Support Delaware’s College Application Month!

Next week marks the start of Delaware’s College Application Month. College Application Month is a nationwide effort to assist high school seniors in the college application process. This is the third year Delaware will participate. The initiative, led by the Delaware Department of Education in partnership with the Institute for Public Administration at the University of Delaware has grown significantly since it was piloted in two schools in 2012. This year’s event, which will run from October 13th until November 21st expects to have participation from all Delaware public high schools.

College Application Month gives students the opportunity to consider if post-secondary education, whether through a certificate program, or a 2-year or 4-year degree, might be the right path for them. It gives students who may not know how to apply to college, or who otherwise would not apply to college, an opportunity to learn about the college application process, and dedicate time to filling out applications. Last year, 20 schools and 2,749 students across Delaware participated in College Application Month. About 140 of these students from the Class of 2014 reported that they would not have otherwise applied to college had they not participated in College Application Month.

This is an opportunity to help encourage students to look ahead to their futures. Last year, over 200 volunteers from 47 organizations helped students with the application process. Whether you are a business leader, government official, a parent, a college student, or just interested in working with students, this is a great opportunity to help students prepare for this next step in their lives. If you are interested in participating as a volunteer, there are still volunteer opportunities available.

In recent years, the Delaware Department of Education has had a significant focus on college and career readiness through the state’s Getting to Zero campaign, and others. To read more about Delaware’s college readiness statistics, see our “flipbook,” Delaware Public Education at a Glance 2014-15. You may also be interested in the state, district, and school-level reports on college enrollment and remediation, released in September.