Trinity and Georgetown University Partner with KIPP Charter Schools to Increase College Completion Rates

Trinity and Georgetown University Partner with KIPP Charter Schools to Increase College Completion Rates

KIPP (Knowledge Is Power Program), the nation’s largest nonprofit charter school network, announced that it will partner with both Trinity Washington University and Georgetown University in an effort to increase college completion rates for underserved KIPP students nationwide. This new partnership is featured in The Washington Post in an article that includes quotes from Trinity President Patricia McGuire and two KIPP graduates enrolled at Trinity — Yasmeen Newman and Jazmin Wright.

In partnering with KIPP, Trinity seeks to recruit and enroll 10 qualified KIPP graduates annually, beginning in the 2012-13 academic year. Trinity will provide strong support for KIPP alumni, including waived application fees, development of affinity programs for KIPP alumni, and support in the transition from high school to college.  KIPP graduates will benefit from the comprehensive first-year academic and co-curricular progam that Trinity has developed for all of its students. There are currently three KIPP graduates attending Trinity.

“Trinity is honored to become a partner with KIPP, which is a remarkable educational organization that provides outstanding academic opportunities for its students,” said President McGuire. “Trinity has an excellent track record in educating and graduating underserved students, and by partnering with KIPP, we can ensure that KIPP graduates who choose Trinity are given the academic and co-curricular support that will ensure their completion of college. KIPP and Trinity share a commitment to academic success and college completion, so this is a partnership that will greatly benefit students.”

The partnership supports Georgetown’s active recruitment of KIPP students, with the goal of enrolling a successful cohort of KIPP alumni each year and furthering Georgetown’s ongoing commitment to the annual enrollment of a critical mass of students from low-income and other non-traditional backgrounds. KIPP students are included in Georgetown’s three-week Summer Institute, an annual pre-college summer program for high school students from low income families. This program will be provided at no cost to students who attend. Eighteen KIPP students participated in the 2012 Summer Institute. There are currently three KIPP alumni attending Georgetown University.

“It is a privilege to deepen our engagement with KIPP. KIPP’s mission of ensuring that all students, regardless of their resources, have access to a great education, resonates with our work here at Georgetown,” said Georgetown President John J. DeGioia. “We are committed to making our University available to the very best students, and to providing all of our students with the support they require to do their very best work, to become their very best selves. We are excited about the ways that this partnership will enhance our common efforts, and are grateful for the opportunity it presents to expand the scope of our shared work.”

Founded by Susan Schaeffler in 2001, KIPP DC has grown to 10 schools serving 3,000 students, of which more than 99 percent are African American and 83 percent qualify for the federal free and reduced price meals program. KIPP DC is one of the highest performing charter school networks in D.C. with all of its eligible schools receiving Tier 1 ratings from the D.C. Public Charter School Board. KIPP DC is part of the national KIPP network of 125 open-enrollment, college-preparatory public charter schools serving more than 39,000 students in 20 states and Washington, D.C.

“We are extremely excited about these formal partnerships with Trinity Washington University and Georgetown University,” said Susan Schaeffler, founder of KIPP D.C. “With our commitment to doubling the college graduation rate east of the Anacostia River, these partnerships are truly invaluable. We look forward to taking advantage of both universities’ expertise in providing high-quality education to get our students not only to but through college.”

According to 2010 U.S. Census data, 31 percent of all Americans aged 25-29 have earned a college degree. For students in the bottom economic quartile, only 11 percent complete college by their mid-20s. As of 2011, 36 percent of KIPP students had completed a four-year college after finishing eighth grade at a KIPP middle school 10 or more years ago. KIPP’s four-year college completion rate is above the national average for all students and more than three times the rate for students from low-income families nationwide. KIPP’s goal is to reach a college completion rate that is comparable to that of the nation’s highest-income students.

With the addition of Trinity and Georgetown, KIPP’s total number of college and university partners now stands at 20. Other college and university partners include Brown, Colby, Davidson, Duke, Franklin and Marshall, Mercy, Houston Baptist, Hunter, Morehouse, Notre Dame de Namur, San Jose State, Spelman, Syracuse, Texas State, Tulane, University of Pennsylvania, University of Houston and University of Texas at Austin.

KIPP – the Knowledge Is Power Program – is a national network of open-enrollment, college-preparatory public charter schools with a track record of preparing students in underserved communities for success in college and in life.  KIPP was founded in Houston in 1994 and has grown to 125 schools serving more than 39,000 students in 20 states and Washington, D.C.  More than 95 percent of students enrolled in KIPP schools are students of color, and 85 percent qualify for the federal free- and reduced-price meals program. To date, more than 80 percent of students who have graduated from KIPP middle schools have matriculated to college.