The Study is Co-Authored by Northwestern University and HOPE Toledo Promise

In December 2021, College Promise, a national, non-partisan, non-profit initiative that builds broad public support for funding the first two or more years of postsecondary education for hard-working students, and ensuring those students have access to quality educational opportunities and supports, published an important policy brief on the first year of the HOPE Toledo Promise program. 

The HOPE Toledo Promise program promotes postsecondary success by offering high school graduates and one parent or guardian a fully funded, 4.5-year college scholarship, as well as supportive services. The program launched with the 2020 graduating class of Jesup W. Scott High School. All of the families are from low-income backgrounds, and most identify as Black.

The policy brief was authored by researchers from Northwestern University, Teresa Eckrich Sommer, Lindsay Chase-Lansdale and Lauren Tighe and HOPE Toledo’s CEO, Rev. John Jones. The intent of the brief was to extract empirical evidence from the implementation study and research findings to evaluate the HOPE Toledo Promise program as an effective intervention that could address educational inequity for low-income families in Toledo, Ohio, where only one in five adults holds a college degree.

Evidence from the study indicated that the HOPE Toledo Promise program’s unique two-generational approach of investing in the education of parents and children at the same time has greater benefits than single-generation investments. The program also addresses critical financial barriers as the HOPE Toledo Promise program covers full tuition, room and board and other school-related costs, while many other college scholarships do not.

Due to the success of the HOPE Toledo Promise program, Hope Chicago launched a similar initiative in February 2022.

The Policy Brief:

A Novel Two-Generation Approach to College Promise: HOPE Toledo Promise Program

The Research Paper:

An Implementation Study of the HOPE Toledo Promise Inaugural Class of 2020