College Access Grants Instructions - EducationQuest



College Access Grants Application

Application due: June 10, 2016

EducationQuest Foundation’s College Access Grants goal is to increase the percentage of graduates who enroll in postsecondary programs after high school. The program provides funding to Nebraska high schools to develop or enhance college access activities.

EducationQuest will use the high school’s Class of 2014 college-going rate to establish the college-going rate baseline. This information is reported on the Nebraska’s Coordinating Commission for Postsecondary Education’s website (pe.state.ne.us) in the Data Collection, Reports, Presentations section. See the Q & A document or contact EducationQuest for more information.

EducationQuest defines postsecondary education as any accredited postsecondary university or college, including both two-and-four-year colleges.

EducationQuest requires an improvement in the school’s college-going rate during each year of grant funding. A 10 percentage point college-going rate increase, measured from the baseline year, is expected by the conclusion of the four-year grant.

Grant funds are paid over four years and range from $2,500 to $20,000 a year, based on the high school’s enrollment in grades 9 to 12.

Requirements and timeline for applicant high schools

• Attend EducationQuest Foundation’s College Access Symposium on March 31, 2016 in Lincoln.

• By May 2, 2016, submit (via email or USPS) a Letter of Intent to EducationQuest indicating the applicant high school’s intent to apply. Include the following in the Letter of Intent:

• The Class of 2014’s college-going rate

• Description and size of the applicant high school’s proposed target audience

• Anticipated enrollment (grades 9 through 12) for the 2016-2017 academic year

• By June 10, 2016:

• Complete each section of the application. Incomplete applications will not be considered.

• Include the high school name and page number on each page of the application.

• Title each section to correspond with the bolded section title.  

• Use 11-point font, one side only (8.5 x 11-inch paper).

• The application will be photocopied in black and white for review. Please be mindful if including charts or graphs.

• Double-space narrative responses.

• Submit one complete application to:

EducationQuest Foundation

College Access Grants

1300 O Street

Lincoln, NE 68508

Section One: High School

Name of high school:

Address:

City, State ZIP:

Telephone:

Fax:

Section Two: Primary Contact

Name:

Title:

Summer telephone:

Summer email:

Section Three: College-going rate trend

Provide information about the college-going rates from the Nebraska Coordinating Commission for Postsecondary Education’s website.

| |Class of 2012 |Class of 2013 |Class of 2014 |

|Number of on-time high school graduates | | | |

|Number of graduates who went to college | | | |

|College-going rate | | | |

Section Four: 2016-2017 Estimated Enrollment

Provide your high school’s estimated enrollment for the 2016-2017 academic year. If your school is selected for funding, you must provide actual enrollment information in January 2017. If your high school does not track first-generation information, insert N/A in that column.

|Grade |Enrollment |Free or reduced lunch students |Ethnic minority students |First-generation college |

| | | | |students |

|9 | | | | |

|10 | | | | |

|11 | | | | |

|12 | | | | |

|Total | | | | |

Section Five: Description of need

This is your opportunity to share information about the challenges your students, high school and community face as they consider higher education. Title each section to correspond with the bolded titles below. This entire section should not exceed 10 pages.

This section is worth 64% of the applications score.

Section A: College-going culture

Thinking about your students, school and community, use a five point scale, with 5 being “strongly agree”, to respond to the following statements.

Provide a justification for your response to each statement. Your justification should indicate how the College Access Grant program will help improve each area.

Each justification should be less than two pages.

|Statement 1: |5 – strongly agree |4 – agree |3 – neutral |2 – disagree |1 – strongly |

| | | | | |disagree |

|My students face challenges in accessing |5 |4 |3 |2 |1 |

|higher education. | | | | | |

Justification for your rating (identify and support the top two or three challenges):

|Statement 2: |5 – strongly agree |4 – agree |3 – neutral |2 – disagree |1 – strongly |

| | | | | |disagree |

|My school supports a college-going |5 |4 |3 |2 |1 |

|culture. | | | | | |

Justification for your rating (highlight two or three specific items to support your rating):

|Statement 3: |5 – strongly agree |4 – agree |3 – neutral |2 – disagree |1 – strongly |

| | | | | |disagree |

|My community supports a college-going |5 |4 |3 |2 |1 |

|culture. | | | | | |

Justification for your rating (highlight two or three specific items to support your rating):

Section B: Target audience

While you may provide college access activities to all students in grades 9 to 12, you can select a smaller set of students to target your programming efforts. See Q & A document for minimum target audience size.

Describe your target audience. Be sure to provide the number of students who will be included in your target audience and indicate why they were selected.

Section C: College-going rate goal

The College Access Grants primary success measure is the change in college-going rates for each high school. Your goal should be at least 10 percentage points. In some cases, a 10 percentage point increase is not feasible and EducationQuest will accept a lower rate.

State your current college-going rate (baseline rate is the Class of 2014) and what you expect your rate to be for the Class of 2020. If less than 10 percentage points, provide a justification for the lower goal.

