Contact: Camille Carskadon

STARKVILLE, Miss.—College access and readiness for Mississippi students is becoming more attainable with this month’s launch of the Greenville College Access Network, or GCAN.

“For three years I’ve worked with dedicated community members who want to see Greenville residents succeed. Without the community, this project would not exist,” said Carol Cutler White, an assistant professor in Mississippi State’s Department of Educational Leadership. “I join with my AmeriCorps Program Officer Melissa Gouge in congratulating Mayor Errick Simmons and the City of Greenville for being the first community in the state of Mississippi to organize a college access network.”

The community-based network in the heart of the Mississippi Delta relies on volunteers to lend support for college-bound students and their families in navigating the college application process, especially paperwork for financial aid.

“We know that college is very important, but it can be complicated. That’s where Greenville CAN comes in,” Cutler White said. “It’s neighbors helping neighbors and a community coming together through service to build trusted places across the city where people can get help filling out college applications and getting money through financial aid applications.”

GCAN was made possible by a Corporation for National and Community Service Office of Research and Evaluation (ORE) Community Conversations Research grant. MSU’s Cutler White is the principal investigator, which enabled a participatory action research study mobilizing the City of Greenville in providing the college and financial aid application assistance.

GCAN is a partnership between the City of Greenville and the Woodward Hines Educational Foundation’s Get2College initiative, which aims to increase college access and success across the state and provided training for volunteers in Greenville.

Cutler White said there is a vast and growing need for college access services across Mississippi to assist students and families in achieving a living wage, middle-class lifestyle. She said studies show students graduating from high school with a sense of direction and purpose are more likely, with appropriate economic and social support, to successfully transition to adulthood, and that her hope is for GCAN to help facilitate this transition.

“I’m excited the research has turned into action, which was the goal. The city of Greenville, under the leadership of Mayor Simmons, is committed to building a citywide college-going culture. Greenville CAN is here to support that goal,” Cutler White said. “College can change lifetime outcomes not just for the person who graduates from college, but for the generations that follow.”

She said GCAN will give a voice to community members, encouraging high school juniors and seniors to seek out help and advice when it comes to applying to college.

Currently, GCAN is the only college access network launched in Mississippi, but through collaboration with the Woodward Hines Education Foundation, Cutler White plans to expand to other communities.

“My goal is that Greenville CAN is the first among many successful college access network communities. I’ve already received requests to help other communities do the same work. With the strong partnership of the Woodward Hines Education Foundation and a shared goal, I believe this is just the beginning of a college access movement across the state of Mississippi.”

Students and families can sign up for an appointment through the Greenville College Access Network Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/GreenvilleCAN38701. They will be linked to make an appointment at SignUp.com. Greenville CAN also works with local schools to get the word out, and school counselors can assist with making appointments.

Established in 1903, MSU’s College of Education is home to six academic departments, one research unit and numerous service units. For more about the college, visit www.educ.msstate.edu.

MSU is Mississippi’s leading university, available online at www.msstate.edu.