News Service

Contribute to GCC's ACE Program for a 2008 Tax Deduction

Contacts:
Suzanne Higgins suzanne.higgins@gcmail.maricopa.edu 623.845.3808
Patricia Rhodes Vogel pr.vogel@gcmail.maricopa.edu 623.845.3014

Are you looking for some additional charitable-giving tax deductions before the end of 2008? If so, consider donating to the ACE program at Glendale Community College. Achieving a College Education (ACE) is beyond the dreams or budgets of many Valley students. Some never consider higher education. Many won't even finish high school and may face a lifetime of low-paying jobs. But finishing high school and attending college is exactly what the ACE Plus program at GCC is designed to help high school students accomplish.

ACE Plus is a scholarship-based, early-outreach program designed to increase the number of at-risk, financially disadvantaged or first-generation college-bound students who graduate from high school and make a smooth and successful transition into college. ACE stands for Achieving a College Education and the "Plus" stands for the many services and programs provided to students and their parents. The Director of ACE Plus, under whose leadership the program has expanded greatly, is Dr. Ibrahim Naim.

GCC is currently involved in a major fund-raising campaign to increase the ACE Plus program's ability to serve even more students. The goal is to raise $50,000 by the end of December. As of November 1, 56% of that goal has been met; $22,000 still needs to be raised. The return to the community on an additional $50,000 investment in this program will be huge. ACE Plus has an 18-year record of encouraging students to graduate from high school while concurrently completing college courses. About 94% of students in the program do graduate from high school. Of those, 83% go on to attend post-secondary institutions. The students' overall grade point average for high school and college course work completed during their time in the program is 3.12.

Anthony Reyes, 32, of Glendale, is a shining example of how the ACE Plus program can transform lives. He started in the program in the summer of 1992. "As a child from a single-parent family, I never thought that college would be an option for me," said Reyes. "I used to think that college was too expensive and that my high school grades were not good enough. The ACE Plus program helped me understand that I could be successful in college. It showed me all the resources available in college, taught me about scholarships and financial aid, and provided field trips to state universities that I had never seen before." Reyes went on to graduate from ASU with a degree in communication studies. He is now employed at GCC as an Academic Adviser. He says, "I enjoy my job because I can truly relate to new students since I, too, was once afraid that I would not survive in college. ACE Plus gave me the strength, courage and guidance I needed to pursue and achieve my goals."

During November of each year, ACE Plus representatives from GCC recruit sophomores at Alhambra, Apollo, Barry Goldwater, Deer Valley, Dysart, Glendale, Independence, Maryvale, Moon Valley, Peoria and Trevor Browne high schools. Selection is competitive, but students from all levels of the academic grading scale are accepted, based on their potential to achieve success and not on their previous academic record. Approximately 300 selected students are notified the following April and begin college classes at GCC for five weeks in June. They continue taking classes on Saturdays during the fall and spring semesters of their final two years of high school. Classes taken vary from student to student, and are based on testing results and skill levels.

Students who complete the entire program can earn as many as 24 college credits while still in high school. They also learn about college life, available resources, study techniques, time management, how to use computer information systems and how to navigate a campus. They complete the program when they graduate from high school. At that time, ACE Plus program advisers help them decide where to continue their college studies.

Students selected for ACE Plus will receive scholarships for their GCC tuition and fees. They and their families are responsible for the necessary textbooks and transportation to and from the college.

Visit www.gccaz.edu/aceplus or call 623.845.3335 or 623.845.4933 for more information. The ACE Plus program helps students, their families and the West Valley—by helping increase the number of well-educated, highly employable, tax-paying citizens in our community.

If you would like to contribute to ACE Plus, contact Director of Development and Alumni Relations Judy Sanchez at judy.sanchez@gcmail.maricopa.edu or at 623.845.3481.

Visit https://www.maricopa.edu/resdev/foundation/egive/index.php if you choose to donate online. Please make sure you select GCC and the ACE Plus program.

Glendale Community College is located at 6000 W. Olive Ave. in Glendale.