DC-CAP is celebrating a significant milestone next month: over 6,000 DC students are now college grads. It started in 1999 with a daunting mission: Double the amount of DC students getting into college and triple the number graduating from college. The mission continues.
DC-CAP president/CEO Argelia Rodriguez and programs VP LD Ross stand in front of McKinley High School’s wall of acceptance letters. The organization, which helps every DC public and public charter high school student get into and stay in college, has seen 21,000 get into college and supports over 7,000 currently enrolled. Over 60% of DC grads enroll and 45% of them get college diplomas, according to DC-CAP's six-year grad rate average. When the organization first started, less than 10% of DC high school grads finished college. DC-CAP helps students and families believe college is possible through intensive one-on-one counseling, finding scholarships, and filling in the gaps with $2.7M in annual scholarships.
McKinley’s DC-CAP advisor Schelly Mitchell, here with No. 2 in this year’s graduating class Lynette Robinson, scours the country looking for grants and scholarships for the students. She also advises each student on where they should apply, how to interview with a college admissions official, and what needs to happen to get funded. Lynette got a full-ride to Clark Atlanta University but chose Fisk University for its engineering program. (Fisk offered her partial funding.) Schelly, who's been with DC-CAP 10 years, says she made a promise to herself when she graduated from college that she would give back. With her office plastered with college banners, she’s made it her mission to make the kids, many of whom come from challenging circumstances, believe they can go to college.
Others getting guidance from “Ms. Schelly”: Teron James, Eseomon Aleclan, and Monte Prillaman. Argelia says the biggest challenge is funding, which is partly raised through two annual fund-raising events. DC-CAP, which started with the help of corporations and national foundations, has to make up for rising tuition rates and shrinking financial aid. When the organization first started, Tuition Assistance Grants at $10k per student covered 95% of costs, now it’s down to 45%. But she’s also quick to point out the strides DC schools have made in the last 15 years, turning the student community into a college-bound culture. She'd now like to launch an employment program to help college grads and expand a program for boys to teach them how to be men. Argelia, who has an engineering background, also would like to launch a program to increase STEM interest.
