The Kessler Scholars Program Expands To Ten More Leading Colleges And Universities

The Kessler Scholars Program, a highly successful support program for first-generation college students first developed at the University of Michigan, is expanding to ten additional institutions. The expansion is being funded by $10 million in private contributions -$5 million from Bloomberg Philanthropies and $5 million from the Judy and Fred Wilpon Family Foundation.

Begun in 2008 at the University of Michigan with an emphasis on undergraduate scholarships, the Kessler Scholars Program was redesigned in 2017 to focus on first-generation college students. Based on research findings showing the support these students most needed in addition to financial aid, the program has broadened its scope to provide comprehensive, wrap-around assistance for students by pairing scholarship funding with a community of peers, additional support staff, career advising, networking engagements with alumni and a peer mentoring program.

In 2021 the University of Michigan (UM) received a $40 million gift from the Wilpon Family Foundation to endow its Kessler Scholars Program in perpetuity.

After its success at UM, the Kessler Scholars Collaborative was formed, adding several other institutions to the initiative, including Cornell University, Johns Hopkins University, Queens College, St. Francis College, and Syracuse University.

Now with the new infusion of funds from the Wilpons and Bloomberg Philanthropies, the Collaborative is adding 10 new partner institutions, each of which is a member of the American Talent Initiative (ATI), another Bloomberg Philanthroies effort designed to increase the number of high-achieving, low- and moderate-income students who enroll and graduate from the nation’s top colleges and universities.

The ten new schools are:

Bates College,

Brown University,

Centre College (KY),

Saint Mary’s College (IN),

The Ohio State University,

University of California-Riverside,

University of Dayton,

University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill,

University of Pittsburgh, and

Washington University in St. Louis.

Each institution will receive a $1 million grant to implement the Kessler model, thereby advancing the overall ATI goal of increasing postsecondary access and success.

In the first year of the grant, the new schools will be given onboarding guidance, curricular resources, and technical support to initiate their Kessler Scholars programs. The first cohort of up to 20 Scholars at each campus will begin in Fall 2023. Three subsequent cohorts of Scholars are expected to begin every year through the 2026-27 academic year. In order to address the financial needs faced by first-generation students, each Kessler Scholars institution will devote at least $400,000 to direct student aid over the five-year grant.

The expansion is intended to help address the fact that while over a third of college students today are the first in their families to attend college, they graduate at far lower rates than their continuing generation peers, with just 27% attaining their degrees within four years.

The Covid-19 pandemic only exacerbated this problem because first-generation college students have been more likely than their non-first-generation peers to suffer severe financial hardships, mental health challenges, and difficulties accessing higher education digitally.

Refined at the University of Michigan, the Kessler Scholars Program emphasizes several elements to help first-generation students succeed in college. In addition to generous scholarships, the program offers each cohort of scholars:

• Best practices for improving retention and graduation rates for first-generation, lower-income students;
• Increased structure for engaging the scholars with alumni to promote an enhanced sense of belonging;
• Peer learning, technical support and professional development for student support staff at each collaborating college;
• Student involvement in programming and leadership opportunities within the Kessler Scholars Collaborative.

The program boasts some impressive outcomes. In 2021, the Kessler Scholars graduating cohort had a four-year graduation rate of 83%, higher than their first-generation peers starting at the University of Michigan at the same point (75%) and essentially the same as their continuing-generation peers (84%). The six-year graduation rate for the Kessler Scholars Program is 94%, slightly better than the university’s overall six-year graduation rate of 93%.

Commenting on the success of the UM program, Fred Wilpon, a New York-based business executive, real estate developer, and also the former owner of the New York Mets, said, “We have learned that just giving students a scholarship is not enough. As a first-generation college student myself and a graduate of U-M, I know the importance of having a close-knit community and a sense of belonging on campus.”

About today’s additional institutions, Wilpon commented, “With today’s expansion of the Kessler Scholars Collaborative, we can now provide hundreds of additional students nationwide with that same community and resources they need to achieve their promise.”

Over the next five years, ATI plans to promote further the Kessler model to its membership of high-graduation-rate colleges and universities.

“Through ATI, we are committed to providing colleges with new, innovative, and evidence-based resources and support they need to bridge the gaps in access and success that have grown during the pandemic,” said Jenny Kane, the program lead for college access and success at Bloomberg Philanthropies. “This new partnership with the Kessler Scholars Collaborative provides members with a powerful strategy to realize the promise of first-generation students and accelerate opportunity.”

“Today’s announcement represents an exciting new chapter for the Kessler Scholars Collaborative,” said Gail Gibson, executive director of the Kessler Scholars Collaborative. “In partnership with the American Talent Initiative, I’m thrilled to bring this approach to 10 new campuses across the country–and support a growing movement to tap into the promise of the more than one-third of students attending college for the first time.”

__________

Judy and Fred Wilpon both graduated from the University of Michigan in 1958. The Kessler Scholars program is named in honor of Judy‘s parents, Irene and Dr. Morris B. Kessler. The Kessler’s foundation focuses on the areas of education, health, and animal wellness.

The American Talent Initiative is a Bloomberg Philanthropies-supported collaboration between the Aspen Institute College Excellence Program, Ithaka S+R, and more than 125 top colleges and universities committed to enrolling, supporting, and graduating more than 50,000 students from lower-income backgrounds by 2025.

Bloomberg Philanthropies encompasses all of Michael R. Bloomberg’s giving – including his foundation, corporate, and personal philanthropy – as well as Bloomberg Associates, a pro bono consultancy. It concentrates its investments in five areas: the Arts, Education, Environment, Government Innovation, and Public Health. Bloomberg Philanthropies distributed $1.66 billion in 2021.