UTICA — Low-income, homeless, and other at-risk youth have new support on their side if going to college is a goal, now that On Point for College, Inc. has opened a location at 524 Elizabeth St. The Syracuse–based nonprofit hopes to send at least 50 Utica–area youth off to college by August 2013, says Executive […]
UTICA — Low-income, homeless, and other at-risk youth have new support on their side if going to college is a goal, now that On Point for College, Inc. has opened a location at 524 Elizabeth St.
The Syracuse–based nonprofit hopes to send at least 50 Utica–area youth off to college by August 2013, says Executive Director Virginia Donohue.
On Point for College (www.onpointforcollege.org) received a $250,000 grant to fund its first year of operations in Utica. On Point received a total of $1.9 million last September from a College Access Challenge Grant awarded to the state by the U.S. Department of Education to replicate its program in two cities. Earlier this year, On Point opened a location in New York City in partnership with Goddard Riverside Community Center and New Settlement Apartments.
In Utica, Donohue says, the goal is to meet with at least 150 youth, work with 75 of them, and send 50 students off to college in either January or August.
“Secretly, we hope to beat those numbers,” Donohue says.
On Point considered Utica, Buffalo, and Rochester when looking for a second site to replicate its successful Syracuse model. Utica just stood out, Donohue says, not only for the more than 40 nonprofit and community agencies that came together in support of the project, but also because of the area’s high high-school graduation rate of about 66 percent. There is a disconnect, she says, because only 18 percent of those graduates go on to college, showing a need where On Point can step in and help people achieve that goal.
On Point will reach out to those youth by visiting community centers, homeless shelters, and GED sites to connect with them, she says. The typical goal is to reach out to 10 sites on a weekly basis.
On Point works with youth ages 17 to 25 and doesn’t just help them get into college. The rest of the agency’s work involves keeping the students in college and helping them graduate, Donohue says. That involves the agency’s crew of about 160 volunteers driving students to and from college, handing out school supplies, and meeting with students on campus to make sure they are adjusting to college life.
In Syracuse, almost one-third of the students On Point works with don’t have any parents involved in their lives. Many don’t have a place to live when college isn’t in session. These are all issues On Point helps the students deal with so they have a successful college experience, Donohue says.
Every student that On Point helps complete college has a potential huge impact on the community, she contends. Those graduates often inspire their siblings to attend college and usually make it a priority for their own children to attend college. They also increase the work force with their skills.
“The multiplier effect is amazing,” Donohue says.
Currently, Donohue is meeting with area officials such as Oneida County Executive Anthony Picente, Jr. to assess the work-force needs of area employers. She’s looking to learn what jobs are tough for employers to fill so she can help steer students in those directions.
Donohue hopes the one-room Utica office will be up and running at full speed by October. To start things up in Utica, Donohue says On Point for College is currently looking to hire a program director, two advisers, and an office manager. On Point rents the room from the Educational Opportunity Center operated by Mohawk Valley Community College.
Donohue founded On Point for College in 1999 after eight years of volunteer work helping homeless youth attend college. According to the agency’s 2011 Form 990 on file at www.guidestar.org, On Point generated revenue of $1.1 million, including $226,406 in grants and $532,407 in contributions in the fiscal year covering Sept. 1, 2010 to Aug. 31, 2011. The agency’s expenses were $1 million.
The agency’s Utica–area project partners include Mohawk Valley Community College, the Literacy Coalition of Oneida and Herkimer Counties, and Community Foundation of Oneida and Herkimer Counties, Inc.
Contact DeLore at tdelore@tmvbj.com