News Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 11, 2007

Lumina Foundation for Education announces first-quarter grants

Indianapolis—Lumina Foundation for Education awarded $2.4 million in the first quarter of 2007 to 12 organizations in nine states and Washington, D.C., to expand college access and student success.

"America is slipping in global standing for degree attainment," said Martha D. Lamkin, president and chief executive officer of Lumina, "and we must work to find solutions that can reverse this trend."

"We need to enhance college access and success for disadvantaged students as a means to ensure the future competitiveness of the U.S.," she continued. "Through grants and initiatives funded by Lumina, the Foundation can identify strategies, programs and long-term successes to respond to that need."

The 12 grants approved since January are listed below by state:

CALIFORNIA

Silicon Valley Children's Fund (San Jose)—$8,300 to enhance the Youth Education Scholarship (YES) video used for cross-training college administrators and community agencies about the postsecondary needs of former foster youth.

COLORADO

Colorado Community College System Foundation (Denver)—$324,200 to institutionalize strategies to increase retention of academically underprepared students at community colleges in Colorado.

WASHINGTON, D.C.

Council on Foundations—$70,000 to conduct a forum on grant-making research and practices that will encourage greater communication and collaboration among research centers and with grant makers.

INDIANA

Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis (Indianapolis)—$162,700 to conduct a qualitative evaluation of Indiana's Twenty-first Century Scholars Program.

Trustees of Indiana University (Indianapolis)—$748,500 to improve the academic persistence and success of African-American males at three Indiana institutions: Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis, Indiana University Northwest and Indiana State University.

MAINE

Maine Community Foundation (Ellsworth)—$399,400 to help 10,000 Maine workers, with support from their employers, earn two- and four-year college degrees over the next decade by providing academic support.

NEW MEXICO

National Institute for Native Leadership in Higher Education (Albuquerque)—$10,000 to sponsor the August 2007 Annual Institute on the Santa Ana Pueblo reservation.

New Mexico Community Foundation (Santa Fe)—$190,400 to support College Goal Sunday 2007-2009 in New Mexico.

OHIO

Ohio Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (Pepper Pike)—$25,000 to continue support for College Goal Sunday 2007-2008 in Ohio.

PENNSYLVANIA

SouthEastern Pennsylvania Consortium for Higher Education (Aston)—$115,600 to improve the recruitment and retention of underserved students at eight independent colleges and universities in the Philadelphia area.

TEXAS

Hispanic Association of Colleges & Universities (San Antonio)—$187,200 to create a research network on postsecondary access and success issues for Hispanic students.

WASHINGTON

University of Washington (Seattle)—$185,100 to examine the extent to which state transfer and articulation policies increase opportunities for students to earn a bachelor's degree.

About Lumina Foundation

Lumina Foundation for Education, an Indianapolis-based, private, independent foundation, strives to help people achieve their potential by expanding access and success in education beyond high school. Through grants for research, innovation, communication and evaluation, as well as policy education and leadership development, Lumina Foundation addresses issues that affect access and educational attainment among all students, particularly underserved student groups, including adult learners. The Foundation bases its mission on the belief that postsecondary education remains one of the most beneficial investments that individuals can make in themselves and that society can make in its people.

For more information, contact Dianna L. Boyce, Lumina Foundation's communication associate, at 317.951.5116.