What's New

What's New at ACCESS College Foundation?

Check back frequently to see all of the great things happening at ACCESS!

 

Introducing March Matchness!

Throughout the month of March, all new and increased gifts up to $80,000 will be DOUBLED with our new initiative called #AccessMarchMatchness.

Your $25 turns into $50. $100 into $200. $500 into $1,000! Think of all the college students who will benefit from your donation for application fees, college tours, scholarships and more.

The following generous organizations and individuals have pledged to match your donation to ACCESS:

Birdsong Peanuts
Lilly and Bruce Bradley
Joan Brock
Melynda and Mark Compton
Dawn and Timothy Glynn
Courtney and Chris Graves
Gwen and Leander Green
Vicky and Clint McPherson
Jennifer and David Mele
Ripley Heatwole Company
Audrey and John Settle
Suburban Capital
Tankard Nurseries
The Carr Investment Group
TowneBank
Ashlin and Wayne Wilbanks

 

For more information, contact Dionne Scott at dscott@accesscollege.org or (757) 351-2809.

 

Monday Night Steak at Baker's Crust, All Month Long!

How does a delicious steak dinner at Baker’s Crust sound? Yep, our mouths are watering, too!

On any Monday in March, dine in after 4:00 p.m. at one of three Bakers Crusts (Ghent, Greebrier or Hilltop) for "Buy a Steak in Your Community" to benefit ACCESS!

For just $7, you’ll dine on an 8 oz. black angus flat iron steak while helping to pave the way for positive change for many deserving young people. Join us.

For more information: https://bakerscrust.com/menu/specials

 

ACCESS Hires First Career Connection Coordinator

 

We're pleased to welcome Morgan Chase as its first Career Connection Coordinator. In that role, Chase works with nearly 300 ACCESS Scholars to bridge the gap between college and career. He aids their search for internships and entry-level jobs, as well as interacts with business and community leaders to create new positions for ACCESS’ network of Scholars.

Chase previously worked as a public affairs producer and content strategist for 89.5 WHRV FM and WHRO FM.

 

Entering our 30th Year with a New Look!

“It is within our reach to open the doors to college for many hundreds of young people. If ACCESS can do this, it will be a powerful instrument for hope and enrichment for our community and for the people who need it most.”

– Frank Batten, Sr., Co-Founder, ACCESS College Foundation

As ACCESS enters its 30th year and we reflect back on our history, we are so proud of the amount of students we have been able to help with the college process. Frank Batten's words, from the first newspaper article on ACCESS in 1988, still ring true today as we continue on our mission of providing students with the path to attend and complete college. 
 
While it is important for us to remember our past, we are also excited to look toward our future, which includes a new brand, an updated logo, brighter colors and a new tagline! 
 
 
Our new branding is more contemporary and exciting but also, reflects who we are. It speaks directly to what we do and reminds our supporters they are changing the lives of young people and enhancing the future of our community. The mortarboard in our logo highlights how to assist students through high school graduation, college graduation and into the path beyond.
 
We're ready to take on the next 30 years!

National College Access Network 2017 Conference 

This September, five members of the ACCESS team attended and presented at the National College Access Network (NCAN) Conference: “Making Waves for Postsecondary Access and Success” in San Diego! The event itself had nearly 1,100 attendees from organizations across the country, national funders, federal student aid representatives and others. 

The ACCESS team with conference speaker, Wes Moore. 

The ACCESS team with conference speaker, Wes Moore.

Our team shared best practices and presented on a variety of topics from the role of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) to Federal Student Aid updates and from fostering a passionate organizational culture to connecting college success to career success.

Thanks to NCAN for a great conference! We’re already planning for next year in Pittsburgh!

Check out more photos on our Facebook page!

ACCESS Receives 6th Consecutive 4-Star Rating from Charity Navigator!

 For the 6th consecutive year, ACCESS has received a 4-star rating from Charity Navigator, America's largest and most-utilized independent evaluator of charities! We're proud to say only 5% of charities they evaluate have received at least 6 consecutive 4-star evaluations.

What does the 4-star rating mean? Charity Navigator's goal is to provide clear, objective, and reliable assessments of both the financial health and accountability & transparency of charities, allowing donors to feel confident in the charities they support. A 4-star rating indicates an organization exceeds industry standards and outperforms most charities in its cause.

For more information about our rating, take a look at our profile on the Charity Navigator website here.

2017 Scholarship Awards Luncheon

On June 22, 2017, we held our annual Scholarship Awards Luncheon at the Virginia Beach Convention Center and proudly presented 135 local high school graduates with scholarships! Our keynote speaker, Virginia Supreme Court Justice, the Honorable S. Bernard Goodwyn, addressed the room full of students from Chesapeake, Norfolk, Northampton County, Portsmouth, Suffolk and Virginia Beach and encouraged them to "dream big" as they enter the next chapter of their lives.

A special thank you to all of our event sponsors: Chesapeake Bay Wine Classic Foundation, Joan and Macon Brock, Peggy and Conrad Hall, Old Dominion University, PRA Group, Virginia Tech, Norfolk State University, Virginia State University, PNC Bank, Eastern Shore Community College, Virginia Wesleyan University, Virginia529, Harvey Lindsay Commercial Real Estate and University of Mary Washington.

We wish our scholars the best as they begin the next chapter in their lives!

Visit our Facebook page for more photos from the event.

Check out coverage of the event in the Virginian-Pilot here.

 

Pages