KSU Receives $2 Million Grant To Boost Student Success

Press release from Kennesaw State University:

Sep 29, 2020

KSU receives $2 million grant to boost student success

KENNESAW, Ga.
(Sep 29, 2020) — Kennesaw State University has received a $2 million grant to bolster two of the University’s
outreach programs – Thrive and Achieve Atlanta – both of which help promising students achieve academic success and progress to
graduation.

“At Kennesaw State, student success is our top priority, and this grant will enable
us to continue to deliver on our promise to ensure that all students have equal access
to a quality education and receive the support they need to be successful,” said KSU
President Pamela Whitten.

Thrive is a KSU initiative designed to help students transition more easily to college
while providing the support they need to help maintain the HOPE scholarship and stay
on track to graduate. Thrive students have access to pre-matriculation workshops and
conferences, academic advisors, graduation coaches, peer counseling, learning communities,
and an academic alert tracking system. Results among the 1,000 students who have participated
in the program since its founding in 2011 reveal that participants stay in college
at a higher rate, have a higher average GPA, maintain HOPE at a higher rate than students
in an academically and demographically matched control group, and after completing
their degree program, graduates are known to give back to the program and to the institution.

Achieve Atlanta was created by the Whitehead Foundation and strives to help students
from Atlanta Public Schools enroll in college and ultimately earn their degrees. In
2017, Kennesaw State became a partner institution with its first cohort class of 18
scholars. That number has grown each year, and today, there are a total of 141 Achieve
Atlanta students enrolled at KSU.

This grant was awarded to KSU by The Goizueta Foundation. Established in 1992 by the
late Roberto C. Goizueta, who was then CEO of The Coca-Cola Company, the Foundation
challenges organizations to think about education in innovative, strategic ways as
a catalyst for creating life-changing opportunities for individuals and long-term
benefits for the communities in which they live and serve.

Related Stories

• Donors Seek to Build Community Support Through Athletics Gift

Donors Champion KSU’s CARE Services Through Advocacy, Endowment

Professors receive NSF grant to help middle school students in math and computing

A leader in innovative teaching and learning, Kennesaw State University offers more than 150 undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degrees to its approximately 41,000 students. With 11 colleges on two metro Atlanta campuses, Kennesaw State is a member of the University System of Georgia and the third-largest university in the state. The university’s vibrant campus culture, diverse population, strong global ties and entrepreneurial spirit draw students from throughout the region and from 92 countries across the globe. Kennesaw State is a Carnegie-designated doctoral research institution (R2), placing it among an elite group of only 6 percent of U.S. colleges and universities with an R1 or R2 status, and one of the 50 largest public institutions in the country. For more information, visit kennesaw.edu.

This press release was produced by Kennesaw State University. The views expressed here are the author’s own.