At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, unemployment in the United States reached 14.8% in April 2020.
Given the high number of hiring freezes and job losses, post-secondary enrollment and revenue plummeted. Earning an education was no longer attainable or affordable for many potential and current students.
Now, as the nation turns toward recovery, College Promise—a non-profit aimed at eliminating college cost barriers—is implementing new models and training to promote economic mobility and post-college career success.
Several of these programs were featured in the College Promise hosted webinar “Financial Sustainability for College Promise Programs: Navigating Through and Beyond COVID-19” on Thursday.
“The pandemic has shaken us all in every realm of life and in every aspect of education,” said Dr. Michael T. Nettles, senior vice president and the Edmund W. Gordon Chair of Policy Evaluation & Research at the Educational Testing Service (ETS). “College Promise initiatives are no exception. We are faced with the same needs today that we had prior to the pandemic and even more.”
Founded in 2011, the Say Yes Buffalo focused on providing scholarships and comprehensive supports to increase post-secondary completion rates and create economic revitalization in the city of Buffalo, New York.
Under the program, scholarships are offered to graduates of Buffalo charter and public schools to attend City University of New York (CUNY) and State University of New York (SUNY) institutions and to more than 90 private universities and colleges across the country.
