College Possible

OUR MISSION: College Possible, formerly known as Admission Possible, is a nationally-growing 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization making college admission and success possible for low-income students through an intensive curriculum of coaching and support. We identify low-income youth with the potential for college and then provide them with five critical services: (1) academic support through ACT/SAT test preparation; (2) college application assistance; (3) financial aid consulting; (4) guidance in the college transition; and (5) support toward college degree completion and workforce readiness.

OUR RESULTS: A 2011 Harvard study shows that the College Possible program model more than doubles the chances a low-income student will enroll in a four-year college, and additional independent evaluations have reinforced our model’s top-of-field results [See http://www.collegepossible.org/Reports]. Since our launch founding in 2000, College Possible Twin Cities has grown exponentially, from serving 35 students at two schools to serving nearly 1,500 students at nineteen high schools through our core high school programming. In 2010-11, we:

-Helped students raise their ACT score by more than 23% on average, demonstrating academic improvement and college readiness; for-profit firms advertise improvement rates of 12-14%.
-Supported students in earning college admission, with more than 98% of students having earned college admission!
-Served nearly 3,000 9th and 10th grade students with college planning workshops encouraging early planning and a school-wide college-going culture.

Of College Possible’s high school program alumni, nearly 80% are currently working toward their degree or have already graduated. This stands in stark contrast to the nationwide reality that only 8% of students from low-income families earn a degree by age 24. In fact, students from upper-income families are ten times more likely to earn a college degree than those from low-income backgrounds. Yet a college education is the surest pathway out of poverty for an individual and his or her family now and for future generations, and the surest provider of educated workers to refuel a vibrant economy.

OUR STUDENTS: College Possible is helping break the cycle of poverty for low-income families and build an educated workforce for a globally competitive economy. In 2011-12, we are serving 9,000 low-income students in Minnesota and Wisconsin at 27 partner high schools and on nearly 200 college campuses nationwide. The average household income of students currently in the program reported is less than $25,000. Students of color account for more than 90 percent of our student population. Students begin our program with an average ACT score placing them in the bottom 10th percentile of all test takers. After our services they raise their scores by more than 21 percent on average, reaching the 35th percentile, making college consideration and admission possible.

OUR PROGRAM: Using an innovative application of the AmeriCorps service model, students in our core high school program meet with their College Possible AmeriCorps “coach” in peer groups of 10-15 twice a week after school for two years, resulting in a minimum of 320 hours of time on task during their junior and senior years of high school. Programming occurs on site at partner high schools after school and is provided to both students and high schools at no cost to them. After high school graduation, students become a part of our college program as they are supported toward degree completion and workforce readiness.

RETURN ON INVESTMENT: At one-seventh the cost of the most similarly intensive program, College Possible is an incredibly scalable and effective program. A retired Minnesota business leader conducted an independent return on investment study, demonstrating a 500 percent return to society: http://www.collegepossible.org/Results

GROWTH: With our track record of success, College Possible is planning expansion that will add 1 to 2 new markets per year as the organization grows to serve 20,000 students annually by 2020 or earlier. In 2009, President Obama cited College Possible’s extraordinary work during a White House event highlighting innovative, results-oriented nonprofits. “Admission Possible operates in just two states now," the President said. "So imagine if it was 10, or 20, or 50.”