SXSW EDU, one of the largest events in education, is taking place this week, and City Colleges of Chicago Chancellor Juan Salgado was there to talk about one of our groundbreaking partnerships.
On Tuesday, March 7, 2023, Chancellor Salgado took part in a session at SXSW EDU titled “How Diverse Students Access & Thrive in College,” where he discussed our expanded partnership with the student support organization One Million Degrees (OMD) alongside their CEO Aneesh Sohoni.
City Colleges of Chicago and One Million Degrees announced an expanded partnership in November 2022 to help put more students on a path to graduation and economic mobility. Under the expanded public/private partnership, a majority of first-year degree-seeking students will be accepted into the OMD program, which provides students with financial support, success coaching, professional development, and more.
Salgado and Sohoni explained how the OMD model is supporting City Colleges students, who are majority Black and Latinx, and the research-backed evidence showcasing the program’s success. In fact, research from the University of Chicago Inclusive Economy Lab has found that students who applied to OMD’s program before enrolling were 70 percent more likely to enroll, 94% more likely to persist, 73% more likely to earn a degree within three years.
Other panelists participating in the conversation included Isabel Amaya of the University of Michigan Medical School and Blanton Tolbert from Howard Hughes Medical Institute. The conversation was moderated by Alex Kafta, a senior editor for The Chronicle of Higher Education.
