Mayor Mike McGinn, Seattle Public Schools Superintendent Banda, University of Washington President Young and South Seattle Community College's Chancellor Wakefield are urging 7th and 8th Grade students to sign up for a program called the College Bound Scholarship they said in a press release today.

The College Bound Scholarship promises tuition at public institution rates and a small book allowance for income-eligible students residing in Washington State.

To participate in the program, students must sign up in the 7th or 8th grade, maintain a 2.0 average, stay out of legal trouble, graduate from high school, and successfully apply to a higher education institution.

Various Seattle-area leaders and organizations have teamed up to promote College Bound and make sure all eligible students are signing up for the program.

Program partners include:

Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn, the Seattle Office of Immigrant and Refugee Affairs, Seattle Public School Superintendent José Banda, University of Washington President Michael Young, Seattle Community Colleges Chancellor Jill Wakefield, the Alliance for Education and the Washington Student Achievement Council.

In 2011, 100 percent of eligible students signed up for the program. In 2012, while increasing the number of students in the program by 100, only 92 percent of eligible students were successfully entered into the program.

Through our combined efforts, they plan to reach these students and their families in English, Spanish, Somali, Chinese, Vietnamese, Amharic, Tagalog, Russian, Korean, Arabic and additional languages.

Resources:
College Bound http://www.wsac.wa.gov/PreparingForCollege/CollegeBound
Alliance for Education http://www.alliance4ed.org
Seattle Public Schools http://seattleschools.org