News Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 10, 2003

Lumina Foundation announces more than $6 million in grants to improve college access

INDIANAPOLIS — Indianapolis-based Lumina Foundation for Education today announces 44 grants totaling more than $6.2 million to expand college access and student success nationwide. The grants were approved in the fourth quarter of 2002.

"The results of these grants will add to the research base, share knowledge among higher education stakeholders and support innovative and successful programs in Lumina Foundation's three theme areas - access, student attainment and adult students," said Martha D. Lamkin, president and CEO of Lumina Foundation.

Grants approved by Lumina Foundation in the fourth quarter of 2002 are listed below, grouped by the Foundation's primary theme areas.

Access
Many financial and nonfinancial factors inhibit college access. The following grants address some of these barriers:

The University of Iowa Foundation (Iowa City, IA) $10,000 — A five-month grant to support planning efforts to expand the number and diversity of students and teachers participating in Advanced Placement in states with Big Ten schools.

College Summit (Washington, D.C.) $75,000 — A one-year grant to raise the college-enrollment rates of students in selected high schools in Southern California and the Maryland-District of Columbia metropolitan area by providing motivational and informational workshops and services for students and training for teachers.

Indiana University Foundation (Bloomington, IN) $10,000 — A one-year grant to support the Bepko Scholars and the Bepko Fellows program.

Calvert Community Investments Foundation (Bethesda, MD) $400,000 — A two-year grant to support the postsecondary access component of the National Rural Funders Collaborative.

Southern Education Foundation, Inc. (Atlanta, GA) $150,000 — A nine-month grant to identify two Deep South states to participate in a project that will build the economic case for funding need-based financial aid.

McCabe Fund — Lumina Foundation generally does not fund programs in which outcomes are limited to individual institutions, except as part of a proactive grant program. The seven grants listed below were awarded as part of the McCabe Fund. This initiative supports organizations that enable students - particularly first-generation college students, low-income students and students of color - to gain access to postsecondary education. The McCabe Fund provides modest, competitive grants for programs that work directly with students to improve access to postsecondary education. Grant proposals for this initiative are accepted by invitation only.

Alabama Institute for Deaf and Blind Foundation (Talladega, AL) $74,300 — A two-year grant to establish a year-round program to improve postsecondary access for students with sensory disabilities.
American Indian Graduate Center (Albuquerque, NM) $25,000 — A two-year grant to support the College Horizons pre-college access course in preparing Native American high school students for college.
Arizona State University (Tempe, AZ) $75,000 — An 18-month grant to support the Hispanic Border Leadership Institute's postsecondary preparation program for first-generation Latino students.
Associated Colleges of Illinois (ACI), Inc. (Chicago, IL) $75,000 — A one-year grant to increase high school graduation and college enrollment rates for minority and low-income students. This grant will help expand ACI's College Readiness program, which provides year-round academic enrichment, personal growth and college campus experience programs.
Community Partners (Santa Monica, CA) $75,000 — A two-year grant to support the College Match program, which helps well-qualified, low-income minority students attend small colleges ranked just below the Ivy League level.
Martin University, Inc. (Indianapolis, IN) $74,700 — A two-year grant to provide college access opportunities and skills to Indianapolis minority and low-income students through Martin University's High School College Access Program.
Roxbury Preparatory Charter School Foundation, Inc. (Roxbury, MA) $75,000 — A two-year grant to expand the Middle School Aspirations and Pathways to College intervention program, which builds collegiate aspirations and readiness for its minority sixth-, seventh- and eighth-graders.

College Goal SundaySM — College Goal Sunday provides free information and assistance to families applying for college financial aid in several states across the country. Financial aid professionals in College Goal Sunday states help families complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. The College Goal Sunday program was created by the Indiana Student Financial Aid Association with funding from Lilly Endowment, Inc., and with supplemental support from Lumina Foundation. Lumina Foundation is awarding grants to the following organizations to plan and conduct a College Goal Sunday program in their states:

A $42,100 grant to the Arizona Commission for Postsecondary Education (Phoenix, AZ).
A $100,000 grant to the Central Wyoming College (Riverton, WY).
A $150,000 grant to the Delaware-District of Columbia-Maryland Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (Baltimore, MD).
A $7,500 planning grant to the Finance Authority of Maine (Augusta, ME).
A $7,500 planning grant to Illinois State University (Normal, IL).
A $200,000 grant to the Ohio Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (Columbus, OH).
A $180,000 grant to the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education (Oklahoma City, OK).
A $7,200 planning grant to Partnership for Learning (Lansing, MI).
A $7,500 planning grant to The University of Missouri-Columbia (Columbia, MO).

