Every B-CC Graduate College Ready

The faculty, parents, and alumni of B-CC are on a mission. The goal is to make sure all B-CC graduates have the knowledge and skills they need to succeed in college.

It used to be that a high school diploma was a ticket into good jobs and productive careers. No longer. Today, nearly every well paying job and career that B-CC students will aspire to requires postsecondary education. The challenge for B-CC is to ensure that all of its students take the prerequisite courses and achieve at a high enough level to prepare them for the colleges of their choice.

But simply getting into college is not enough. Across the country today, over half of college freshman have to take remedial reading or math courses because of their poor preparation levels in high school. In other words, they are paying college tuition to take high school courses. What's worse, students who take remedial courses are much more likely to drop out of college without attaining a degree.

By the time they arrive at B-CC, some students are already behind. They haven't taken the right courses in middle school and are minimally prepared to succeed in high school. Without significant support and encouragement, these students have very little chance of climbing the academic ladder and becoming college ready. Other students may be on track to graduate but need to be encouraged to take advanced courses (such as a Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, and honors) in order to qualify for college. Even our more advanced students need additional encouragement and support to get into the colleges of their choice. The application process at selective institutions is as competitive as ever.

B-CC has launched an ambitious new school improvement effort to help ensure that all of its students are college ready. How far are we from that goal? According to the school's data, two-thirds of its students are on a track to enter college without needing remediation; 17% could enter college but would likely need remediation; and 18% are not likely to make it to college at all.

While we are proud that a majority of B-CC students go to college, many of them quite good ones, no one is satisfied with these numbers. One-third of students are not college ready. And a disproportionate number of them are our minority students. The goal is to close that gap.

How will we do it? The Foundation is committed to continuing our support for successful programs like the Summer Academy for Incoming 9th graders. In fact, we want to double its size. The program targets the most at-risk students, providing them with intensive support in math and English so that they are better prepared once they arrive at B-CC. Last year 70 students were identified for the program; the school only had funds to help half of them.

We are also committed to supporting year-round tutoring and mentoring for every B-CC student who needs it. And we will support the school in its goal to increase the number of students taking advanced courses.

Every year hundreds of B-CC students walk across the stage at Kennedy Center or Constitution Hall to receive their diploma. That is a very proud moment for them and their parents. But it should not be the last degree they achieve. The B-CC Educational Foundation is working closely with the school to ensure the doors to college are open to every B-CC graduate. We cannot afford to aim lower.