The Greater Texas Foundation (GTF), a private organization focused on increasing access and success rate of postsecondary education, awarded the University of North Texas at Dallas with an eight-year $1.5 million grant to support early college students.
“Post-secondary can be many different things,” GTF president and CEO Sue McMillin told North Texas Daily. “It could be a certificate. It could be an associate’s degree. It could be a bachelor’s degree. It’s whatever post-secondary looks like for the student [who] is interested in pursuing that path.”
With the GTF Scholars program, UNT Dallas will be able to support early college high school (ECHS) graduates and their families providing the tools needed to support and encourage students as well as multi-year scholarships.
“This opportunity is not only important for the UNT Dallas GTF Scholars, but also for their families and the communities where participants will work and serve after completing the bachelor’s degree,” said principal investigator and UNT Dallas special assistant to the president - partnerships and initiatives, Dr. Lisa D. Hobson in an official statement.
This program is complementary to the university’s current ECHS program. The UNT Dallas, partnered with the Dallas ISD’s Sunset P-Tech and Lincoln B-Tech Early College High Schools, offers rigorous course instruction leading to bachelor’s degrees, preparing graduates for competitive fields in the workforce.
“We are extremely excited to partner with Greater Texas Foundation,” said UNT Dallas President Bob Mong. “Receiving a grant from such a prestigious foundation demonstrates their belief in our continued ability to remove barriers to higher education and create pathways to bachelor’s degrees that lead to socioeconomic growth in communities.”
With the intention of removing barriers to higher education, both organizations hope the program will create a pathway to bachelor’s degrees that provide opportunities for socioeconomic mobility, especially for students from underserved populations.
The new program is scheduled to begin in 2023 with an initial cohort of 40 ECHS graduates. For more information on how to enroll in the UNT Dallas GTF Scholars Program or the DISD Early College High School at UNT Dallas, you can contact Dr. Hobson at [email protected].
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