Student Success/Attainment
Once in college, many students confront stumbling blocks that inhibit them from reaching their educational goals. The following grant addresses issues regarding student persistence and goal attainment.

League for Innovation in the Community College (Phoenix, AZ) $102,000 — A nine-month grant to design the College Competencies Certificate Program to help prepare students to succeed in community colleges.

Adult Students
Today's learners include a growing proportion of older students as well as students who attend school part time and intermittently throughout their lives. The following grants focus on the special needs of adult students.

American Council on Education (Washington, D.C.) $1,053,100 — A three-year grant to build the case for greater attention to low-income adult learners among postsecondary education leaders and policy-makers.

American Indian College Fund (Denver, CO) $325,000 — A one-year grant to enable 32 tribal colleges to provide customized support services and financial aid to Native American teacher aides who must meet new educational requirements.

Maricopa County Community College District Foundation (Tempe, AZ) $200,000 — A six-month planning grant to study the feasibility of replicating the electronic learning model at Rio Salado College.

National Governors' Association (Washington, D.C.) $1,182,400 — A 28-month grant to support state policy that expands postsecondary access and attainment for low-income adults.

Research Foundation of the City University of New York/Herbert H. Lehman College (New York, NY) $75,000 — A nineteen-month grant to offer off-campus courses and customized support services to encourage poor, minority South Bronx teacher aides to enroll in college courses. The teacher aides will enroll in college courses to meet new educational requirements.

University of Virginia (Charlottesville, VA) $950,000 — A two-year grant to conduct primary research on continuing education programs serving adult learners pursuing postsecondary degrees, credentials or training.

Multi-theme Grants
The following grant crosses more than one of Lumina Foundation's primary theme areas.

Association for the Study of Higher Education (Columbia, MO) $178,634 — An one-year grant to increase the quantity and quality of scholarly research on topics in access, success and adult learning by supporting dissertation fellowships for doctoral candidates in higher education and related programs of study.

Indiana-focused Initiatives
As an Indiana-based foundation, Lumina Foundation sets aside a modest portion of its grant money each year to fund projects that are specific to its home state. Most of these grants are focused on the Foundation's education mission; a relatively modest number support charitable civic participation.

The Vincennes University Foundation (Vincennes, IN) $10,000 — A 32-month grant to better understand student persistence and student learning by participating in the Community College Survey of Student Engagement initiative.

United Way of Central Indiana (Indianapolis, IN) $8,050 — A six-month grant to provide general operating support for community service and development needs.

YMCA (Indianapolis, IN) $16,100 — A one-year grant to provide educational materials and supplies for the Baxter YMCA, to replace items lost when a tornado hit the facility in September 2002.

Advancing Academic Excellence — Lumina Foundation invited all Marion County public high schools to apply for a grant through its Advancing Academic Excellence program. The Foundation is awarding $330,000 to expand the number of courses and diversity of students who earn college credits at the 11 Marion County public high schools that applied for a grant: Ben Davis High School, Emmerich Manual High School, Franklin Central High School, Lawrence North High School, Decatur Central High School, North Central High School, Northwest High School, Perry Meridian High School, Pike High School, Southport High School and Warren Central High School.

Special Grant
The Foundation Center (New York, NY) $25,000 — A one-year grant to create a definitive, authoritative record and tell the comprehensive story of philanthropy in the aftermath of the terror attacks of September 11, 2001. One component of this project will serve to evaluate the work Lumina Foundation started on September 17, 2001, when it launched the Families of Freedom Scholarship Fund with the Citizens' Scholarship Foundation of America. The Fund was established to support the higher education objectives of the families affected by the September 11 tragedy.

Lumina Foundation for Education, a private, independent foundation, strives to help people achieve their potential by expanding access and success in education beyond high school. Through research, grants for innovative programs and communication initiatives, Lumina Foundation addresses issues surrounding access and success — particularly among underserved student groups, including adult learners. The Foundation bases its mission on the belief that postsecondary education remains one of the most beneficial investments that individuals can make in themselves and that society can make in its people.

For more information, contact Sara Murray-Plumer, director of communication at (317) 951-5493 or splumer@luminafoundation.org.