Earn To Learn

OUR MISSION IS EMPOWERING STUDENTS TO ACHIEVE THEIR GOALS AND BE WORKFORCE READY WITH LITTLE TO NO STUDENT DEBT. WE ACCOMPLISH THIS MISSION THROUGH AN INNOVATIVE, FOUR-PILLAR APPROACH TO FINANCIAL PREPARATION INCLUDING:- MATCHED SAVINGS SCHOLARSHIPS: STUDENT SAVINGS ARE MATCHED 8:1 THROUGH A PUBLIC-PRIVATE FUNDING MODEL PROVIDING UP TO $4,500 IN FUNDING PER ACADEMIC YEAR.- SUCCESS COACHING & ADVISING: ASSIST IN COMPLETING APPLICATIONS FOR ADMISSIONS AND FINANCIAL AID, TROUBLESHOOTING OBSTACLES, AND NAVIGATING UNIVERSITY SERVICES.- FINANCIAL EDUCATION: PERSONAL FINANCE TRAINING INTRODUCES STUDENTS TO BEST PRACTICES IN PERSONAL FINANCE, FINANCIAL LITERACY, AND COMMITTING TO A LIFETIME OF SAVING HELPING REDUCE STUDENT LOAN DEBT AND PREPARE FOR A HEALTHY FINANCIAL LIFE. WORKFORCE READINESS STUDENTS DEVELOP THE SKILLS EMPLOYERS SEEK WHEN HIRING, INCLUDING CRITICAL THINKING, PLANNING, LEADERSHIP, AND TEAMWORK. WE ALSO PROVIDE TRAINING SUCH AS RESUME WRITING AND INTERVIEWING.

OVERVIEW:A NATIONAL, INNOVATIVE APPROACH TO FINANCIAL AID IS NEEDED TO INCREASE POST-SECONDARY EDUCATIONAL ACCESS AND COMPLETION, ESPECIALLY FOR STUDENTS FROM LOWER SOCIO-ECONOMIC BACKGROUNDS. A REDUCED BORROWING INITIATIVE IS CRITICAL CONSIDERING THE TREMENDOUS GROWTH IN NATIONAL DEBT RELATED TO HIGHER EDUCATION BORROWING.ESTABLISHED IN 2013, EARN TO LEARN OPERATES THE LARGEST AND MOST SUCCESSFUL MATCHED-SAVINGS SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM IN THE COUNTRY. IT COMBINES STUDENT SAVINGS WITH SCHOLARSHIPS, FINANCIAL EDUCATION AND COLLEGE SUCCESS COACHING TO HELP LOW TO MODERATE INCOME AND UNDERREPRESENTED STUDENTS OBTAIN A COLLEGE EDUCATION AND GRADUATE READY TO ENTER THE WORKFORCE WITH LITTLE OR NO STUDENT LOAN DEBT. STUDENTS AND THEIR FAMILIES WHO INCOME-QUALIFY, DEPOSIT $500 INTO A SAVINGS ACCOUNT EACH YEAR, WHICH IS THEN MATCHED 8:1 THROUGH A PUBLIC PRIVATE FUNDING MODEL WHICH BRINGS THE TOTAL AVAILABLE FUNDS PER STUDENT TO $4,500 PER ACADEMIC YEAR TO FURTHER OFFSET THE COST OF ATTENDANCE AND ADDRESS ANY UNMET NEED.THE HOLISTIC APPROACH IS ALREADY SHOWING PROMISING RESULTS. DATA DEMONSTRATES EARN TO LEARN'S FIRST-YEAR RETENTION RATE APPROACHING 90%. OVER HALF OF EARN TO LEARN STUDENTS ARE FIRST-GENERATION COLLEGE STUDENTS, WHO OFTEN HAVE DIFFICULTY FINANCING COLLEGE WHILE ALSO BALANCING THE CHALLENGES OF DAILY LIFE. EARN TO LEARN CAN BE THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN DROPPING OUT AND EARNING A DEGREE WHICH MAY ALTER THE COURSE OF THEIR LIVES. STUDENTS ARE SUPPORTED IN GRADUATING FROM COLLEGE AT RATES WELL ABOVE THE NATIONAL AVERAGE, WITH NEARLY