$800 – Education Foundation of Teton Valley
High School Seniors from this year’s Youth Philanthropy program partially funded the Education Foundation of Teton Valley’s proposed Bound for Success college and career readiness pilot program. Funds will be used to provide expert coaching to both students and teachers over the course of a 10-week program to build scalable, long-term support in delivering highly effective post-high school planning instruction.
The goal of the Bound for Success Program is to provide students with access to the knowledge and resources they need to create and successfully navigate an individualized post-high school plan. To reach this goal the Education Foundation will roll out programming over three years in three phases and grow the program by two cohorts of students each year.
- Year 1: In school instruction on navigating post-high school options
- Year 2: In school community mentorship program
- Year 3: Peer to Peer mentorship
In year 1, Bound for Success will provide two cohorts of up to 25 students in the 7th and 11th grade with professional college and career coaching for 10 weeks during their school’s advocacy or leadership class. The Education Foundation will follow students over the course of three years to measure the impact of the program. The coaches will follow the curriculum they designed for this program last year using seed funding provided by the Youth Philanthropy Program.
Students in 7th grade will begin vision boarding about their future, they will learn about the different options available to them post-high school including trade school, two- and four-year college, advanced degrees, and straight-to-career options. Students in 11th grade will learn how to determine academic fit, social fit, and culture fit of different post-high school options. They will begin learning about financing options for their future choices including federal and private aid. They will also have opportunities to practice their writing skills specific to college essays.
Youth Philanthropists agreed that to ensure all TSD401 students have their best shot at post-high school success, we must offer support at an earlier age to increase knowledge and access to resources. If we can start the conversation earlier and provide it within the public school day to engage students where they are, we can increase access to knowledge and resources to support all students in a successful transition from their public school career into adulthood.
