COLORADO SPRINGS — Graduating seniors at Mitchell High School in Colorado Springs now have an opportunity to pursue a college degree without financial worry.
The school is calling it the "Mitchell Promise" and pledging a full-ride scholarship for seniors to go to Pikes Peak State College. It is made possible by the Dakota Foundation and similar scholarships exist for students at Harrison District 2 schools.
Mitchell High School has been struggling over the past several years with poor academic performance and low enrollment rates. For the last four years, the Colorado Department of Education has labeled the school as a priority improvement school and was given two years on the state's accountability clock. The high school was on the cusp of being taken over by the state, turned into a charter school, or shut down completely.
In 2021, Mitchell High School's graduation rate was 58%, down from the state's average of 82%, according to the department of education. George Smith, the principal of Mitchell High School, said with better access to college through the scholarship program he hopes the incentive will attract more students and improve academic performance.
"About 50% of our students are in a lower socio-economic bracket. This is going to allow those students and those families to think about education versus worry about finances," he said.
The scholarship program is only two years old and was first offered to students at District 2 schools. In 2019 before becoming part of the program with the Dakota Foundation, 96 students from District 2 schools enrolled at Pikes Peak State College (PPSC). This fall 147 students enrolled at PPSC, around a 50% increase since the start of the program.
"If you see that light at the end of the tunnel, it changes your outlook about what the possibilities are. Their eyes are lit up with a future that they never would have even thought about before this program came up," said Warren Epstein, marketing director for the college.
Raul Erives is a junior at PPSC and a first-generation college student. He received a full-ride scholarship through the program after graduating from Harrison High School and is now pursuing a computer science degree.
"I wasn't even planning to go to college. So pretty much if it wasn't for the Dakota Promise itself, then like I wouldn't even be here right now," he said.
To be eligible for the scholarship, students of participating high schools must have attended for at least one full academic year, have a minimum of a 2.25 cumulative GPA, and enroll at PPSC within 16 months of graduating high school. The program covers all tuition, fees, and book costs.
Fernanda Carrillo is a Mitchell High School senior and is pursuing the free education at PPSC that is now available for her school and other classmates.
"I come from a place where there's not a lot of money offered, and I didn't have a college bank account, a college fund," Carrillo said. "I can actually focus on the education instead of worrying about debts and loans and all the money aspect of it."
Mitchell High School's principal said the program can break the cycle of generational poverty that affects many of his students.
"That's the only way we're going to get out off of the turnaround clock," he said. "It’s life-changing. I mean, there's no other way around it. This is absolutely life-changing."
The cost of tuition is covered by the Dakota Promise program through a combination of federal and state grants. Epstein said to avoid running out of funds, the college and its partners are working to eventually have the program paid for by tax dollars instead of the foundation.
"You're gonna have this outpouring of new students. What are you going to do with them? How are you going to make sure that they make it through to graduation? It's a challenge, but we're up for it because this is changing lives," he said.
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