New UNCF initiative aims to boost graduation rates at HBCUs

[get these nets]

New initiative aims to boost graduation rates at historically Black colleges​

PBS NewsHour
May 2, 2023
As we enter another graduation season, historically Black colleges and universities are working hard to increase the number of students who walk across their stages in the years to come. One program is doing that by focusing on reenrollment and giving students access to one-on-one educational support. Hari Sreenivasan reports from Atlanta for our series, Rethinking College

UNCF Expands HBCU Student Coaching Network to Advance College Access and Success​

April 27, 2022

UNCF, the nation’s largest and most effective advocate for minority education, today announced an ambitious four-year initiative that will scale one-on-one success coaching and help students at historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) across the country access and complete college. The project will expand on a year-long collaboration between UNCF’s Institute for Capacity Building and the national student success nonprofit InsideTrack that focused on supporting former HBCU students during the process of re-enrolling in higher education. The initiative is funded by Strada Education Network, the Macquarie Group Foundation and Blue Meridian Partners.


UNCF and Insidetrack are now in the second year of a multi-year, multi-campus partnership focused on HBCU student enrollment and success. The project began in 2021 as a yearlong pilot focused on helping former HBCU students to re-enroll in higher education in the wake of a tumultuous year for colleges and their students. Supported by early funding from Strada Education Network, InsideTrack coaches reached out to more than 4,000 former students and helped nearly 400 return to nine campuses participating in the project

In Fall 2021, the Macquarie Group Foundation funded an expansion of the program to help more former students navigate the complexities of re-enrolling in higher education—and overcome the barriers to successfully resuming their studies that stopped-out students often face. As a result, the re-enrollment program will grow this year to reach an additional 4,000 students.


“We are proud to partner with UNCF to expand its student coaching network across HBCU institutions, increasing access to essential mentoring services that drive student retention and create greater opportunity for students re-entering higher education,” said Shawn Lytle, head of Americas at Australian-based Macquarie Group, and committee member at Australian-based Macquarie Group Foundation.


With generous funding from Blue Meridian Partners and Strada Education Network, UNCF is also launching a third phase focused on scaling the program through 2026. Over the next four years, the program will provide one-on-one success coaching services for 10,000 students seeking an HBCU education, 4,000 HBCU students already in their first or second year of enrollment, and re-enrollment coaching for 3,000 HBCU students who have not completed their degrees.

The institutions participating in the next phase include Benedict College, Bethune Cookman College, Claflin University, Clark Atlanta University, Dillard University, Florida Memorial University, Jarvis Christian University, Johnson C. Smith University, Lane College, Morehouse College, Philander Smith University, Stillman College, Talladega College, Voorhees College and Wiley College.


“As a proud HBCU alumna, I know firsthand the deep, rewarding and personal connection that so many graduates of these institutions develop,” said Malika Clinkscales, associate vice president for partner success at InsideTrack. “UNCF is creating a unique shared services model that will advance HBCU excellence and success—and build the sector’s capacity to support learners at every stage of the student life cycle

@ab.aspectus @xoxodede @Originalman @CoryMack @DrBanneker @BigAggieLean. @Tupac in a Business Suit @EndDomination @RealCrownHeights @Cereal_Bowl_Assassin @DPresidential @Pirius Black @staticshock @Geode @Carolina Slim @im_sleep @|r|e|a|d| @BigMan @Jimmy from Linkedin @ignorethis @Uachet @DropTopDoc @Rollie Forbes @SupaVillain @YaThreadFloppedB! @RealCrownHeights @klutch2381 @OfTheCross @WTFisWallace? @phcitywarrior @R.E.N. Spells Ren @Buddy @Cereal_Bowl_Assassin @NoGutsNoGLory @RickyDiBiase @Frangala

 

[Rollie Forbes]

New initiative aims to boost graduation rates at historically Black colleges​

PBS NewsHour
May 2, 2023
As we enter another graduation season, historically Black colleges and universities are working hard to increase the number of students who walk across their stages in the years to come. One program is doing that by focusing on reenrollment and giving students access to one-on-one educational support. Hari Sreenivasan reports from Atlanta for our series, Rethinking College





@ab.aspectus @xoxodede @Originalman @CoryMack @DrBanneker @BigAggieLean. @Tupac in a Business Suit @EndDomination @RealCrownHeights @Cereal_Bowl_Assassin @DPresidential @Pirius Black @staticshock @Geode @Carolina Slim @im_sleep @|r|e|a|d| @BigMan @Jimmy from Linkedin @ignorethis @Uachet @DropTopDoc @Rollie Forbes @SupaVillain @YaThreadFloppedB! @RealCrownHeights @klutch2381 @OfTheCross @WTFisWallace? @phcitywarrior @R.E.N. Spells Ren @Buddy @Cereal_Bowl_Assassin @NoGutsNoGLory @RickyDiBiase @Frangala

This is a good step.

