At Act On Poverty, we strive to help seniors graduating from high school in three ways. We grant scholarships, help them formulate a post-secondary plan, and advise them as they journey through that plan.
Scholarships
We grant scholarships to students from low-income families to help encourage them to pursue a college education or trade school. We assign a mentor to each student who receives a scholarship to help them navigate academia and to ensure that they are good stewards of donations we make to the colleges on their behalf. We find that many kids from disadvantaged situations don’t use the scholarships available to them. Some go directly into the working world with good jobs, and there is no need for a scholarship. But some drift upon graduation and don’t stay in contact with us.
The challenges posed by kids drifting have pointed us toward helping kids develop plans while they are in high school.
Plan Development
To succeed in a career, students need to have a plan that they believe in and complements their interests and skills. We help students find their path in two ways:
Teach and participate in school classes
We teach a class at Eagle Academy called the Senior Seminar. The class meets once a week for the full semester, and we have 14 students. The curriculum includes the investigation of student skills and passions, exploration of careers and the development of an individual career plan. The class culminates with a “Success Plan Presentation,” which students make to their peers and teachers.
We also participate in classes run by the CHSC schools as they help students develop a plan as they leave high school. Whether we teach or participate in High School classes, the goal is to bring industry and work experience to the classroom.
One-on-one mentoring
The first focus of the Act-On Poverty mentoring program is to understand and support kids in developing and executing their career plans
Mentoring
Some students lack support from parents or guardians, and some are even homeless. At AOP, we want to help these kids navigate their steps after high school. We assign volunteer mentors to kids as they leave high school and enter college, trade schools, or the working world. Our goal is to provide advice and help them navigate toward a career. Mentors attempt to stay in contact with the kids throughout their educational journey, helping them set and achieve their academic goals. Mentors sometimes even help tutor the kids or arrange tutors to get them through some of their more challenging classes. We are advisors and cheerleaders as they move forward.
All of our mentors are volunteers. Our goal is to align kids with adults who have similar careers or other overlapping interests with the kids. Our objective is to listen and help where we can. Many kids from disadvantaged backgrounds live in isolation and are afraid to network with those who can help them. We strive to change that. Here is our mentoring policy.
The statistics
As of the fall semester 2023, we have granted scholarships to 43 kids and paid $40,643 in financial aid.
We currently have 20 active kids being advised by 14 volunteer mentors.
We teach 14 kids in a Senior Seminar class with four volunteer teachers sharing their expertise.
Eagle Academy High School
We have granted $41,500 in scholarships to 26 students. $27,000 of the grants were to new graduates, and $14,500 were follow-on scholarships. We have paid $28,600 in financial aid, $15,000 to new graduates, and $13,600 in follow-on scholarships. We had ten active scholarship students pursuing post-secondary education as of the fall semester of 2023 and 7 mentors working with the kids. Since 2019, we have supported two students who have finished college or trade school education and are launched.
We attempt to stay in contact with all the grant students and have seven mentors aligned with 26 kids. Several kids never used the grants but are in good jobs that match their skills. Some don’t stay in contact with us, travel, or drift; some are new mothers. In a couple of cases, the kids have used their scholarships six months to a year after graduation, and one was used two years after graduation.
Daniel C. Oakes High School
We granted our first scholarships at DC Oakes in the spring of 2023. We granted $1,000 to three students, paid two students financial aid, and are working with the third as they execute their plan.
Colorado High School Charter High Schools
We have granted $14,000 in scholarships to 12 students and paid $8,000 to date. We have six mentors working with the kids.