America's Great Working-Class Colleges

Several courses offered at colleges throughout Montana are using storytelling that is founded in cultural competency to better connect students with their heritage. This effort is part of a larger project that aims to raise graduation rates by implementing support systems for students. Other offerings include block scheduling and career and technical education certificate programs.

Community colleges were originally designed to be affordable and accessible, yet the myriad pressures on students means that the best intentions often don’t lead to positive results. But the University of Central Florida and its partners are proving a new model called DirectConnect—heavy on individual attention and clear academic goals—that paves a surer path.

Educational Talent Search provides personalized college and career counseling to first-generation and low-income students. Counselors work with students from 8th grade through high school graduation, offering one-on-one support with college applications, financial aid forms, scholarship searches, and career planning. The program has seen nearly 90% of seniors enrolling in post-secondary education, far above its 56% target.

Arrupe College offers two-year associate degree programs in smaller classes and at significantly lower costs on the Loyola University campus. At Arrupe College, 50% of the students graduate, and 70% of graduates continue to earn their bachelor’s degrees. With the help of the nonprofit Come To Believe Network, several four-year universities across the country are also beginning to offer two-year programs.

The Transfer Scholars Network partners with community colleges and elite universities to help high-achieving students complete their four-year degree at a top school. Alongside mentorship throughout the application process, students who are accepted to partner institutions receive a financial aid package and ongoing support.

The student-led SzKTP program provides peer mentorship and application help to high school students interested in attending Corvinus University, with the goal of improving higher education opportunities for students from low-income and disadvantaged areas. Once they’re accepted to Corvinus, students in the program continue to receive support and guidance, as well as a stipend to help lessen the burden of university-related costs.

The nonprofit Abdulkabir Aliu Foundation provides scholarships for over 300 students in Nigeria to pursue tertiary education and help reduce the number of illiterate adults in the country.

Through admissions counseling, tutoring and fellowship, volunteer-based association CampusRom is helping get more Roma students into Spanish university classrooms — and stay there. In 2021, 75% of enrolled students passed their courses, many participants return as volunteers after finishing their studies, and the system has been adopted in other Spanish regions of the country as well.

The Romani Education Fund in Slovakia is helping children from the Roma community, which has a history of social and economic disadvantages as well as being subject to ethnic discrimination, overcome challenges to finish high school and pursue higher education. The REF works by providing qualifying students with a stipend to pay for educational supplies, as well as providing school guidance and personal mentorship to help both students and parents overcome the social hurdles that impede the student's desire or ability to fulfill their potential.

There are many reasons why a student might leave university without graduating. Match Beyond helps students who dropped out of college finally receive their degree through personal counselors who make sure that the students are fulfilling all the necessary things in order to graduate.