College Greenlight Expands to Support White House College Access Initiative
Chicago, IL (PRWEB) January 27, 2014 -- College Greenlight, an online platform dedicated to helping underrepresented, first-generation, and low-income students find, apply for, and fund their higher education, announced today that it continues its expansion in conjunction with President Obama’s College Pipeline Initiative. The call to provide meaningful college access and support for all students has prompted leading colleges, universities, and community-based organizations (CBOs) to partner with College Greenlight to expand educational opportunities for high-achieving, underrepresented students nationwide.
“College Greenlight is uniquely positioned to help schools meet the objectives of the College Pipeline Initiative,” stated Jonathan April, general manager of College Greenlight. “We have expanded our tools, user base and partner network to help ensure disadvantaged students are reached early, supported, and placed along the path to a best fit college where they are most likely to succeed.”
Traditional college recruitment methods miss the majority of high-achieving low-income students. According to widely publicized studies, many low-income students who have top test scores and grades do not even apply to the nation’s best colleges. As a virtual platform, College Greenlight allows colleges to efficiently reach its rapidly growing user base of nearly 60,000 underrepresented and high-achieving low-income students.
“Universities that work with College Greenlight demonstrate a commitment to recruit, enroll and support underrepresented students,” said Leon Heller, CEO of Cappex, parent company of College Greenlight. “Additionally, they recognize the importance of CBOs as a pipeline to diverse populations of students.”
College Greenlight partners with and provides free college preparedness tools to a growing network of more than 400 CBOs and schools – from large cities to rural areas, where colleges rarely send representatives. These organizations, which provide vital support to help students navigate the path to and through college, use College Greenlight as the platform to connect their students with colleges, organize their college and scholarship searches, and track student progress.
Through the College Greenlight platform, colleges can directly communicate with students who they believe would be successful on campus with customized messages about college opportunities and programs they might have never thought possible. Colleges also use College Greenlight to build direct relationships with the organizations that serve these students throughout their high school and college career.
Twenty-three of College Greenlight’s university partners were invited to the White House to launch the College Pipeline Initiative. Among them were leading private institutions: Yale, Princeton, University of Chicago, Harvey Mudd College, Amherst College and Drake University; and top public universities including University of Virginia, University of Wisconsin-Madison and UC San Diego.
“We believe in helping students of all backgrounds achieve their potential, regardless of their economic situation,” said Karen Schrum, Executive Director, Enrollment & Student Advancement at University of Chicago. “College Greenlight provides an entirely new opportunity for reaching these students.”
Several of College Greenlight’s CBO partners, including College Possible, OneGoal, LEDA, and CollegeSpring, were also among the select number of college readiness organizations invited to the White House.
Cappex, a company dedicated to providing tools that connect colleges and students, launched College Greenlight in 2012.
About College Greenlight
College Greenlight is the leading online platform for first-generation, low-income, and underrepresented students. Partnered with over 400 community-based organizations in metropolitan, suburban, and rural areas throughout the country, College Greenlight serves nearly 60,000 student users. First-generation and underrepresented students and the organizations that support them are encouraged to visit http://www.collegegreenlight.com or email [email protected] to learn more.
About Cappex
Cappex has helped more than 5 million students during their college decision process by offering free tools that help them easily compare colleges, read detailed reviews by students on campus, find scholarships, and see their chances of getting into their favorite colleges. For more information about Cappex, visit http://www.cappex.com/solutions.
Jonathan April, College Greenlight, http://www.collegegreenlight.com, +1 224.765.0157, [email protected]
Share this article