Alamo Colleges District on Dec. 14 announced it is further expanding its offer of tuition-free college through its AlamoPROMISE program to now cover all public Bexar County independent school districts and their high schools.
The Alamo Colleges District Board of Trustees approved the AlamoPROMISE expansion on Dec. 13. Now in its fourth year, AlamoPROMISE will serve 20 school districts and partners and 73 San Antonio-area high schools and programs as a result of an expanded level of service that increases reach across the region.
According to a release, as of December 2022, close to 9,600 high school seniors have taken the first step by signing up to save their seat to be an AlamoPROMISE Scholar.
The release said AlamoPROMISE covers tuition and required fees for current academic year graduates from participating high schools seeking an academic certificate or associate’s degree at one of the five Alamo Colleges: Northeast Lakeview College, Northwest Vista College, Palo Alto College, San Antonio College, and St. Philip’s College.
The expansion to 73 high schools would target approximately 20,500 estimated students as prospects for the AlamoPROMISE Program with an anticipated enrollment of 5,556 students, including those Churchill, Clark, Johnson and Reagan high schools and the International School of the Americas.
ACD Chancellor Mike Flores said the expansion AlamoPROMISE has been years in the making, and is designed to help end decades of generational poverty through education.
“We thank our donors and the community for their support of this game changing program that allows our high school students the opportunity to attend college tuition-free,” Flores said.
Newly eligible graduating high school seniors of the academic class 2023 can sign up to be an AlamoPROMISE Scholar by filling out the “Save Your Seat” pledge form at alamo.edu/promise.
To be eligible, students must be a graduating high school senior from one of the 73 participating AlamoPROMISE high schools and programs and complete all ACD admissions, enrollment, financial aid requirements and any other program requirements that are communicated, the release said.
As AlamoPROMISE Scholars, students receive a "last-dollar" scholarship for up to three years or the completion of an associate's degree or academic certificate, whichever comes first, the release said. The "last-dollar" scholarship funds the cost of tuition and required fees after financial aid awards are applied.
The first cohort of AlamoPROMISE scholars were recruited in the fall of 2019 and enrolled as AlamoPROMISE scholars in the fall of 2020. Last year, a group of inaugural cohort of graduates crossed the stage across all five Alamo Colleges, according to ACD.
In addition to tuition-free assistance, AlamoPROMISE Scholars have access to wraparound services such as advising, career counseling and help with financial, health and other issues that present barriers to completing a college education, the release said.
