A local grant from the Daniel and Janet Mordecai Foundation will aim to help students make the transition from community college to four-year institutions starting this year.
The $410,000 grant will fund the “Mordecai Transfer and Completion Initiative” for the next four years providing advisors, mentoring services, and other outreach efforts through the Denver Scholarship Foundation for about 80 students at the Community College of Denver.
The selected students who will become part of the program must plan to attend either the University of Colorado Denver or Metropolitan State College of Denver.
“Our goal at the Denver Scholarship Foundation is not just college enrollment, it is college completion,” said Cindy Abramson, executive director of DSF in a released statement. “We’ve found that too many community college students are not achieving their ultimate college goals, and thanks to this generous grant from the Mordecai Foundation, we can provide CCD students with additional support to help them complete their bachelor’s degrees.”
Nationally, a third of all college students begin school at a community college. Although most students plan to go on to earn a bachelor’s degree, only 20 percent really complete it within six years.
Low-income and first-generation college students have a lower completion percentage.
According to a study from the Denver Scholarship Foundation on Denver Public School graduates, only 8 percent who begin college at CCD complete a bachelor’s degree within six years.
Abramson said the study revealed that a main problem is that students don’t get enough guidance from advisors or counselors on which classes to take in order to be able to transfer the credits.
After the program kicks-off this year with 80 students, another 20 will be added.
