“San Antonio must increase its college attainment to attract the type of jobs that will allow our city to compete in the 21st century global economy,” said Mayor Julián Castro. “While we are making bold investments in Pre-K, we must also focus on the critical areas of academic preparation for college and college completion.”

Leadership teams from four local school districts (Harlandale, Northside, San Antonio, and Southwest) will work with national facilitators on goal setting, adoption of metrics, identification of strategies, targeted at Latino students, as part of a collaborative plan to reach the SA2020 goal of 85 percent college readiness.

“When we see individual institutions like these school districts committing to tangible plans to achieve the SA2020 vision, we know that we will make good on our promise to achieve the greatest educational turnaround of any city in America by the year 2020,” said SA2020 CEO Darryl Byrd.

The conference will culminate with all four school district superintendents announcing their plans to enter into a compact to increase college completion. They will be joined by Mayor Castro, CEO Byrd, and other key partners on November 15, 1:30 p.m. at cafécollege for the official announcement of a citywide campaign, in support of SA2020, to increase college readiness and college completion of Latinos, known as “Diplomás: More than just an education.”

“Our school districts and partners are highly committed. It is only through this type of strategic planning that we will be able to lower the number of Latino students who aspire to attend college and do not graduate with a college credential, setting San Antonio as a national model in college readiness and completion efforts,” said Eyra Perez, Executive Director of the San Antonio Education Partnership, the lead agency for the Diplomás Project.

The Diplomás Project was made possible by a $600,000, 4-year grant from the Lumina Foundation Latino Student Success effort to bring together key policy, education, business and nonprofit sectors to build, implement and sustain “place-based partnerships” capitalizing on their local talents. The conference also received support from the P16Plus Council of Greater Bexar County, TG, and the College Board. It is also in support of the city’s 2020 goal of 50 percent college graduates, which builds upon goals of 85 percent college readiness for high school graduates and 80 percent enrollment in college.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 13, 2012
Media Contact: Tessa Benavides
(210) 207-4769
tbenavides@saedpartnership.org

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At SA2020 we don’t ask: “What do you want to see changed in our city?” We ask: “What will you do to make the change you want to see happen?” SA2020 links the demand for an exceptional San Antonio to the talent supply of thousands of citizens who have taken ownership of their future. The mission of SA2020 is to catalyze the entire San Antonio community into passionate, focused, and sustained action to achieve the shared goals that will transform San Antonio into a world-class city by the year 2020 in eleven key vision areas.

Dedicated to providing students in San Antonio with “more than an education,” the Diplomás Project unites 16 cross-sector partners to integrate existing programs and partnerships into a systemic approach centered on city-wide data gathering and shared metrics, systems mechanics and bridging transitions, systems navigation readiness for students and parents, and pathways to economic opportunity and workforce alignment. The collaborative partners are committed to achieving a 9 percent increase in postsecondary completion rates of Latinos by the summer of 2015, en route to achieving the city’s SA2020 goal of a 50 percent college completion rate by 2020. Other partners in the effort include four area school districts, Alamo Colleges, the University of Texas at San Antonio, businesses and chambers of commerce, community-based organizations and the City of San Antonio.

The San Antonio Education Partnership is a nonprofit organization celebrating more than 20 years of providing key services and college scholarships to at-risk high school students, equipping them for college success. In partnership with the City of San Antonio, the corporate community, school districts, local colleges/universities, Communities Organized for Public Service (COPS) and Metro Alliance, the San Antonio Education Partnership provides direct services to more than 35,000 students and their families in career awareness, college entry and enrollment, financial aid, and college transition through its three programs: Scholarships, cafécollege and Road to Success.

Lumina Foundation, an Indianapolis-based private foundation, is committed to enrolling and graduating more students from college-especially 21st century students: low-income students, students of color, first-generation students and adult learners. Lumina’s goal is to increase the percentage of Americans who hold high-quality degrees and credentials to 60 percent by 2025. Lumina pursues this goal in three ways: by identifying and supporting effective practice, through public policy advocacy, and by using our communications and convening power to build public will for change. For more information, logon to http://www.luminafoundation.org.

