Greater than 30,000 college students have attended Alamo Schools District schools tuition-free because the launch of the Alamo Promise program in 2019. And because it completes its fifth 12 months, district officers are assessing the success of those scholar cohorts and the way to higher assist incoming lessons.
“I believe this actually presents a possibility for us not solely to have fun, however to mirror after which strategize,” stated Stephanie Vasquez, Alamo Promise chief program officer. “And we’re proper in the midst of that course of.”
This fall, Alamo Schools welcomed the sixth and largest incoming class of Alamo Promise Students with greater than 7,300 freshman college students throughout the 5 schools — San Antonio Faculty, St. Philip’s Faculty, Northwest Vista Faculty, Northeast Lakeview Faculty and Palo Alto Faculty.
Alamo Promise covers tuition and charges that aren’t lined by different sources of economic help, making certain that qualifying college students attend any of the 5 group schools without spending a dime for as much as three consecutive years.
That is one in every of 450 comparable native and state promise applications throughout the nation, in keeping with nonpartisan and nonprofit group Faculty Promise. These applications celebrated 10 years of existence with a small convention at Palo Alto Faculty final week after they awarded Alamo Promise with a Nationwide Influence Award.
Whereas no promise program is similar, these are supposed to enhance entry to greater schooling for a few of the most underserved populations by eradicating, or lessening, the price barrier by way of scholarships.
At Alamo Schools, this system began by specializing in college students graduating from faculties with traditionally low college-enrollment charges, and people situated in excessive poverty areas.
In 2023, Alamo Promise expanded to grant entry to each highschool senior in Bexar County who enrolls in any of the 5 schools instantly after commencement.
Over the past 4 years, Alamo Schools has allotted greater than $16 million to this system. And this 12 months the universities put aside a $5 million price range for Alamo Promise.
“We’ve actually tried to ensure that we’ve the guideline of inclusivity,” Vasquez stated. “We actually see that our Alamo Promise students are reflective of the group and that’s been our intent.”
These 5 years of information offered the chance to conduct an evaluation of this system, Vasquez stated, a course of that’s presently ongoing. However even when the outcomes aren’t in but, there are some key metrics that they now know might make or break a scholar’s school expertise.
Being enrolled by way of Alamo Promise will increase the possibilities of college students staying enrolled in this system of their alternative by about 30%, school officers discovered. And retention of first-year college students is among the major determinants of their success.
Faculty officers discovered that college students who full and stay enrolled after their first 12 months are eight occasions extra more likely to full their diploma or certificates program.
General retention charges of Alamo Promise college students are barely decrease than their Alamo Schools friends, in keeping with 2023-24 information offered by the faculty. However each teams confirmed comparable third and fourth 12 months commencement charges.
“We’ve been actually profitable in our entry and enrollment,” Vasquez stated. “However we’re shifting — not solely with Alamo Promise however with the Alamo Schools District — to see how we are able to finest assist college students of their persistence, their completion and their post-secondary outcomes.”
A shift means higher information monitoring of those key efficiency indicators, and adjusting assist programs to enhance outcomes, Vasquez stated. As an establishment, she stated the aim is to at all times adapt and modify primarily based on scholar success.
Alamo Promise college students are inclined to attend school on a full-time foundation at greater charges than non-promise college students, Vasquez stated, and due to the character of this system, these are typically youthful college students.
This system has additionally prompted different public universities, together with the College of Texas at San Antonio and Texas A&M College-San Antonio, to create their very own promise applications, efforts that led to a rise in scholar enrollment.
Even when there’s speak about doable changes to extend the success of those college students, Vasquez stated there are already programs in place that should assist college students alongside the best way. These embrace the task of an educational advisor who apart from serving to college students begin their journey, will contact base with them on the 15-, 35-, and 45-credit hour mark.
However that doesn’t imply that changes aren’t wanted, she stated, and this inner evaluation might be a technique of creating certain that the following 5 years are equally or extra profitable, whereas ensuring that entry is on the middle of this system.
“We’re ensuring we’re retaining the spirit of this system and the intent to offer service to college students and entry and continued assist, quite than getting caught up within the letter of program necessities,” Vasquez stated.