HALF OF THESE GRADUATES AVOIDING ANY STUDENT LOAN DEBT. THOSE WHO DO BORROW ARE EXPECTED TO CARRY MUCH LESS DEBT THAN OTHER BORROWERS. EARN TO LEARN CHANGES LIVES AND OPENS THE DOORS OF HIGHER EDUCATION TO THOSE WHO MAY NOT OTHERWISE HAVE CONSIDERED THAT THEY TOO COULD SHARE THE AMERICAN DREAM OF ACHIEVING ADVANCED EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT.BACKGROUND:ARIZONA IS THE FIRST STATE IN THE COUNTRY TO IMPLEMENT A PROGRAM LIKE EARN TO LEARN TO SUPPORT STUDENTS WITH MATCHED COLLEGE SAVINGS.EARN TO LEARN IS CURRENTLY PARTNERED IN ARIZONA WITH ARIZONA STATE UNIVERSITY, NORTHERN ARIZONA UNIVERSITY, UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA, MARICOPA COMMUNITY COLLEGE DISTRICT, PIMA COMMUNITY COLLEGE AND IS PLANNING TO EXPAND TO THE RURAL COMMUNITY COLLEGES.EARN TO LEARN IS BASED ON A PUBLIC PRIVATE FUNDING MODEL WITH A 60/40 SPLIT WHICH LAUNCHED IN THE 2019/2020 ACADEMIC YEAR.THE PROGRAM HAS GARNERED ATTENTION FROM THE GOVERNOR'S OFFICE UNDER THE UMBRELLA OF WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT AND THEY ARE PROVIDING ADDITIONAL PROGRAMMATIC SUPPORT.EARN TO LEARN MAY BE CONSIDERED A SUPPLEMENT TO THE FEDERAL PELL GRANT PROGRAM - HELPING STUDENTS TO FURTHER OFFSET EDUCATIONAL RELATED EXPENSES, EFFECTIVELY PICKING UP WHERE PELL IS FALLING SHORT. THE PURCHASING POWER OF FEDERAL PELL GRANTS HAS FALLEN PRECIPITOUSLY OVER THE YEARS.PROGRAM SUCCESS:EARN TO LEARN HAS ALREADY SEEN PROMISING RESULTS INCLUDING HIGH FIRST-YEAR RETENTION, PERSISTENCE AND GRADUATION RATES.THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY IS INCREASINGLY AWARE OF ITS STAKE IN ENSURING THE SUCCESS OF THEIR FUTURE EMPLOYEE PIPELINE, AND STATES AND COMMUNITIES WANT TO ATTRACT AND RETAIN BRIGHT MINDS INTO THEIR WORKFORCE.OVER 2,000 EARN TO LEARN STUDENTS HAVE ENROLLED AND SUCCESSFULLY PARTICIPATED IN THE PROGRAM. THE TARGET POPULATION INCLUDES TRADITIONAL STUDENTS FROM PUBLIC, PRIVATE AND CHARTER HIGH SCHOOLS WHO INCOME QUALIFY AND ARE ELIGIBLE FOR IN-STATE TUITION AND FEDERAL FINANCIAL AID. COMMUNITY COLLEGE TRANSFER STUDENTS ARE ALSO ELIGIBLE TO PARTICIPATE IF THEY INCOME QUALIFY AND ARE ELIGIBLE FOR INSTATE TUITION AND FEDERAL FINANCIAL AID.SUCCESS METRICS:THE BREAKDOWN OF THE PROGRAM'S ANNUAL OVERALL FIRST-YEAR RETENTION RATE APPEARS TO BE APPROACHING 90% STATEWIDE SINCE THE PROGRAM'S LAUNCH IN JANUARY OF 2013.EARN TO LEARN STUDENTS HAVE INVESTED OVER $3.8M IN THEIR EDUCATION AND HAVE EARNED AN ADDITIONAL $31M IN ADDITIONAL GRANT AID THROUGH THE PROGRAM'S 8:1 MATCH.EARN TO LEARN HAS PROVIDED NEARLY 39,000 HOURS OF PERSONAL FINANCE TRAINING TO