Executive Summary

The mission of Foundation for a College Education (FCE) is to increase the number of first-generation, low-income students of color from East Palo Alto, California, and similar under-resourced local communities who graduate from a four-year college or university. FCE engages students and parents in its work, helping them advocate for themselves and become catalysts for change in their communities.

FCE delivers four free programs to up to 200 students and their families each year, starting in high school and staying with them until college graduation: College Bound for high school students, College Success and College Scholarship for college students, and Parent Engagement for families.

Over the past 27 years, FCE has developed deep roots in its community and partners with local schools, community organizations and companies to fulfill its mission (see list at https://collegefoundation.org/community-partners/). FCE has been recognized by the Lumina Foundation, the Educational Policy Institute, The Palo Alto Weekly and Chamber of Commerce, and most recently in 2022 by Excelencia in Education.

FCE’s staff and Board represent the populations it serves: 88% of staff are POC; 88% of staff are first-generation college graduates; 47% of FCE’s Board are POC; and FCE’s Executive Director is a first-generation African-American college graduate from a low-income family.

FCE works! Based on the last four years: 88% of FCE’s college graduates earned their Bachelor’s Degrees in six or less years, and 100% of FCE’s graduating high school seniors were accepted to a college or university (with a small percent starting at a community college).

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