Mayor Emanuel, CCC and CPS Announce New Initiative to Help 1,000 Students Create Postsecondary Plans

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Thursday, January 18, 2018

CHICAGO - Mayor Emanuel, City Colleges of Chicago (CCC) and Chicago Public Schools (CPS) today announced a collaborative effort to support Learn. Plan. Succeed. (LPS), a first in the nation initiative to ensure all CPS students graduate with a post high school plan by 2020. As part of LPS, City Colleges is committing to help 1,000 CPS students create a postsecondary plan beginning in spring 2018 by investing in seven postsecondary navigators. The navigators will help students at 18 high schools execute postsecondary plans to best fulfill their goals for the future.

“When we raise our expectations for what our children can achieve, and provide them with the resources and guidance they need to succeed, there is no limit to what they can accomplish,” said Mayor Emanuel. “Chicago’s students are leading the country in academic gains and making our entire city proud. This initiative will help more students plan for the future, set goals and reach their potential in and outside of the classroom.”

Each postsecondary navigator will be assigned to support approximately 150 students at designated CPS high schools. Navigators will work with the schools’ postsecondary leadership teams and directly with students as they craft postsecondary plans, such as: attending a four-year university, City College of Chicago, or other 2-year college; enrolling in a trade, apprenticeship, or job program; enrolling in the military; signing up for a gap year program; or working full-time. Navigators are not designed to take the place of schools’ postsecondary planning teams or counselors; rather, they will help students carry out the concrete steps needed to execute their postsecondary plans, such as filling out a FAFSA form or applying to an apprenticeship program. Navigators will work closely with counselors and postsecondary leadership teams to identify students who could benefit from additional support as they work to achieve their goals.

“Whether the students we help through the navigator program decide to enroll at City Colleges – or whether they choose another path after high school – we are proud to be helping Chicago students think beyond a high school diploma to a postsecondary experience they will need to secure a family-sustaining career,” said CCC Chancellor Juan Salgado.

Learn.Plan.Succeed. is a groundbreaking graduation initiative launching with the CPS class of 2020 to support postsecondary success for students of all levels by ensuring they develop plans for life after graduation with the support of dedicated professionals. In 2016, nearly 60 percent of CPS students graduated with a concrete plan, and with support from postsecondary navigators, 1,000 CPS students will have additional personalized support to help them reach their goals.

The addition of postsecondary navigators is aligned with Chicago Public Schools’ postsecondary planning model, which has longstanding partnerships with higher education and non-profit groups that provide students with individualized postsecondary planning support, such as iMentor, One Goal and Gear Up.

“Learn.Plan.Succeed. is an initiative focused on equity – every student at every school deserves to have a meaningful conversation with a professional to plan their future,” said CPS Acting CEO Dr. Janice K. Jackson. “Today’s announcement will provide our schools with additional support to help students explore a variety of paths to a successful future.”

The 18 high schools selected to partner with the navigators were chosen because they have developing postsecondary planning structures in place that would benefit from additional support. The postsecondary navigators will begin working with students in spring 2018 following training sessions. The following high schools will receive postsecondary navigator support:

• Bowen High School
• Bogan High School
• Chicago Vocational Career Academy High School
• Clemente Community Academy High School
• Crane Medical Preparatory High School
• Foreman High School
• Hirsch High School
• Hubbard High School
• Kennedy High School
• Manley Career Academy High School
• Mather High School
• Proposed Englewood High School (Prior to the proposed school opening, navigators will assist students who currently attend high school in Englewood)
• North-Grand High School
• Raby High School
• Roosevelt High School
• Simeon Career Academy High School
• Sullivan High School
• Wells Community Academy High School

City Colleges and Chicago Public Schools are working closely together to create a seamless path to college for Chicago students. Through the Chicago Star Scholarship, hard-working CPS high school students can earn free tuition and books at City Colleges for up to three years. Furthermore, the CCC-CPS dual enrollment/dual credit partnership, which allows CPS high school students to take college credit courses for free while they are still in high school, has grown by more than ten times since 2011, serving nearly 4,900 students in 2016-17. The expansion of dual enrollment and dual credit, along with Learn.Plan.Succeed., are building upon Mayor Emanuel’s major investment in postsecondary preparation—including his goal that 50 percent of CPS students will graduate with at least one college or career credential by 2019.

Chicago Public Schools serves 371,000 students in 646 schools. It is the nation’s third-largest school district.

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