College Possible

College Possible (formerly "Admission Possible") is a nonprofit AmeriCorps organization making college admission and success possible for low-income students in the United States through an intensive curriculum of coaching and support. Its model uses recent college graduates serving an AmeriCorps term of service as near-peer mentors for students lacking the social resources to successfully enroll in and graduate from college.[1] Headquartered in Saint Paul, Minnesota, the organization serves students in all 50 states with offices located in the Minneapolis-Saint Paul metro area, Chicago, Milwaukee, Omaha, Portland, Philadelphia and Seattle.

College Possible
Founded2000
FounderJim McCorkell
Location
  • Saint Paul, MN
Area served
Chicago

Minnesota
Milwaukee
Omaha
Oregon
Philadelphia

Washington state
MethodUtilize AmeriCorps volunteers to provide low-income students with ACT preparation, admission and financial aid counseling, and guidance in the transition to and through college.
Employees
150 Leadership Team members
Volunteers
approximately 290 AmeriCorps members
Websitehttp://www.CollegePossible.org

History

College Possible was chartered as a nonprofit in September 2000, beginning operations in two Twin Cities public high schools the next spring. By the 2008-09 school year, the organization was serving students in seventeen high school schools across Minneapolis-Saint Paul and launched a second site in Milwaukee.[2] In the spring of 2015, College Possible launched a sixth site in Chicago, Illinois. In 2016, College Possible launched Catalyze, a program to embed their coaching model and curriculum on campus with partner colleges and universities. In the summer of 2019, College Access Now merged with College Possible to become its seventh location, College Possible Washington.[3]

During the 2017-18 school year, College Possible served more than 22,000 students at hundreds of high schools, colleges and universities across the country.

Programming

A New York Times article from November 2005 quotes CEO Jim McCorkell as saying: "My starting idea was what if we replicated Kaplan for poor kids."[4] To be eligible for College Possible's free services, students must come from low-income families and have a GPA of 2.0 or higher.[5] High school students accepted into the program participate in after-school sessions over their junior and senior years, with time divided between test preparation, college applications, financial aid applications and preparing to transition to college.[6] The program also has a service component, including an annual service event on Make a Difference Day.[7]

College students receive guidance in finding and accessing campus resources, renewing the FAFSA, locating internships, maintaining a healthy balance between homework and social obligations, as well as when transferring schools.[8]

College Possible is a partner organization with the Bloomberg Philanthropies funded CollegePoint program, which is a virtual advising program designed to help high-achieving, low-income students gain admission to top colleges.[9][10]

Evaluation

College Possible is a 501(c)3 organization that has received a four-star rating from Charity Navigator for financial management and a three-star rating for accountability and transparency.[11]

A 2011 Harvard study determined that Admission Possible more than doubles the chances a low-income student will enroll in a four-year institution.[12] A later 2013 Harvard study found College Possible to have a significant positive impact on four-year college enrollment, though it had no statistically significant effect on ACT scores.[13]

Wilder Research, an arm of the Amherst H. Wilder Foundation, performed an evaluation of Admission Possible in 2006, substantiating its claim that 91% of the organization's students enrolled in college, and that it compared favorably to similar programs.[14]

The Charities Review Council deems that it "meets all standards".[15]

Recognition

McCorkell was named an Ashoka Fellow, a recognition for social entrepreneurship, in 2006.[16] The organization has been recognized with awards from the Financial Times and Citi,[17] the National Association for College Admission Counseling,[18] College Board,[19] and the National College Access Network.[20]

In June 2009, President Barack Obama mentioned the organization in a speech on social entrepreneurship saying: "Admission Possible operates in just two states now. So imagine if it were 10 or 20 or 50."[21] In February 2014, College Possible was invited to be part of a White House summit on college opportunity.[22]

In October 2018, College Possible was the first recipient of the $125,000 Evergreen National Education Prize, awarded by the Greenwald Family Foundation to programs that "best help low-income youth access access and compete college or vocational degrees."[23]

In September 2019, College Possible's CEO and founder, Jim McCorkell, received the Executive Leadership Award of Excellence at the National College Access Network’s annual conference.[24] The award recognized 20 years of McCorkell’s hard work and dedication leading College Possible to expand college access for students from low-income backgrounds.

References
  1. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-12-15. Retrieved 2011-11-17.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  2. Admission Possible history Archived 2010-11-09 at the Wayback Machine, accessed 10.28.10
  3. "Two Nonprofits That Help Low-Income Students Are Merging". Diverse. 2019-08-16.
  4. Test Prep Help for Those Too Poor to Afford Kaplan, New York Times, November 16, 2005, accessed 10.28.10
  5. A stairway to higher education Archived 2012-10-13 at the Wayback Machine, Star Tribune, Minneapolis, April 7, 2009, accessed 11.02.10
  6. Admission Possible shows the way for college aspirants, Star Tribune, Minneapolis, May 24, 2010, accessed 11.02.10
  7. Students scare up 10,000 pound donation for foodshelf Archived 2011-07-13 at the Wayback Machine, InsightNews.com, Minneapolis, November 5, 2009, accessed 11.02.10
  8. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-12-16. Retrieved 2011-11-17.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  9. "Free College Advisers Make A Hard Decision Less Lonely". NPR.org. Retrieved 2018-11-05.
  10. "College Access and Success | Bloomberg Philanthropies". Bloomberg Philanthropies. Retrieved 2018-11-05.
  11. http://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=search.summary&orgid=11838
  12. "Comparative Historical Analysis Admission Possible 2007-2009 Harvard Kennedy School June 2011"
  13. http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2013/10/29/study-tracks-impact-counseling-low-income-students#sthash.UvPYCYmZ.dpbs
  14. Admission Possible evaluation results Archived 2011-07-20 at the Wayback Machine, Laura McLain (2006), Wilder Research
  15. Admission Possible profile on Charities Review Council website
  16. Jim McCorkell’s profile Archived 2011-04-29 at the Wayback Machine on the Ashoka website
  17. Award announcement from the Financial Times
  18. A list of Human Relations Award recipients Archived 2012-09-18 at Archive.today on the NACAC website, retrieved 10.26.2010
  19. 2010 Innovation Award Winners on the College Board website, retrieved 10.26.2010
  20. NCAN Announces 2009 College Access Awards of Excellence, NCAN news release, 09.30.2010
  21. AmeriCorps and a Nod from Obama Give College-Access Group a Lift, The Chronicle of Philanthropy, October 15, 2009, accessed 11.02.10
  22. http://www.collegepossible.org/news/from-white-house-summit-college-possible-announces-philadelphia-launch/
  23. "St. Paul-based College Possible wins $125,000 prize". Twin Cities. 2018-10-16. Retrieved 2018-11-05.
  24. "College Possible's Jim McCorkell Wins 2019 Executive Leadership Award of Excellence". 2019-09-16.
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