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Under this campaign, Lumina is supporting local partnerships in 11 states that demonstrate a commitment to their growing Latino community. This grant effort encourages community leaders across key policy, education, business and nonprofit sectors to build, implement and sustain “place-based partnerships” that capitalize on their local talents. Lumina is pleased to work alongside Excelencia in Education and FSG to provide technical assistance and evaluation support to each partnership.

“Lumina’s Latino Student Success effort is an integral part of our commitment to Goal 2025,” said Lumina President and CEO Jamie Merisotis. “Through these partnerships, we aim to build bridges among leadership groups already working to improve Latino college preparation, access and attainment.”

“San Antonio is determined to achieve the greatest educational turnaround in the nation,” said San Antonio Mayor Julián Castro. “We know that to fulfill our community’s promise, we must raise college completion rates, particularly for our Latino students.”

The San Antonio Education Partnership (SAEP) will unite 16 cross-sector partners to integrate existing programs and partnerships into a systemic approach centered on city-wide data gathering and shared metrics, systems mechanics and bridging transitions, systems navigation readiness for students and parents, and pathways to economic opportunity and workforce alignment. The collaborative partners are committed to achieving a 9 percent increase in postsecondary completion rates of Latinos by the summer of 2015, en route to achieving the city’s SA2020 goal of a 50 percent college completion rate by 2020. Other partners in the effort include four area school districts, Alamo Colleges, the University of Texas at San Antonio, businesses and chambers of commerce, community-based organizations and the City of San Antonio.

“SAEP and our partners believe that the educational success of San Antonio’s Latino students is a shared responsibility. We are prepared to bring down the silos, abandon our individual agendas, connect the many examples of educational excellence that already exist in our community, and combine our resources and expertise to make a collective impact,” said Eyra A. Perez, executive director of the Education Partnership.

At more than 50 million, Latinos represent the largest and fastest-growing population group in the United States. By 2025, half of the nation’s workforce will be of Latino descent. At that time, 63 percent of all jobs in the United States will require some form of postsecondary education or training – according to labor economist Anthony Carnevale of the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce.

The strength of this focused Latino student success effort is due to the dedication of many partners striving to reach a national college attainment goal.

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About Lumina Foundation: Lumina Foundation, an Indianapolis-based private foundation, is committed to enrolling and graduating more students from college—especially 21st century students: low-income students, students of color, first-generation students and adult learners. Lumina’s goal is to increase the percentage of Americans who hold high-quality degrees and credentials to 60 percent by 2025. Lumina pursues Goal 2025 in three ways: by identifying and supporting effective practice, through public policy advocacy, and by using our communications and convening power to build public will for change. For more information, log on to www.luminafoundation.org.

The San Antonio Education Partnership is a nonprofit organization celebrating more than 20 years of providing key services and college scholarships to at-risk high school students, equipping them for college success. In partnership with the City of San Antonio, the corporate community, school districts, local colleges/universities, Communities Organized for Public Service (COPS) and Metro Alliance, the San Antonio Education Partnership provides direct services to more than 35,000 students and their families in career awareness, college entry and enrollment, financial aid, and college transition through its three programs: Scholarships, cafécollege and Road to Success.

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The event included a special address from Mayor Julián Castro – who mentioned the SAEP program cafécollege during his convention speech – as he announced this year’s Mayor’s challenge, an instrument toward achieving his overall education goals outlined in SA2020.

“Mayor Castro’s support of the San Antonio Education Partnership and its programs has fueled support from civic, corporate and community organizations from across the city, state and nation, highlighting San Antonio as a national model for educational success,” said SAEP Executive Director Eyra Perez.

San Antonio Mayor Julián Castro addresses attendees of SAEP’s Rising Stars Success Celebration.

On the cusp of its 25th anniversary, the event will celebrate the thousands of students who are achieving college success with support from the SAEP. Since 1989, the San Antonio Education Partnership has worked to equip students with the guidance, tools and resources to achieve college success. To reach this goal, the SAEP delivers key services each year to 30,000 San Antonio students through three programs: Road to Success, cafécollege and the SAEP scholarship.

To date, the San Antonio Education Partnership has awarded more than $20 million in scholarships to students attending local colleges and universities, achieving more than 4,500 college graduates in the city of San Antonio. The SAEP annually supports more than 3,500 college students through its scholarship program, providing an estimated $2 million to area students. For the last two years, cafécollege has exceeded its expectations by serving more than 16,000 clients since opening in September 2010.

