PHOENIX (AP) _ Arizona State University is offering a 10-week pilot program that includes workshops covering everything from applying to college to financial aid.
The Future Sun Devil Families program is open to the families of all high-school students, but it’s aimed at minorities.
For many first-generation, college-bound students, programs like these can be the difference between wanting to go to college and actually making it there.
Such programs aim to minimize the role ethnicity, income or language barriers play on college-acceptance rates, The Arizona Republic (http://bit.ly/12OULnq) reports.
Upon completion of the free program, students will receive an honorary ASU student identification card as a symbol of their place at the university.
Future Sun Devil Families officially launches in the fall but began its pilot this school year targeting parents at five schools in the Tolleson Union High School District.
Since its inception, it’s grown from 400 to 700 parents and students, said Lupe Varela-Franco, Tolleson Union’s primary liaison with ASU.
“The parents started not only coming themselves,” Varela-Franco said. “They brought their children and they also brought their neighbors.”
Upon completion of the free program, students will receive an honorary ASU student identification card as a symbol of their place at the university.
“It’s about closing the achievement gap, so we’re doing our part to fulfill that,” said Beatriz Rendon, associate vice president of education outreach and student services at ASU.
April Bell, director of college and career planning with the College Board, said parent support is “vital for a student to be successful.” Parents need to inspire their kids to attend college and help them fill out complicated forms during the application process, she said.
Keeping students on course for college, however, can be especially difficult for low-income families, who often work long hours and worry more about paying everyday bills than for their children’s education, Rendon said.
About half of low-income, college-ready students don’t attend college because they can’t afford it.
Low-income students are less likely to go to college compared with their high-income peers, said Mark Kantrowitz, publisher of two financial aid websites.
“Colleges are missing out on the opportunity to enroll talented students who would be quite successful in college if only given the right resources to make it affordable,” Kantrowitz said.
ASU officials hope Future Sun Devil Families will teach parents and students where to find those needed resources, and ultimately create a pipeline for students who may not otherwise have access to higher education.
“What we are trying to do is (have ASU) mirror the population that resides in Arizona,” Rendon said.
About 35 percent of high-school graduates in Arizona are Hispanic compared with a typical ASU freshman class that is about 23 percent Hispanic, according to an ASU report.
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Information from: The Arizona Republic, http://www.azcentral.com

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