Wednesday, July 24, 2024

The STARS College Network, which partners with top colleges — including the University of Iowa — to ensure that students from rural and small-town America have the information and support they need to enroll in and graduate from the college or university of their choice, is doubling its membership.

In its inaugural year, the STARS College Network opened doors to higher education for more than a quarter-million students. The second-year expansion this summer will bring national membership to 32 institutions, adding flagship state schools, historically Black colleges, an additional Ivy League university, and other institutions.

The UI, a founding member of the coalition, already dedicates numerous resources to supporting rural students, including visiting more than 140 rural Iowa schools. But STARS expanded the UI’s collaboration with other universities to connect with rural students in western states along with Tennessee and Wisconsin. That outreach is expected to grow in coming years. 

An estimated $7.4 billion will fund STARS’ mission over the next decade, which includes the financial aid provided directly by participating institutions to students and expanded support for the initiative from foundations, nonprofits, and new funding from governmental agencies. Trott Family Philanthropies will build on its initial $20 million gift that launched STARS with an additional investment of more than $150 million over 10 years in programs that prepare, recruit, and support rural students.

This extraordinary growth follows a year in which STARS outreach connected with 1.6 million people, including students, families, educators, administrators, foundations, legislators, companies, and other organizations. STARS institutions directly engaged with more than 700,000 students, and more than 288,000 students joined the STARS network.

“We’re proud to have been a founding member of this important effort to expand educational access for students in Iowa and nationwide. It is important and central to our goals and mission,” says Brent Gage, UI associate vice president for enrollment management and strategy. “The growth of this coalition strengthens our ability to support students from all economic and geographic backgrounds.” 

In its first year, STARS:

  • Visited 1,100 rural high schools in 49 states to bring information about a variety of institutions directly to students and educators.
  • Gave prospective students and educators more opportunities to experience STARS campuses firsthand through free college visits and summer programs that help prepare students academically and socially for college.
  • Provided monthly virtual panels with college admissions staff from STARS Network schools, with topics designed to meet students wherever they are in their college search process.
  • Addressed math preparation gaps through a new partnership with Khan Academy and Schoolhouse.world that provides students with free courses and tutoring.
  • Partnered with local and national businesses to provide internships and job opportunities for the next generation of rural Americans.
  • Inspired additional philanthropic giving across the country and new partnerships with leading college access organizations, including the College Board, Davis New Mexico Scholars, the Ayers Foundation, and Palouse Pathways.
  • Sparked national media coverage, academic research, convenings, and policy conversations about how to enhance college access for rural and small-town students.
  • Advocated for federal, state, and local legislation that would support rural and small-town communities.

“STARS’ first year demonstrated that there is an appetite and imperative for our nation’s leading universities and colleges to better serve the massive talent pool in our small towns and rural regions,” says Byron D. Trott, chairman and co-CEO of BDT and MSD Partners. “STARS and its affiliated programs are opening doors in higher education for high-achieving rural students they might not have found otherwise, and the students, campuses, and our economy will all be the better for it.”

Students from rural America often face unique obstacles to attending college. While students in small towns and rural communities graduate from high school at roughly the same rate as students in metro areas, they are only half as likely to graduate from a top college or university.

STARS simultaneously addresses the obstacles that contribute to this disparity. Because of distance and cost, college admissions offices may bypass small towns and rural communities. Students in those areas are less likely to encounter college-related ads or attend events on campuses.

College counselors in rural high schools are often overburdened — if the school even has a counselor. The average national caseload for rural counselors is 310 students, with a high of 574 in rural Michigan. This means that students may have less access to educators and college access professionals who have experience with the full spectrum of college opportunities. 

Additionally, these students may not think they can afford college. Many do not have the networks and resources to help them understand the financial aid and other support available to them. 

By combining resources and committing to a plan to overcome those challenges, STARS member institutions help a variety of students at every step of their journey, whether or not they ultimately attend a STARS institution.

Research shows that college graduates from rural areas often return to their communities, so efforts to help rural students get the greatest benefit from higher education can create a virtuous cycle of support, success, and giving back to the next generation.

The new STARS member institutions are Amherst College, Auburn University, Dartmouth College, Duke University, Georgia Institute of Technology, Southern Methodist University, Spelman College, Stanford University, University of Alabama, University of Arizona, University of Arkansas, University of California Berkeley, University of Denver, University of Notre Dame, University of South Carolina, and University of Texas at Austin.

STARS founding members are Brown University, California Institute of Technology, Case Western Reserve University, Colby College, Columbia University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Northwestern University, Ohio State University, University of Chicago, University of Iowa, University of Maryland, University of Southern California, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Vanderbilt University, Washington University in St. Louis, and Yale University. STARS is led by the University of Chicago, where it is headquartered, and Vanderbilt.

“It is so inspiring to see the ever-growing ecosystem of partnerships, funding, and institutional commitments to ensure that rural and small-town students have the widest array of educational choices, and that our institutions can benefit from all they have to contribute,” says Douglas Christiansen, vice provost for university enrollment affairs and dean of admissions and financial aid at Vanderbilt University and STARS co-chair.

Partnerships are key to expanding impact and ensuring student success. 

STARS schools engage directly with the rootEd Alliance, a public-private partnership that helps rural students define and plan their futures, whether that means a college degree, work-based learning, or military service, with the goal of putting them on a path to career success and economic stability. By placing dedicated college and career advisors in 195 schools across Missouri, Texas, and Idaho, rootEd has served 42,000 students to date, and collaborates with STARS to provide specialized support and training for rootEd advisors. The rootEd Alliance, launched in 2018, is made possible by a group of philanthropists convened by Trott Family Philanthropies.

A new multi-year partnership with the College Board, which serves 7 million students each year, significantly expands the scale and impact of STARS. As part of this partnership, the College Board will provide $300,000 in funding for the AP Rural Fellows scholarship program, which provides funding for teachers serving in rural areas of the country.