APPROXIMATELY 6,200 STUDENTS IN ARIZONA. PERSONAL FINANCE TRAINING IS A PREREQUISITE TO APPLY TO THE PROGRAM.EARN TO LEARN'S PROJECTED 6-YEAR GRADUATION RATE APPEARS TO BE APPROACHING 80%. THE PROGRAM SERVES FAMILIES UP TO 200% OF THE FEDERAL POVERTY LEVEL WHICH MEANS MOST OF THE STUDENTS SERVED ARE PELL ELIGIBLE. AS A POINT OF COMPARISON, THE NATIONAL 6-YEAR GRADUATION RATE FOR THE PELL ELIGIBLE TARGET POPULATION IS LESS THAN 40% ACCORDING TO REPORTS FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION.EARN TO LEARN STUDENTS ARE BORROWING SIGNIFICANTLY LESS THAN THEIR PEERS. THE AVERAGE STUDENT LOAN DEBT OF STUDENT BORROWERS FROM ASU, NAU AND UA IS APPROXIMATELY $23,000 BY THE TIME OF GRADUATION. EARN TO LEARN STUDENTS ON AVERAGE ARE GRADUATING WITH LITTLE TO NO STUDENT LOAN DEBT - RANGING FROM ZERO STUDENT LOAN DEBT TO LESS THAN $10,000.NATIONAL INTEREST:EARN TO LEARN HAS GARNERED SIGNIFICANT NATIONAL ATTENTION WITH OVER 25 STATES EXPRESSING INTEREST IN REPLICATING THE MODEL INCLUDING UNIVERSITY AND COMMUNITY COLLEGE SYSTEMS FROM ACROSS THE COUNTRY. ARIZONA HAS A TREMENDOUS OPPORTUNITY TO LEAD THE NATION IN A HIGHLY INNOVATIVE APPROACH TO FINANCING HIGHER EDUCATION.AS EARN TO LEARN CONTINUES TO GAIN MOMENTUM AS AN INNOVATIVE FINANCIAL AID MODEL GIVEN ITS FINANCIAL LITERACY TRAINING, PERSONALIZED SUCCESS COACHING AND UNPARALLELED SAVINGS MATCH, THIS PROGRAM HAS THE CAPACITY TO PROVIDE A NEW PLAYBOOK FOR FINANCIAL AID. THE ENTHUSIASM GENERATED BY EARN TO LEARN IS GROUNDED IN SIMPLE, FUNDAMENTAL ECONOMICS AND GETS BACK TO THE PRINCIPLES ON WHICH OUR NATION WAS FOUNDED: TEACHING CITIZENS FINANCIAL FUNDAMENTALS AND EXPANDING ACCESS TO EDUCATION TO ENHANCE THEIR ECONOMIC MOBILITY, AVOID THE BURDEN OF DEBT AND IMPROVE SOCIETAL OUTCOMES.THE EARN TO LEARN ACT, FEDERAL LEGISLATION INTRODUCED BY U.S. SENATORS MITT ROMNEY (R-UT) AND KYRSTEN SINEMA (D-AZ) IN APRIL 2021. A BIPARTISAN COMPANION BILL IN THE U.S. HOUSE WAS INTRODUCED BY CONGRESSWOMAN SUSIE LEE (D-NV) AND CONGRESSMAN DAVID SCHWEIKERT (R-AZ) IN JUNE 2021. THE EARN TO LEARN ACT WOULD CREATE A FEDERALLY FUNDED PROGRAM HOUSED IN THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION SUPPORTING APPROXIMATELY 250,000 SCHOLARSHIP OPPORTUNITIES ACROSS THE UNITED STATES"KEY DEFINITION: EARN TO LEARN'S FIRST-YEAR RETENTION RATE - A KEYFIRST YEAR RETENTION RATE: IS THE PERCENTAGE OF AWARDED SAVERS WHO STARTED AT THE EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION IN ONE ACADEMIC YEAR AND RETURNED TO ENROLL IN COURSES AT THE SAME EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION IN THE NEXT CONSECUTIVE ACADEMIC YEAR.