College Success Partnership is Schooling Greene County

By Elizabeth Studebaker

A number of Greene County residents are closer to fulfilling their dreams of a higher education, thanks to Greene County College Success Partnership, formerly Higher Educational Opportunities, a component part of Greene Giving.

The Ohio Community Service Council along with the Ohio College Access Network and other partners will invest more than $1.2 million during the upcoming academic year to provide college counseling to young people from school districts across Ohio including Greene County.

"The goal of College Success Partnership is to help increase the accessibility of higher education to Greene County residents. The Partnership provides advisory services in the college search and financial aid process. With the rising cost of tuition for post-secondary education, a key part of increasing access is also the ability to provide last dollar grants to students in need," Kenna Stark, part of the Partnership’s leadership, said.

Sixty AmeriCorps Ohio College Guides will help serve more than 15,000 Ohio students, many of whom are from low-income families or would be the first in their families to attend college. The program places recent college graduates who dedicate their time to assisting at-risk youth directly in school districts and resource centers.

This near-peer model allows Ohio College Guides to draw upon their recent college experiences to offer fresh insight into preparing for, funding, attending and graduating from post-secondary schools.

"The College Success Partnership is excited about the selection of Mara Cordial to fill the spot as the Greene County AmeriCorps advisor," Jim Mescher, also part of the Partnership’s leadership, announced.

Mara, a recent Cedarville University graduate, will make a direct impact on the lives of students, according to Mescher.

"Our approach also supports local opportunities in schools by encouraging collaborations to address unmet educational needs," added Mescher.

The AmeriCorps grants are the first made under the Serve America Act, passed by Congress last year as an expansion of the impact for the service movement. Ohio received a 40 percent increase in the AmeriCorps allocation for 2010 as part of the expansion. In exchange for her services, Mara will earn an AmeriCorps Education Award to use toward furthering her own education or paying student loans.

Studebaker is a feature writer for the Greene County Dailies, is a consultant for Greene Giving. For information about College Success Partnership or Greene Giving, call Michael Gardner, Program Director, 937-562-5550. The Greene Giving office is located at 25 Greene St. in downtown Xenia.