Join the Diversity Interest Group in the Large Meeting Room at 1:00 pm for a talk with Neil Swidey from the Alray Scholars Program on Tackling the College Completion Crisis. For too long, education leaders and public policy advocates have defined “college access” as helping low-income, first-gen students get accepted, and enrolled, in college. But the reality is that in Boston, as in many cities around the country, a large majority of public-school graduates who attend college end up leaving campus without earning any type of degree. Instead of getting the big boost in earning power associated with a Bachelor’s, they are left degreeless and often in debt. The Alray Scholars Program is working to reverse that depressing data in Boston. This small nonprofit works with students returning to college after a setback, providing them with support in the form of mentoring, scholarships and career advice. The model is working. Alray Scholars now graduate at a rate three times the national average for returning college students. Alray’s founder, Neil Swidey, and its executive director, Debbie Nguyen, will share with the Brookhaven community the lessons they’ve learned working in this space.
