ANDREW BRAMSON is the president and CEO of the College Crusade of Rhode Island, a Providence-based nonprofit that helps students in low-income communities prepare for college. The nonprofit received the Community Leadership Award from the Rhode Island Foundation during the foundation’s annual meeting at the R.I. Convention Center on May 16. The award recognizes an individual or nonprofit for demonstrating innovation, impact, commitment and leadership. College Crusade is celebrating its 30th year in operation.
How much have the education opportunities for students in low-income areas improved since College Crusade formed 30 years ago? We have independent research on our students that we have been following for the last 12 years. We know that the students who participate in the College Crusade are one-third more likely to enroll in college than their peers. Very few college-access organizations around the country have been able to demonstrate those types of gains.
Can you share for our readers a recent success story about a student? I have two. This year, we have one student who came to this country from the Dominican Republic when she was 11. In the last seven years, she has mastered English and graduated No. 4 in her class, has gotten a full scholarship and will be going to Yale [University] this fall.
We also have a student, also a young woman at the Providence Career & Technical Academy, she is No. 1 in her class in the automotive program. She is the only female student in that program at PCTA and this is a young woman who is passionate about fixing cars. She’s going to [the University of Rhode Island] this fall and is going to be studying computer science.
These are two totally different stories … and what’s great about this organization is that we can meet students wherever they are and help them recognize their full potential.
What are some popular programs at College Crusade that are most engaging for students? During the summer, we have a program that is a partnership with the Block Island Maritime Institute, where middle school and high school students get to go to Block Island for a whole week. They learn marine biology and learn ecology, and environmental management. That’s a great program because for first-generation [students with low incomes], the opportunity to spend a whole week on Block Island is rare. So, it’s a great opportunity to spend time together, be away from home, and learn biology and the social skills of spending time with each other for a week. It’s a good prep for what it will be like living in a college dorm.
Any new initiatives on the horizon for College Crusade? We are expanding our SAT program. Obviously, one of the bigger barriers for our students to be able to get into good colleges is to do well on the SATs. In order to do that, we’re providing much more rigorous one-on-one coaching in support of students helping their SAT scores so they can have the outcomes that they need in order to apply to more schools. n
