College Success Foundation
At a Glance
Focus area(s):
Description
For more than a decade, College Success Foundation (CSF) has provided thousands of low-income, underserved students with a unique integrated system of inspiration, support programming and scholarship funds that enable them not only to attend college, but to succeed in achieving their academic and career goals. CSF works in middle schools, high schools and colleges in Washington State and the District of Columbia, and with school districts, community organizations and government at all levels to improve the college-ready capacity of low-income students, and to increase the number of college graduates.
Impact and Outcomes
What Major Funders Say
Mission & Goals
The College Success Foundation’s (CSF) mission is to increase the number of college graduates among low-income and under-served youth. CSF has over 10 years of proven experience inspiring underserved, low-income students to finish high school, and providing the unique integrated system of supports and scholarships they need to graduate college and succeed in life.
CSF’s goals for the next five years are to:
- Implement a growth plan that serves more youth and maintains the quality programs and positive outcomes achieved at a smaller scale. CSF will deepen its current work and expand its proven model in Washington State, Washington D.C. and beyond. It will also scale the impact of its brand and model through network building, expertise as a training organization, and increased advocacy.
- Build a diversified and sustainable funding base for programs, scholarships and infrastructure.
- Develop a national office that supports multiple replication sites.
Program
Middle school programs focus on student interest and potential to succeed in high school and postsecondary education; college and career awareness; college financing; and successful middle to high school transitions.
High school programs provide in-depth information about college and career requirements; prepare students for standardized tests such as SAT/ACT; offer academic enrichment programming and individualized support for students to increase their readiness for college and graduate successfully. Additional programming includes academic assessments, mentoring, campus visits and summer transition to college programs.
College services include scholarship funding, mentoring and career awareness activities, and a robust post-graduation internship and career development program continues to engage and support participants as they enter the workforce.
Capacity-building activities increase the ability of teachers, school administrators and other community partners to help students complete high school college-ready, access higher education opportunities, remain in school and attain a two-year and/or four-year degree, and to build effective advocacy and best practice networks.
Mid-term planning for new and enhanced programs includes middle school summer programming focused on STEM; involvement with community colleges; exploration of educational financing models such as performance-based incentive awards; enhanced support for students in developmental education courses; and a training center on K-12 college access and advising.
Impact
From its inception to the end of 2010, CSF distributed $123 million through 7,200 scholarships to low-income students and helped 2,000 CSF Scholars obtain postsecondary degrees. CSF now engages over 17,000 low-income students annually. In Washington State, students of color comprise 79% of all students served; 100% of students in Washington D.C. are students of color.
According to the American Youth Policy Institute (2009), CSF’s high schools with the Washington State Achievers (WSA) program increased standard math course offerings and honors/advanced English course offerings. Students at these schools were more likely to complete a college-ready curriculum. African American and Native American students at the WSA schools completed college entrance requirements at much higher rates than at similar schools. Achievers were more likely to enroll in college than similar peers and those who applied for but did not receive the scholarship also had greater odds of college enrollment. Nearly 70% of all WSAs who enrolled in college received at least an associate degree and 68% of those initially enrolling in a four-year institution graduate with a four-year degree, nearly doubling the usual degree production for low-income students.
CSF has strengthened its evidence base through a new performance management system and improved internal evaluation capacity. Recent grants have increased staffing in Research and Evaluation and Information Technology departments, and allowed the design and development of a strategic scorecard.
Three third-party evaluations are underway in 2010-13 using quasi-experimental and quantitative analyses. MDRC, the BERC Group and the Lumina Foundation are studying the effectiveness and impact of Getting Ready for Success (a program providing a menu of performance-based incentives to CSF Scholars in Tacoma high schools); the Washington Achievers Scholars (a follow up retrospective analysis of the program in 16 high schools); and the Washington College Access Network (WCAN).
Growth Plan
CSF has developed an ambitious and systematic plan for scaling operations between now and 2016. Using a district-based expansion strategy, the Foundation will serve an additional 42,300 students per year (nearly doubling current capacity) by (1) expanding to two new districts in Spokane and Vancouver, WA; (2) increasing the number of schools served in Washington D.C., and (3) establishing one new site outside of Washington State and Washington D.C. An “Expansion Theory of Action” is detailed in the attached Business Plan, along with descriptions of how partner districts have been identified and prioritized, how new programs will roll out over time, and resources required to meet goals.
To implement its strategic initiatives, CSF needs to raise funds to cover three major cost categories:
- ongoing costs of existing services and scholarship programs
- additional investments to improve existing program offerings
- expansion costs within and outside Washington State
In all, CSF’s growth strategy will cost about $218 million between 2011 and 2016. This includes expansion plans and additional IT and facilities capital improvements. This amount will require CSF to raise an additional $47 million above normal revenues during that period.
CSF is developing a national office model to support expansion and replication efforts in Washington State, Washington D.C. and beyond. As reorganization proceeds into 2012, CSF will codify its processes and practices for programmatic and central office functions. Preliminary role definitions for the national office and sites, as well as extensive planning on organizational structures and resource requirements have already been articulated.
Location of Sites
To make a contribution to a program site:
- Click on the "Make a Contribution Now" button and include the name, city and state of the program you would like to support, in the "notes" text box on the organization's donation form, if available.
- If a "notes" or "designation" box is not available, write the city and state on your check in the "notes" section or call the national office to designate your contribution to a local program site.
Locations in the following states:
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Financials
Most Recent Budget
Year Ended:
REVENUE
EXPENSES
Grants: $191,156
Training Events: $1,290,156.00
Scholarship Expenses: $17,521,766
NET GAIN/LOSS
Prior Year Actuals
Year Ended:
REVENUE
EXPENSES
Grants: $3,520,099.00 Training Events: $1,345,567.00 Scholarship Expenses: $16,618,517.00
NET GAIN/LOSS
Major Funders
Ann Ramsay-Jenkins