If your baseline year (Class of 2014) was abnormally high or low, indicate such and provide a propose baseline percentage and goal. You must provide sufficient support for your proposed baseline number.

Section Six: Required College Access Program Activities

Provide the high school’s plan to accomplish each of the activities listed in this section. Each activity must be included as part of the college access program proposal. Indicate if the activity is new, existing or enhanced. State when the activity will take place and the intended participants (example: target audience, all students, freshman, etc.). Indicate how grant funding will be used. See example in the Q & A document. This section is worth 26% of your overall score.

College Access Grant requirements for the target audience (open to all students):

• Visit at least one Nebraska college or university by December of the students’ senior year.

• Attend an official EducationQuest College Fair or a Nebraska Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (NACRAO)-sanctioned Educational Planning Program by December of the senior year.

• Take the ACT, SAT, or equivalent by December of the senior year.

• Attend a Financial Aid Presentation, preferably with a family member or guardian, before February of the senior year.

• Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), or the College Estimator, sometime after January 1 and preferably before March 1 of the senior year.

• Conduct a scholarship search during both junior and senior years.

• Complete at least one college application during the senior year.

• Learn about dual credit classes offered at the high school.

College Access Grant requirements for the high school:

• Provide a meeting for families of 9th and 10th grade target audience students. The program will include information about careers, the importance of academics and the availability of financial aid.

• Secure a 10% in-kind or cash match from a local or regional business. Include a letter of support from this business that indicates the type of support and how it helps the business address its goals.

Section Seven: Staffing Plan

Many successful high schools have developed a college access team. This teams can include faculty, staff, and administrators. The team develops, administers, and evaluates the College Access Grant program. While a grant team is not required, it is encouraged.

Describe the staffing plan including initial implementation plans. Provide information on who will coordinate the program. Provide the qualifications of the coordinator and/or team. Describe the role of the administration, faculty, and staff. Indicate who will collect the data, monitor budgets and generate required reports.

This section is worth 10% of your overall score.

Section Eight: Annual Budget

Complete the budget table below for the first year of grant funding. If selected, your high school must submit a budget each year. Your school may be subject to a review of expenses at least once during your funding period. Attach a detailed explanation for all budget expenses for the first year of grant funding. See the example in the Q & A document.

EducationQuest will only fund staffing expenses directly related to the administration, operation and evaluation of the college access program. No more than 50% of EducationQuest funds can be spent on staffing expenses.

|Expenses |EducationQuest |Other sources |In-Kind |Total |

|Travel (provide detail for each travel |$ |$ |$ |$ |

|activity) | | | | |

|Activities (provide detail on activities that|$ |$ |$ |$ |

|cost more than $100) | | | | |

|Materials (provide detail on materials that |$ |$ |$ |$ |

|cost more than $100) | | | | |

|Postage |$ |$ |$ |$ |

|Printing (provide detail on printing that |$ |$ |$ |$ |

|cost more than $100) | | | | |

|Staff – not to exceed 50% of overall grant |$ |$ |$ |$ |

|(Provide an overview of how many staff | | | | |

|received compensation and what each staff | | | | |

|earned. You may list titles (example: | | | | |

|counselor, teacher) instead of specific | | | | |

|names.) | | | | |

|Other (explain with detail) |$ |$ |$ |$ |

|TOTAL |$ |$ |$ |$ |

Section Nine: Statement of Reporting Requirements

Section Nine provides an overview of the College Access Grant reporting requirements. By completing and signing Section Ten, your high school agrees to comply with the reporting requirements. No response is required for this section.

Reports include:

Student Surveys                                                          When Administered       

Initial Student Survey Orientation/start of school

Annual Program Evaluation End of school year

Grantee Reports/Information            Deadline                              

Mid-Year Report January 31

Annual Year-End Report June 30

Annual Financial report of activities August 31

Section Ten: Required Signatures

The following signatures are required to demonstrate that the high school and its administrators endorse this proposal, understand and accept the reporting requirements, and attest, to the best of their knowledge, to the accuracy of the information contained in this application. If the high school is a successful applicant, the school agrees to notify EducationQuest of any changes in the grant contact/administrator or high school principal.

 

Superintendent

Signature: _____________________________________________ Date:                         

Printed Name: ___________________________________________________________

Telephone:                              __                        Fax:  _                                                      

Email: __________________________________________________________________

High School Principal

Signature: _____________________________________________ Date:                         

Printed Name: ___________________________________________________________

Telephone:                              __                        Fax:  _                                                      

Email: __________________________________________________________________

Grant Contact/Administrator

Signature: _____________________________________________ Date:                         

Printed Name: ___________________________________________________________

Telephone:                              __                        Fax:  _                                                      

Summer phone number: ___________________________________________________

Email: __________________________________________________________________

Application due June 10, 2016.

Send one complete application to:

EducationQuest Foundation

College Access Grants

1300 O Street

Lincoln, NE 68508

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