Contact: Di Saunders, OUS – Office: 503-725-5714; Cell: 971-219-6869
Source: Stephanie Carnahan, CACGP Program Director – Office: 541-346-5761; Cell: 541-359-6755

Portland, OR, October 19, 2010 – The State of Oregon announced last week that it has awarded a $45,615 grant to Incight Company’s S.T.A.R.T. Post-Secondary Success project to increase access to and success in college for students with disabilities from 5 school districts in the Portland area. Funded through a $1.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education received by Oregon in August, Incight’s award is part of the College Access Challenge Grant Program (CACGP) which awarded grants to 12 pre-college preparation programs across the state for a total of $607,000 in support.

Incight’s S.T.A.R.T. Post-Secondary Success project will be implemented in Reynolds, Parkrose, Centennial and David Douglas school districts with the goal of addressing the post-secondary preparation and transitional needs for high school students with disabilities. To achieve this goal, the project will increase the resources, transition tools and services available to their student population as well as those available to high school counselors and faculty at the postsecondary education level. The project will also use their partnerships to better address the barriers which keep students with disabilities from accessing pathways to postsecondary education.

“This is a wonderful opportunity to address the need of students with disabilities in Oregon and the barriers they face in accessing college,” said Keith Ozols, Incight Executive Director. “In Oregon only 12% of those with disabilities go on to earn a bachelors degree whereas 31% of their peers without disabilities will go on to earn a degree. At Incight we aim to change these statistics and to make college a real and viable option for people with disabilities, and with funding from this grant we will be able to expand the START program and make a real difference for these students.”

Incight Company will partner with Western Oregon University and the Youth Transition Program to deliver the programming to students. Besides the $45,615 provided by the grant, Incight will be providing an additional $77,460 in matching funds to run the program.

Stephanie Carnahan, director of college access programs for the Oregon University System, said, “There is a great need in Oregon for pre-college programs that help students and families understand how to access college in a comprehensive way, from academic preparation to understanding how financial aid works. S.T.A.R.T Post-Secondary Success is a great example of the type of support that all Oregon students need in order to ensure that they can access college and be academically and otherwise prepared to succeed in their education and career goals.”

The College Access Challenge Grant Program (CACGP) is a formula grant program that is designed to foster partnerships among Federal, State and local government entities and philanthropic organizations to significantly increase the number of underrepresented students who enter and remain in postsecondary education. CACGP provides two-year grants to States to meet the needs of underrepresented students and families. In Oregon, all education sectors and the Governor’s Office are involved in the CACGP, and the Oregon University System is the fiscal agent for the grant.

Oregon University System (OUS) comprises seven distinguished public universities and one branch campus, reaching more than one million people each year through on-campus classes, statewide public services, and lifelong learning. The Oregon State Board of Higher Education, the statutory governing board of OUS, is composed of twelve members appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Oregon State Senate. For additional information, go to www.ous.edu.

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