College Success Arizona Receives $1.2 Million in Funding to Increase College Enrollment
AmeriCorps recently announced that College Success Arizona has received a grant of $1.2 million over three years ($411k per year) to place AdviseAZ members in Arizona high schools.
The AdviseAZ AmeriCorps program places current college students or recent college graduates in high schools to act as near-peer advisers. They work alongside high school counselors and staff helping students navigate the complex college exploration process, take college admissions tests, apply to college, complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), and secure financial aid in order to pursue a postsecondary education.
This funding comes from AmeriCorps, the federal agency for national service and community volunteerism and will support 50 AdviseAZ members in their work to help more than 2,500 students who are low-income, first-generation and/or people of color.
“AdviseAZ has the potential to significantly expand the number of students who have access to advising services that can transform attending college from a dream to reality,” said Rich Nickel, president and CEO of Achieve60AZ | College Success Arizona | Expect More Arizona. “Together with schools and community organizations, we can make the difference that helps students access a postsecondary education and further the state’s Achieve60AZ attainment goal.”
The members will be placed in low-income, Title I designated high schools and in community sites where they will work to increase the number of high school students who enter and complete a postsecondary education. These sites will be located across Arizona in cities like Tucson, Phoenix and Flagstaff as well as rural areas such as Yuma, Pinal, Cochise, Gila, Mohave and Graham counties.
“The importance of expanding access to this kind of college advising should not be underestimated, especially in Arizona,” said Dr. Richard Daniel, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Achieve60AZ | College Success Arizona | Expect More Arizona. “Our state has the worst school counselor-to-student ratio in the country, meaning that far too many students do not have access to essential academic and college advising, not to mention personal and mental health support.”
As a part of the national AmeriCorps program, the members will receive education awards of up to $6,300 after completing a full term of service that they can use to pursue their own postsecondary education or to pay off student loans. For more information about AdviseAZ, visit AdviseAZ.org.
Every year, 75,000 AmeriCorps members serve through thousands of nonprofit, community and faith-based organizations across the country. These citizens have played a critical role in the recovery of communities affected by disasters and helped thousands of first-generation college students access higher education. They also tutor and mentor young people, connect veterans to jobs, care for seniors, reduce crime and revive cities, fight the opioid epidemic, and meet other critical needs. Since the agency’s inception in 1994, nearly 1.2 million AmeriCorps members have served the nation.
About Achieve60AZ, College Success Arizona and Expect More Arizona:
These three leading Arizona education entities have pooled their resources and teams to become one organization. The enhanced organization, which will be renamed later this year, will advance a cohesive education agenda to reach the goals outlined in the Arizona Education Progress Meter and support the success of all Arizona children and adults along the education continuum, from early learning through postsecondary attainment. Learn more here.
