Schools
College of Alameda To Offer One Year Of Fees, Textbook Vouchers To Alameda Students
High school seniors will receive letters detailing the "Alameda Promise Initiative" later this month.
ALAMEDA, CA — At the Board of Education meeting last night, College of Alameda’s President Tim Karas presented on the “Alameda Promise Initiative,” a program developed by the College of Alameda (CoA) with support from Alameda Unified School District (AUSD). The Alameda Promise provides AUSD graduates with one year of fees, a voucher for textbook purchases during that first year of enrollment, and intensive academic and counseling support to assist students with the transition to college.
“All graduates should have the opportunity to follow their educational dreams,” said Tim Karas, President of the College of Alameda. “Higher education should be a path to shared prosperity, not a path only available to a privileged few.”
To support AUSD high schoolers who wish to attend CoA, Alameda Promise organizers plan to:
- Create information and facilitate outreach on the value of community college education
- Offer registration and financial aid workshops at AUSD school sites
- Work with AUSD to recruit students who thought college was out of reach so more students can avail themselves of post-secondary education in their local community college
The Peralta Community College District is also implementing similar “promise” initiatives in Berkeley and Oakland. Funding for these programs comes in part from the California College Promise Innovation Grant Program established by Assembly Bill 1741.
All AUSD seniors will receive letters about the offer, as well as instructions on how to participate, in the next few weeks. More information is also available on the College of Alameda website.
Find out what's happening in Alamedafor free with the latest updates from Patch.
“AUSD is fortunate to have such a great partnership with College of Alameda and the Peralta Community College District,” said Superintendent Sean McPhetridge, “and we are so grateful for the ‘Alameda Promise’ program providing a free year of tuition and books to our graduates who may have otherwise thought college out of reach. We are also very grateful for other dual enrollment initiatives already underway in AUSD where our high school students benefit from early college experiences while still enrolled in AUSD high schools. We are very excited at this next development in our longstanding partnership, and we thank CoA and PCCD for their efforts to work with AUSD to make college accessible and affordable for all.”
--Announcement from Alameda Unified School District; Photo via Shutterstock
Find out what's happening in Alamedafor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