“We’re very proud to be a part of our city’s educational transformation. With all this support we’ve received over the last 25 years, we are grateful for the opportunity to continue working hard for our community and especially our students,” Perez continued.

The event took place from 6-8 p.m. at cafécollege.

President of Our Lady of the Lake University, Dr. Tessa Martinez-Pollack, San Antonio Mayor Julián Castro, and Executive Director of SAEP, Eyra Perez at the Rising Stars Success Celebration.

The San Antonio Education Partnership is a nonprofit organization celebrating more than 20 years of providing key services and college scholarships to at-risk high school students, equipping them for college success. In partnership with the City of San Antonio, the corporate community, school districts, local colleges/universities, Communities Organized for Public Service (COPS) and Metro Alliance, the San Antonio Education Partnership provides direct services to more than 35,000 students and their families in career awareness, college entry and enrollment, financial aid, and college transition through its four programs: Road to Success, Scholarships, and cafécollege.

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The event will include food, music, and a special address from San Antonio Mayor Julián Castro and happens from 6-8 p.m. at cafécollege, 131 El Paso Street. Individual tickets and sponsorship are available for the event. Tickets cost $40 each and sponsorship levels are as follows:

• Title Sponsor ($5,000) – Acknowledgement of title sponsorship from the stage during the program; opportunity to distribute promotional items to attendees; ten reserved tickets to the event; recognition of title sponsorship with prominent placement of company/organization logo in all event marketing to include the SAEP website and at the event
• Senior Sponsor ($2,000) – Acknowledgement of sponsorship from the stage during the program; ten reserved tickets to the event; recognition of sponsorship with prominent placement of company/organization logo in all event marketing to include the SAEP website and at the event
• Junior Sponsor ($1,000) – Ten reserved tickets to the event; recognition of sponsorship with placement of company/organization logo in all event marketing to include the SAEP website and at the event
• Event Sponsor ($500) – Ten reserved tickets to the event; recognition of sponsorship with company/organization name listing in all event marketing to include the SAEP website and at the event

Tickets and sponsorship can be purchased through PayPal or by contacting SAEP via phone at (210) 207-4769 or email at tbenavides@saedpartnership.org.

SAEP thanks the sponsors of the Rising Stars Success Celebration!

Title Sponsor

Senior Sponsor

Edgewood Independent School District

Junior Sponsor

Event Sponsor

Alamo Colleges

City of San Antonio, Department of Human Services

GRE Creative Communications

Palo Alto College

The Sabinal Group

San Antonio Housing Authority

SWBC

In-Kind Sponsors

Advise Texas

City Year

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We are honored to have such a great leader on our team!

To read more about this great achievement, click here.

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The first camp, a four-day camp designed for current high school students, will focus on post-graduation preparation with topics such as career exploration, college and career alignment, college readiness, college/university and major research, and resume preparation.

This high school camp includes a visit to a local college campus and a career fair with several local businesses.

In addition, cafécollege will host a four-day elementary school day camp focusing on oceanography and two middle school camps focused on engineering and sports science. The camps are designed to inspire young students to think about what they want to focus on studying in the future so that they can begin to take the preliminary steps at an early age.

“It is important to inspire our students to take the necessary steps toward higher education,” said Eyra Perez, Executive Director of the San Antonio Education Partnership. “Our camps not only encourage students to start thinking about college but give them the tools and resources they need to make a higher education a reality.”

A list of event dates are as follows:

High School College and Career Summer Day Camp
Tuesday-Friday, June 19-22, 2012
9:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

Elementary School Day Camp – Oceanography
Tuesday-Friday, June 19-22, 2012
9:30 a.m. – 11:45 a.m.

Middle School Day Camp – Engineering
Tuesday-Friday, June 26-29, 2012
9:30 a.m. – 11:45 a.m.

Middle School Day Camp – Sports Science
Tuesday-Wednesday, July 17-18, 2012
9:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

All camps will take place at cafécollege located at 131 El Paso Street. For more information or to register online visit www.cafecollege.org/events-registration.

Please contact Rebeca Gonzalez at 210.207.4528 or rgonzalez@saedpartnership.org with any questions.

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