacramento, Calif.; Linking Learning to Life, Burlington, Vt.; Little Village Community Development Corporation, Chicago, Ill.; Port JOBS, Seattle, Wa.; San Antonio Education Partnership, Texas; Youth Development Institute of The Fund for the City of New York, N.Y. For more information on the grant program, contact Sandy Weinbaum, project director or Donald Collins, deputy director. |
