Two organizations working to serve underrepresented students have merged as of April 1.
Gateway College National Network is now an initiative of Achieving the Dream (ATD), working together to link the success networks for high school and college students to improve college readiness, expand personalized student supports, and broaden services to help colleges graduate more students from vulnerable populations.
The merger is expected to allow ATD to further expand its focus on equity and leverage tools, coaching, expertise and relationships to strengthen its support for its network of colleges. ATD will help colleges expand their K-12/community college partnerships, dual enrollment programs and innovations in customized delivery of holistic services for nontraditional student populations.
ATD will now expand the reach of the Gateway to College initiative, which partners with over 30 colleges and nearly 200 school districts, by connecting its work with the more than 220 colleges in the ATD network. Gateway to College currently serves 24 colleges outside of ATD and 12 institutions in the ATD Network.
“The Gateway to College initiative enables us to help colleges create a robust pipeline from K-12 through community college and into a four-year degree program that students successfully complete,” said Dr. Karen A. Stout, ATD President and CEO. “This work will especially ease the transition for historically disadvantaged groups, leading to more equitable outcomes in the long run. By joining our organizations, we have the opportunity to advance new approaches and build innovative personalized supports to help a larger portion of our population to achieve their educational goals and dreams.”
Emily Froimson, formerly Gateway to College’s president is now the executive vice president of ATD. She said both organizations have many of the same funders, similar values, missions, and equity as a guiding focus. Both organizations coach community colleges on strategies to address the needs of underserved students. Two-thirds of those are students of color, two-thirds are also low income and three-fourths are first-generation college students, according to information Gateway for College gathered.
“Nearly a third of high school students take courses for college credit. However, low-income students and students of color, while more likely to benefit from these experiences, are less likely to participate in dual-enrollment courses and benefit form holistic supports they need to be successful,” she said. “In merging with Achieving the Dream, we will ensure that more young people are prepared to be successful at the community college level and beyond.”
