NEW: Brown University to Partner with Prominent Charter School Organization
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
KIPP announced today that it will partner with Brown University to increase college completion rates for underserved students from KIPP schools nationwide. To support this partnership effort, Martha and Bruce Karsh have established the KIPP Scholarship Fund as a part of Brown’s permanent endowment, and contributed additional resources to help KIPPsters and alumni as they make their way toward graduation.
In partnering with KIPP, Brown hopes to recruit and enroll 6 to 8 qualified KIPP alumni each year. Brown will provide strong academic and social support systems for KIPP alumni who enroll at the university, while also addressing their full financial needs. Brown will also provide a range of opportunities and services for KIPP alumni including pre-college educational programs, targeted recruiting, research project support, and waiving application fees.
"The students we attract to Brown through this important partnership will contribute in meaningful ways to our community of talented and high-achieving students," said Brown University President Christina H. Paxson. "The generous gift from the Karshes, combined with Brown's commitment to addressing the full financial need of all admitted students, ensures that costs will not be a barrier to the KIPP students who come to Brown."
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTMartha Karsh—a KIPP board member—and her husband Bruce are Brown parents who are actively committed to helping KIPP students get to and through college. Their $2.5 million gift provides Brown with new resources to actively recruit KIPP students, underwrite their financial aid and offer them targeted support once they get to campus.
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 earned a four-year college degree 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.
Brown will work to recruit students from throughout KIPP's national network of 125 open-enrollment, college-preparatory public charter schools, which serves more than 39,000 students in 20 states and Washington, D.C.
“I could not be more grateful to the Karshes for their generous gift,” Richard Barth, CEO of the KIPP Foundation, said. “Their contribution will give KIPP Alumni the opportunity to attend one of the best schools in the country. We are also thrilled to call Brown University our partner and are grateful that they have joined us in getting more low-income kids through college.”
