On Tuesday, October 1, College Possible Minnesota welcomed College Possible’s national CEO, Dr. Siva Kumari, to our Back-to-School Breakfast hosted at the College Possible Minnesota offices. College Possible’s supporters and community partners heard from Dr. Kumari and College Possible Minnesota’s staff about current work happening as the school year starts and the vision for College Possible’s future. As we enter our 25th year, College Possible is working on program innovations and technological advancements that are student-centered and data driven that will help us support more students so they can have success in high school and college as they work toward their graduation.
Dr. Kumari celebrated the sustained and significant impact of College Possible Minnesota as a leader in the field of college access and success. She cited College Possible Minnesota’s role in piloting program innovations that have led to increased student interactions, milestone completion in coaching and curriculum enhancements, as well as our quick response to assist students with completion of the FAFSA form in the wake of the multitude of issues families had in submitting the new federal form this past year.
The breakfast concluded with an interview with Coraima, a College Possible student alum, reflecting on her college journey and the coaching she received that helped her make plans and goals for her future. She also spoke of her term as a College Possible AmeriCorps Member and her new role working as a College Possible Minnesota fulltime staff member as an Advising Specialist and her work coaching current college students as they persist through their own college careers.
Deb Salls, Executive Director of College Possible Minnesota, reflected, “We are so thankful for all the support we receive from the community to help us make college possible for thousands of young people every year. Bringing Dr Siva Kumari to our event to speak with our partners and supporters highlights the national scope and impact our work has. We have eight sites across the country, working with tens of thousands of young people and their families. We follow students to any college they choose, and we work with students in virtually every state across our country each year. The inequities in educational outcomes persist and so does the work of College Possible to ensure every student’s future can be determined solely by their talent, motivation and effort. We want to extend a special thank you to all the donors and partners that attended the event and all the people and institutions that help make our work possible and to Dr. Siva Kumari for her leadership in this work.”
If you missed the breakfast event, there’s still time to register to join us for our free Back-to-School Social hour on October 24 at Indeed Brewing. Click here for more details!
