Are You a College Access Champion?
Do you believe you make a difference in your students' lives?
Are you passionate about helping them achieve their dreams?
Do you help them realize that college is possible?
If yes, you are a College Access Champion!
You play a key role in your students' future, including their decision to go to college. If you teach, counsel, or support students in one of the 641 middle and high schools in Wisconsin designated to be a low-income school by the U.S. Department of Education, your help and encouragement in promoting college access is important to the success of both your students and your community.
We understand the investment you made in funding your own college education, as well as the challenges you may face now as you help your students realize that a college education is within their reach. That is why we created the 2008-09 College Access Champion Award. The award recognizes your passion for helping your students achieve their dreams of going to college and rewards you by paying up to $5,000 toward the balance of your outstanding federal student loan debt.
Reap the rewards of your hard work in helping students access college — apply to be a College Access Champion today!
Are You Eligible?
You must:
- Be passionate about helping your students achieve their dreams of going to college
- Be employed as a teacher, counselor, staff member, or administrator who serves students in grades 6-12 at a school on the List of Eligible Wisconsin Schools (developed from the U.S. Department of Education 2007-08 and 2008-09 list of low-income schools), and have been employed continuously at that school since the beginning of the 2006-07 academic year
- Be a teacher, counselor, staff member, or administrator who has served students in grades six through twelve for the last three consecutive years
- Have a Bachelor's degree
- Have an outstanding, non-defaulted federal Stafford and/or federal Consolidation loan balance
- Have not previously received a Great Lakes College Access Champion Award
What Is the Award Process?
- If your application is postmarked by March 1, 2010, it will be scored by the Great Lakes College Access Champion Award Evaluation Committee. Your score will be based on how well your application materials demonstrate your passion for college outreach and access awareness.
- Great Lakes will grant 50 awards in Wisconsin. If you are selected by the committee to receive an award, we will make a student loan payment on your behalf of $5,000 or the outstanding balance of your federal student loan, whichever is less. Your outstanding student loan balance will be obtained from the National Student Loan Data System or an alternative authoritative source.
- You will be notified by May 1, 2010, if you are a recipient of the 2009-2010 College Access Champion Award.
- If you receive an award, it will be made payable to your servicer/lender as of the award date and mailed to your servicer/lender by June 1, 2009. The award can only be used to reduce your outstanding federal student loan balance.
- As an award recipient, you will receive Form 1099-C documenting the amount of your award by January 31, 2011.
How Do I Apply?
- Verify that your school is included on the List of Eligible Wisconsin Schools.
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Complete the College Access Champion Award Application and ensure that you:
- List the loan type, outstanding principal balance, and servicer/lender name for your outstanding federal Stafford and federal Consolidation loans as documented at nslds.ed.gov
- Have your school principal certify your employment dates and commitment to college access
- Sign the completed application
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Write an essay that describes how you demonstrate your passion and involvement in helping students in your school and community access college. Your essay must be 1,000 words or less, typed, and double-spaced. It will be rated on a scale of 1 (low) to 5 (high) based on:
- Your description of specific efforts and initiatives you've undertaken to help students in your school and community believe that college is possible.
- Your examples detailing how you have collaborated with local and statewide (e.g., the Wisconsin Covenant, KnowHow2GO Wisconsin) college access programs to help your students take advantage of the services they offer, including the Wisconsin Covenant.
- How well your essay conveys how you personally make a difference in the lives of your students by helping them prepare for and/or access post-secondary education.
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Obtain one letter of recommendation that confirms your passion, skills, efforts, and contributions to college access and awareness in your community.
- Your letter must be from a colleague, administrator, former student, parent, or community member who can personally attest to your efforts and contributions toward college access awareness.
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Your letter of recommendation will be rated on a scale of 1 (low) to 5 (high) based on how well it explains:
- Your role in promoting college access awareness in your school and/or community
- Your impact on the lives of students and families
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Submit all application materials, postmarked no later than March 1, 2010, to:
Great Lakes Higher Education Guaranty Corporation
Attn: College Access Champion Award
2401 International Lane
Madison, WI 53704
If your employment status, name, address, or phone number changes after the submission of your application materials, please contact us so we may update your information.
We appreciate your interest in our program and support the hard work you do to help create brighter futures for students and build stronger communities. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact us at outreachandaccess@glhec.org or (877) 229-1406.