 

[Uachet]

This is a good step.

I am going to disagree. 5 million is a paltry amount, especially considering how much that amount will be split between different institutions. There are 102 HBCUs and 274 HSI, Add in the TCUs too, and that 5 million would be used up in less than a month.

10 billion would be more along the line of a good step in my opinion.

 

[Cereal_Bowl_Assassin]

I am going to disagree. 5 million is a paltry amount, especially considering how much that amount will be split between different institutions. There are 102 HBCUs and 274 HSI, Add in the TCUs too, and that 5 million would be used up in less than a month.

10 billion would be more along the line of a good step in my opinion.

I agree especially when you take into consideration the amount of hbcu's in this country. But at least its something

 

[MajesticLion]

 

[get these nets]

I am going to disagree. 5 million is a paltry amount, especially considering how much that amount will be split between different institutions. There are 102 HBCUs and 274 HSI, Add in the TCUs too, and that 5 million would be used up in less than a month.

10 billion would be more along the line of a good step in my opinion.

Went back and looked up the details, and edited OP. I assumed that this was under the Dept. of Education's program. It is separate, directly under the UNCF, and privately funded.

The DOE has a similarly titled program under their Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE)
This is about the most recent grantees for the program.

Postsecondary Student Success Program​

Jan 20, 2023
Announced in August 2022, the Postsecondary Student Success Program is a new FIPSE grant program established by Congress in response to the Biden-Harris Administration's request for funding to address college completion issues. The Department recently received an additional $45 million in funding in the FY23 budget to expand the program to serve more students. The grants will help institutions invest in data-driven and evidence-based reforms to encourage postsecondary retention, transfer, and completion among students who are close to graduation, as well as those who temporarily withdrew from school because of challenges faced during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Department's first awards under this grant program total more than $4.5 million to five Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Minority-Serving Institutions (MSIs), and community colleges.

 

[Rollie Forbes]

I am going to disagree. 5 million is a paltry amount, especially considering how much that amount will be split between different institutions. There are 102 HBCUs and 274 HSI, Add in the TCUs too, and that 5 million would be used up in less than a month.

10 billion would be more along the line of a good step in my opinion.

You'll get no argument from me. Our HBCUs absolutely need a lot more in terms of funding. I should've worded my statement better; I meant to say that while $5 million is a drop in the overall budget, I am glad to see that the faucet is at least on.

 

[DropTopDoc]

I am going to disagree. 5 million is a paltry amount, especially considering how much that amount will be split between different institutions. There are 102 HBCUs and 274 HSI, Add in the TCUs too, and that 5 million would be used up in less than a month.

10 billion would be more along the line of a good step in my opinion.

We get what we get, it be better with more, but you know the answer to that

 

[DropTopDoc]

When we see these things, it’s great but knowing how much they shorting us it makes you enraged

 

[Uachet]

Went back and looked up the details, and edited OP. I assumed that this was under the Dept. of Education's program. It is separate, directly under the UNCF, and privately funded.

The DOE has a similarly titled program under their Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE)
This is about the most recent grantees for the program.

Postsecondary Student Success Program​

Jan 20, 2023
Announced in August 2022, the Postsecondary Student Success Program is a new FIPSE grant program established by Congress in response to the Biden-Harris Administration's request for funding to address college completion issues. The Department recently received an additional $45 million in funding in the FY23 budget to expand the program to serve more students. The grants will help institutions invest in data-driven and evidence-based reforms to encourage postsecondary retention, transfer, and completion among students who are close to graduation, as well as those who temporarily withdrew from school because of challenges faced during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Department's first awards under this grant program total more than $4.5 million to five Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Minority-Serving Institutions (MSIs), and community colleges.

Ok, well then I can't really complain since it is privately funded. That being the case I probably need to look into it more and see if I want to donate to UNCF. I was reluctant in the past, only because of some anecdotal evidence I experienced on whom were receiving the actual funds and whom were not. I remember my wife struggling through Spelman coming from a poor household, and being rejected. On the other end, I remember the ones who seemed to get the money were the ones who had connections on the inside. This was probably not the case across the board, but it did sour my opinion of the organization none the less.

So yea, I fell into the trap of taking anecdotal evidence over actual data in this case, but seeing it happen up close and to people I knew probably prevented me from seeing what good the organization may be doing over all.