Recent Loyola grads encourage students to pursue college

A nationwide initiative to help open the doors to higher education for low-income students has landed in Baltimore, and Loyola College alums are among the first to pilot the program in area high schools.

The College Advising Corps, a group of specially trained counselors, will help guide and motivate students in Maryland high schools with large numbers of lower-income, first-generation prospective college applicants. They will work one-on-one with high-achieving students who need guidance in applying to college and processing financial aid applications. 

“In many lower-income areas, it doesn’t even occur to talented young people to consider college,” says Lee Richmond, professor in Loyola’s education department and director of the College Advising Corps. “As a result, they miss out on so many opportunities to pursue rewarding careers, improve their own lives and help transform their communities.”

Three of the first eight advisors were members of Loyola’s Class of 2007 and were selected in large part on the basis of their commitment to service-a good fit for an initiative modeled in many ways on programs like Teach for America and AmeriCorps. Advisors, contracted for one to two years, receive a stipend, some housing expenses and a $5,000 grant to be used for college loans or future education. 

The program is the product of a $1.3 million grant from the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation. Loyola is the only Maryland institution to receive the prestigious award; however, it joins nine institutions including Brown University, Tufts University and the University of California, Berkeley, which will establish similar programs in other states.

“Colleges and universities need to focus on removing barriers to achievement while also providing the tools for individuals to fulfill their potential,” says Loyola President Rev. Brian Linnane, S.J. “This program will change the lives of thousands of Maryland students who need information and support to achieve their educational goals.”

Graduating seniors or graduate students can apply in the spring for this unique experience. For more information, click here or contact Cheryl Moore-Thomas at cmoore@loyola.edu.