ON TRACK
First-time alliance boosts students to and through college
June 6, 2024
For the first time, the CSU System has partnered with a national nonprofit, called College Track, to support first-generation students from low-income families as they pursue and complete college studies, graduating better positioned for social mobility and community leadership.
Central to the agreement, a College Track site for studying, team building, and mentorship opened last summer at the CSU Spur campus in north Denver. The site offers local high school students easy access to CSU System faculty, staff, and degree-granting campuses, including Colorado State University in Fort Collins, CSU Pueblo, and CSU Global. Of 12 College Track centers nationwide, the site at CSU Spur is the first based on a university campus and reflects College Track’s first partnership involving an entire university system.
The CSU Spur center is designed to help high school students in Denver, including the nearby Globeville and Elyria-Swansea neighborhoods, said Deborah Van Roy, College Track’s executive site director for Denver and lead executive site director nationally. The partnership provides focused CSU System support for College Track’s scholars – for instance, special campus visits – leading to streamlined admission of qualified students to CSU campuses.
“This partnership establishes a new model for supporting students and introducing them to a range of academic and career possibilities,” CSU System Chancellor Tony Frank said.
“The three campuses in the CSU System share with College Track a deep commitment to increasing access and opportunity for students, regardless of their backgrounds,” Frank added. “The work we will be doing together will lead to significant benefits, both in the lives of students and their families and in the strength of our communities.”
Brandon Roman of Denver is among the first College Track scholars admitted to CSU System campuses as part of the new partnership. He will attend CSU Pueblo starting in August – the first in his family to pursue a college degree.
Roman said he was sold on CSU Pueblo after the university and College Track organized an overnight stay for 15 students. The students explored the Pueblo campus, sat in on college classes, and stayed in a residence hall. The experience, Roman said, helped him envision himself as a CSU Pueblo student – exactly the effect educators hope for.
“We got to see firsthand what college classes are like,” Roman said. “I enjoyed the experience more than I ever thought I would.”
The three campuses in the CSU System share with College Track a deep commitment to increasing access and opportunity for students, regardless of their backgrounds.”
The College Track center at CSU Spur already involves 116 scholars in regularly scheduled activities, such as study sessions, academic goal-setting, leadership training, team building, and college visits. The scholars also receive guidance from mentors as they complete applications for student aid and apply to colleges. Students may enroll in College Track beginning in ninth grade; support continues through college and into their careers, Van Roy said.
Of 10 high school seniors affiliated with the College Track center at CSU Spur, all are college-bound, she said. Reaching that 100 percent mark reflects the organization’s goals.
Another College Track site, in Aurora, works with 224 high school students; more than 40 had applied to attend CSU System campuses by early spring, Van Roy said.
Roman said College Track programs have boosted his confidence as a student and have helped him feel empowered to attend college and succeed in his studies.
“College Track has prepared me a lot,” he said. “They definitely helped me get into a dream college of mine.”
Photo at top: Brandon Roman, shown studying at the College Track site at CSU Spur, is among the first of the organization’s scholars to attend a CSU System campus. Photo: Kevin Samuelson / CSU System.
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