Washington State Achievers Program – Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

TUKWILA, Wash. -- The Washington State Achievers Program today marked five years of new opportunities and changed lives for thousands of young people with a celebration at Foster High School in Tukwila. Bill Gates, Sr., co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, joined past and present scholarship recipients, parents, teachers, and community members to showcase the innovative Achievers Program, which combines scholarships and high school reform in 16 Achievers High Schools around the state.

In the five years since it was launched by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Washington Education Foundation (WEF), the Achievers Program has awarded college scholarships to nearly 2,500 low-income students, the majority of whom are students of color.  School improvement efforts in the Achievers High Schools have led to greater awareness of the importance of college for thousands of additional students.

“With high expectations and the right supports, all students can graduate from high school prepared to thrive in college,” said Gates. “The Achievers Scholars are proving it. Their stories of determination, passion, and hard work fill me with great hope for the future of our state – and our nation.”

In today’s competitive global economy, post-secondary education is more important than ever. Just one in three Washington ninth-graders will graduate from high school ready for the academic demands of college according to the Manhattan Institute. Only about a third of young adults in Washington State go on to four-year college.  Nationally, just 9 percent of low-income students earn a bachelor’s degree.

The Achievers Program is helping students throughout the state beat these odds. A new report released today by the WEF and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, “Preparing All Students for College and Work,” says 73 percent of Achievers Scholars in the fifth class enrolled directly into four-year colleges. Many of the Achievers Scholars are the first in their families to go to college. The report highlights the successes in the Achievers High Schools, including an increased number of students enrolling in college preparatory classes, a higher percentage of students passing WASL reading and math exams, and a stronger college-going culture and awareness across all student groups.

These findings are echoed in a recently released study of Achiever Scholars by the National Opinion Research Center (NORC). While 64 percent of low-income high school students who graduated in 1992 were enrolled in college two years later according to U.S. Department of Education data, the NORC report reveals that three years after graduating from high school, 80 percent of Achievers Scholars from the first class were enrolled in college. Virtually all of the students were attending college full time.
 
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which has invested more than $125 million in the Achievers Program to date, will invest $4.3 million more over the next two years in a continued partnership with the WEF and the Achievers High Schools to support ongoing efforts to ensure students are equipped with the skills and knowledge they need to succeed in college and the workplace. The grants are designed to serve as a catalyst for similar efforts across the state. 

“All students, regardless of ability to pay, deserve the chance to fulfill their potential,” said Bob Craves, CEO and president of WEF. “The Washington Achievers Program believes that higher education should not be a privilege – it should be a right for all students. That is why we are determined to provide these outstanding young people access to these opportunities.”

Every year since its inception, the Achievers Scholarship Program has helped 500 new low-income students attend college. Sixteen-year-old Ana Parada, who spoke at today’s event, used to think that college was out of reach. A junior at Foster High School who came to the U.S. from Mexico when she was 9 years old, Ana knew her family could not afford to send her to college. Now that she is an Achievers Scholar, Ana dreams of taking pre-med courses in college and eventually becoming a doctor. The Achievers Program will continue to provide scholarships, early college awareness, and mentoring through 2011, serving a total of 5,000 students.

Achievers High Schools (Number of Achievers Scholars)
1. Cleveland High School, Seattle (222)
2. Clover Park High School, Lakewood (317)
3. Davis High School, Yakima (332)
4. Foster High School, Tukwila (234)
5. Henry Foss High School, Tacoma (456)
6. Kent-Meridian High School, Kent (303)
7. Kittitas High School, Kittitas (75)
8. Lincoln High School, Tacoma (366)
9. Mabton High School, Mabton (88)
10. Mariner High School, Everett (366)
11. Mount Tahoma High School, Tacoma (333)
12. Stevenson High School, Stevenson (108)
13. Tonasket High School, Tonasket (182)
14. Truman High School, Federal Way (53)
15. West Valley High School, Spokane (240)
16. Yelm High School, Yelm (220)

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Washington Education Foundation
WEF is a 501(c) 3 non-profit organization formed to provide economically disadvantaged and underrepresented students the educational and financial incentives necessary for them to attend the post-secondary institutions of their choice. The foundation currently administers several scholarship programs including the Washington State Achievers Program and the Costco Scholarship Fund. More information is available at www.waedfoundation.org.