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Syracuse Say Yes to Education and Economic Development

Syracuse Say Yes to Education and Economic Development is the result of a unique collaboration between Syracuse University (SU), Say Yes to Education, Inc. (Say Yes), and the Syracuse City School District. In this unprecedented initiative (Say Yes's first district-wide program), Say Yes will promote lifelong success for Syracuse school district students and their families by dramatically increasing both high school and college graduation rates.

At the heart of this pioneering program are two core components: a K-12 comprehensive support program designed to address the key barriers to college access, and the promise of free tuition, fees, and books for all participants.

How Syracuse Say Yes to Education Was Formed

In 2007, a coalition of partners catalyzed by the Say Yes to Education Foundation and Syracuse University decided to create a demonstration program that would radically alter the life course of students in an entire urban school district by dramatically increasing the rate at which they go to college.

Building on a track record of remarkable success in several urban schools in Harlem (NY), Philadelphia (PA), Hartford (CT), and Cambridge (MA), The Say Yes to Education model has demonstrated that the well-documented "achievement gap" between urban and suburban children is not an accurate measure of students' abilities or potential but in reality is an "opportunity" or "access" gap. Too many urban students have not had the opportunity to take full advantage of the academic and social experiences and supports that their more privileged peers are afforded and that lead to success in higher education. This gap shows up not only in grades, but also in standardized-test scores, course selection, dropout rates, access to curriculum and quality instruction, high school graduation rates, college admission, and college-completion rates.

Say Yes to Education has successfully bridged this achievement gap by implementing comprehensive support systems that address four major types of obstacles to post-secondary access for low-income students: academic, social-emotional, health, and financial. Now, Syracuse Say Yes to Education will utilize this success to serve the needs of students in an entire school district-the first program of this type in the nation.

What Supports Will The Syracuse Say Yes to Education Students Receive?

Syracuse Say Yes to Education will tackle the four major obstacles faced by low-income students head-on, providing them with the scaffolding of support and opportunities that will enable them to succeed. The district, in partnership with Say Yes to Education and Syracuse University, has committed to launch and sustain a system-wide process that provides the following high-quality assessments and supports for every participating student. Initiatives include:

Student diagnostic testing and ongoing monitoring to identify strengths as well as weaknesses and effectively manage academic and social-emotional supports
Individual student growth plans (conducted annually and monitored regularly)
Tutoring (small-group and one-on-one)
Research-based, school-wide academic and social-emotional programming of the caliber that suburban and affluent families value for their own children. (e.g., International Baccalaureate and PATHS programs)
Inclusive settings, curriculum, and support for students with disabilities and English language learners
Classroom and school climate that nurtures, enriches, and assumes competence
After-school program
Summer school program
Counseling and family engagement (including 1 social worker for every 200 students in each participating school)
Mentoring
Financial aid and college selection counseling

What is the Syracuse Higher Education Compact?

Historically, Say Yes to Education has fully funded the cost of its students attending two- and four-year institutions. In order to be able to support students at large scale, the foundation is now partnering with both private and public institutions in what we are calling the Syracuse Higher Education Compact to collectively provide the opportunity for Say Yes graduates in the city of Syracuse to attend college with tuition, fees, and books paid for.

The majority of the schools in the Compact provide financial aid that covers full tuition, books and fees for all admitted students. The scholarship does not include room and board. Some schools do have an income cap (see below for information on participating schools). A student who successfully graduates through the Say Yes program is eligible for scholarship aid as long as he/she gains admittance to a Compact school through the regular application process. This includes completing all appropriate applications, financial aid forms and meeting all deadlines for submission.

Who Can Apply?

Any student who has been a resident of the City of Syracuse for at least three years and has attended 10th, 11th and 12th grade in the Syracuse City School District is eligible for a Say Yes to Education scholarship.*
* see more complete eligibility details at Say Yes Syracuse .

Which Schools Are Participating?

Say Yes and SU have recruited an unprecedented network of approximately 23 private institutions that will provide the promise of a free college tuition to Syracuse City School students under the initiative. In addition, Say Yes and SU have raised the necessary funds to support one year of costs for students to attend a SUNY/CUNY school. This will bridge the gap while the partnership and its supporters pursue legislation (as well as a private endowment) to enable the foundation and its partners to make a long-term commitment to every participating student and family .

Schools that are members of the Syracuse Higher Education Compact include:

* Provides aid to students whose family income does not exceed $75,000.
** 15 total scholarships will be provided to qualified SCSD Students

A Historic Step Forward for Syracuse Residents and the City Itself

Syracuse Say Yes to Education will provide not only a powerful model for urban school district reform, but a step-by-step roadmap for stimulating urban economic prosperity. The dramatically stronger schools, stronger linkages to an array of post-secondary institutions, and stronger workforce resulting from this project will create a powerful tool to undergird growth of existing companies in Syracuse, incubate new ones, and attract companies considering relocation.

Syracuse Say Yes to Education, the only program of its kind and scale in the nation, is poised to make history. By linking the chain between the public, private, and non-profit sectors, it will rejuvenate an older industrial city by building a sustainable model for developing its most precious asset-its people-and, ultimately, positioning its economy to compete successfully in the global arena.

Read Some Press Coverage

Coming Together

City OKs budget, free college tuition initiative

Syracuse's Say Yes program receives $1 million from CNY Community Foundation