Texans Can Academies has been awarded a $25,000 grant by Capital One Bank to support the charter high schools’ college readiness program, College Can. The generous donation will be applied to College Can, which provides students the resources necessary to visit colleges along with vital resources once they are attending college. The program is lead by Reggie Dupard with Texans Can Academies.

The grant from Capital One Bank will make it possible to provide the schools’ juniors and seniors with transportation, food and, if necessary, overnight accommodations for college visits as well as needed supplies once they are enrolled in college. Many students do not have the financial resources to visit prospective colleges outside the city where they live. For those who do move to a college campus, they often are not able to afford to purchase school supplies, textbooks and sundry items to remain away from home. As a result, they often end up leaving during or after their first year.  

Texans Can CEO, Richard Marquez, said, “On behalf of all the young men and women served by Texans Can, we are grateful and honored to receive the $25,000 grant from Capital One. With Capital One’s help, we will be able to boost our program that provides a safe and positive transition for students to pursue a sustainable college and career path.”

Texans Can Academies graduated nearly 1,700 students in the 2014-2015 school year. The program helps their students identify colleges they are interested in attending, plan a visit and complete the application process. It also provides college readiness tips, living on your own information and training for young people who may have never been outside their city.

Choosing a college and being accepted is only half of the process for most of the Texans Can graduates. While away at college they continue to need financial and emotional support to remain in school and graduate. Just as they did when they were their students, Texans Can cares for many of their graduates who are now college students.  The administrators learned that their kids may have graduated from high school, but they still need mentors, role models and someone to talk with who cares deeply about their success.  They even occasionally need someone to tutor them over the phone.

The College Can program is designed to continue to support the students once they are away from home and in college. This support will include attending college with high school peers, and receiving care packages of important school and living supplies. The Texans Can college readiness program is built to help students sustain a college education along with a future career.