LIFE CHANGER: SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM LAUNCHES

By Clare S. Richie

Achieve Atlanta will award approximately 900 need-based scholarships this spring to eligible Atlanta Pubic School (APS) high school senior applicants. Recipients will receive up to $5,000 per year for a four-year institution or up to $1,500 per year for a two-year college or technical school. Scholarships are renewable for student recipients who remain in good academic standing.

“Our vision is to have every student in APS complete post-secondary education and attain the full benefits that higher education provides,” shared Tina Fernandez, Achieve Atlanta Executive Director. “When paired with other financial aid, these scholarships are intended to greatly reduce the need for families to get high-interest private loans,” Fernandez added.

Recent data shows that only 1 in 5 APS high school graduates completes a postsecondary degree of any kind. Yet by 2020, 60% of the jobs in Georgia will require some form of post-secondary degree.

Need-based scholarships are a key part of Achieve Atlanta’s strategy to tear down the barriers that prevent students, especially those who are the first in their families to go on to higher education, from completing a degree or credential after high school.

Achieve Atlanta is a supporting organization of The Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta, and is currently funded through a grant from the Joseph B. Whitehead Foundation.

Achieve Atlanta invests in strategies that combine financial assistance with academic and social support to increase post-secondary access, retention and completion.

Since Achieve Atlanta’s launch in July 2015, there are 30 additional mentoring adults serving all APS high schools, thanks to a partnership with the College Advising Corps and Hands on Atlanta/AmeriCorps. Prior to this effort, it is estimated that for every 400 APS high school students there was one counselor.

College Advising Corps mentors work with 11th and 12th graders on the “nuts and bolts” of going to college, such as ACT/ SAT test prep, applications, applying for scholarships and more. For ninth and 10th graders, Hands on Atlanta/AmeriCorps mentors work on building awareness and a “college-going mindset.” For example, ninth graders hear about the importance of a good GPA and the possibilities for financing college.

Achieve Atlanta understands that while high school advising and scholarships will help more APS students access postsecondary education, it is not enough to get them over the finish line. Less than half of APS students who enroll in college graduate within six years. In fact, the majority drops out between their freshman and sophomore year.

First-generation college goers need support while in college, both academic and social/emotional. That’s why Achieve Atlanta is also designing a student advisory model with partner post-secondary institutions.

By working with partners to conduct high school and post-secondary advising, Achieve Atlanta can direct the majority of its $20 million seed money from the Joseph B. Whitehead Foundation toward its needbased scholarships.

Starting in early March, APS seniors will be able to apply for the Achieve Atlanta scholarship. Eligibility requirements include enrollment and graduation from an APS high school, and minimum standards related to GPA, financial need and postsecondary enrollment.

Full details will be available at achieveatlanta.org following the scholarship announcement at the Feb. 1 Atlanta Board of Education meeting.

“We launched the scholarship program because we believe our students deserve a fair chance to achieve their dreams,” Fernandez said. “This is a life changer for a lot of our students.”

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Special

Girls Who Code Atlanta is offering its first summer immersion program this year with a deadline to sign up on March 1. Girls will learn from experts and leaders in the field of computer science,

By Dyana Bagby

High school students interested in computer science are being offered a fun and exciting way to learn about the industry seriously in need of girl power.

Girls Who Code, a national nonprofit, is actively recruiting girls to participate in its first summer immersion program in Atlanta with March 1 as the deadline to sign up. The workshop will be held in Midtown from June 6 to July 22.

“This is for young women in STEM (Science Technology Engineering Mathematics) … and we’re seeking to offer fair representation in these fields,” said Arlene Persuad, spokesperson for Atlanta’s Girls Who Code program. There are 60 spots open in Atlanta’s summer program.

The summer immersion program

BeltLine announces lighting campaign

The Atlanta BeltLine has launched “Light the Line,” a campaign to raise $1.1 million to install lighting along the Eastside Trail.

Crowdfunding will be used to install the lights, which would be placed along the 2.3 mile segment that connects Krog Street Market to Piedmont Park.

During the construction phase of the trail, conduit was installed to support lights in the future. The BeltLine has designed a lighting plan that calls for 130 low-energy LED path lights every 90 feet. Funding for lighting will be built into the budget for future BeltLine trail segments.

Jamestown, developers of Ponce City Market, has agreed to contribute $100, 000 to the campaign.

Of the $1.1 million campaign goal, $990,000 or 90 percent of the total, will go directly to the purchase and installation of the 130 lights. Of the remaining budget, $100,000 will help support BeltLine programming on the Eastside Trail, including free fitness classes and Art on the Atlanta BeltLine installations, and $10,000 will go toward campaign management expenses.

The public can make donations and find more information by visiting lighttheline. org.

is a seven-week workshop where participants will learn about computer science, robotics, web design and mobile development. There will be presentations from women who are engineers and entrepreneurs, and top women executives will also provide career and academic mentorship.

“They will be building and creating,” Persuad said.

Founded in 2012 by Reshma Saujani, Girls Who Code seeks to close the gender gap in computer coding. Today, women represent only 18 percent of all computer science graduates, down significantly from 37 percent in 1984.

The summer immersion program is free, but in January Saujani announced $1 million in scholarships for girls to attend, thanks to partnerships with dozens of corporations, including Amazon, Facebook, Pixar Animation Studios and Twitter.

The scholarships will go toward helping cover transportation costs and also replace loss wages for girls who have summer jobs.

“We are reaching out directly to high school principals, guidance counselors, parents, clubs and other youth programs. And we are specifically reaching out to minority students and low-income students,” said Persuad.

Girls Who Code’s summer immersion program is now in 11 cities and offered to 1,560 girls, a jump from just 20 girls in New York during its inaugural year.

“This incredible expansion shows the technology sector has finally woken up to its gender gap problem and is moving quickly to show many more young women they have a future in the industry,” said Saujani in a statement.

“I want to thank all of our partners who are as committed as we are to reversing long-held assumptions about what an engineer should be, and opening up many new doors for women across the nation.”

For more information and to register, visit girlswhocode.com.