News Announcement
For further information please contact
Lynne Briggs or
Cheryl Kight
at 614-469-1950
Columbus, November 2009
AT&T OHIO DONATES $50,000 GRANT TO THE OHIO FOUNDATION OF INDEPENDENT COLLEGES TO FURTHER CAMPUS DIVERSITY PROGRAMS AND PROMOTE COLLEGE ACCESS THROUGH THE BRIDGES PROGRAM
At a press conference in Cleveland on November 20, AT&T announced a $50,000 grant from the AT&T Foundation to The Ohio Foundation of Independent Colleges (OFIC). Tom Pelto, President, AT&T Ohio, presented a check to Jeffrey S. Wolf, President, OFIC, at Cleveland Central Catholic High School. The grant will provide continuing support for programs promoting minority student recruitment and retention on OFIC member campuses, diversity forums involving both campus faculty and staff and corporate donor human resource representatives, and OFIC’s Bridges Program.
Since 2005, AT&T grants have made possible the design and implementation of on-campus programs aimed at increasing the number of minority students who are recruited, accepted, and succeed at OFIC member institutions. The programs are carried out in collaboration with local school districts, community colleges and college access programs. Reports indicate that more than 9,000 students, parents, faculty and staff have been impacted by these programs.
Diversity forums funded by AT&T and other donors provide campus faculty and staff and corporate human resource representatives an opportunity to share best practices regarding diversity and inclusion programs both on campuses and in the workplace.
The Bridges Program creates a path for urban and economically disadvantaged students to gain access to higher education, connecting students to OFIC colleges through their relationships with local churches and school systems, including the Cleveland Metropolitan School System and private schools such as Cleveland Central Catholic High School (CCCHS). Bridges workshops teach the students the value and importance of a college education and the academic steps necessary in high school to qualify for college, apply for financial aid, enroll and succeed academically. An additional benefit of the program is that OFIC campuses are providing scholarship support for students who participate in Bridges. Perhaps most importantly, the program enables urban youth to see a college education as a realistic and attainable goal.
CCCHS has made the Bridges Program part of its regular curriculum. Karl Ertle, President/Principal of CCCHS, and Sister Allison Marie Gusdanovic, Academic Dean/Assistant Principal, attended the press conference along with five students who spoke about the program from a student’s perspective and the impact it has had on their future plans.
Also in attendance at the press conference was Dr. Andrew Roth, President, Notre Dame College and Chair of the Bridges Advisory Committee for OFIC. Roth presented the institution’s view of the importance of AT&T’s gift in furthering college access for Ohio’s underserved populations. Myra Ancar, Regional Director for Northeast Ohio, Ohio State Treasurer’s Office was also present. The Office of Ohio Treasurer Kevin Boyce is a partner in the Bridges Program, offering workshops on personal financial planning that is part of the Bridges curriculum.
“These OFIC initiatives will increase the number of minority students who attend college in Ohio, help keep them in school, and provide forums to address diversity issues that impact not only campuses but also the corporate community,” said Pelto. “In addition, the Bridges program will not only encourage high school students to go on to higher education but also teach them exactly how to do it.”
OFIC President Jeffrey S. Wolf said that AT&T’s grant underscores its long and dedicated involvement with the 34 independent colleges that make up OFIC’s membership. “For over half a century, AT&T has been a partner with our organization”, Wolf said. “They have been there to support us and the students we serve. They know that teaching students the importance of staying in school and urging them to go on to college is good for them, for Ohio, and for society as a whole.”
OFIC is the primary corporate and foundation solicitation organization for 34 independent Ohio colleges and universities and operates one of the largest, most comprehensive and diverse scholarship management services in the state. OFIC member colleges collectively enroll 98,000 students and award one-third of all bachelor’s degrees in the state. For 60 years OFIC has worked to highlight the leadership, value and excellence of independent higher education and has provided unrestricted operating funds and scholarship commitments through funds raised in annual solicitations of businesses and foundations, thereby assuring continuation of excellence in private higher education. OFIC is governed by a Board of Trustees comprised of Ohio’s corporate leaders, as well as presidents of the 34 member colleges.