E3 Alliance Awarded Multi-Year Grant to Transform Postsecondary Education in Central Texas
Awarded Multi-Year Grant
For Immediate Release:
Austin, Texas (January 9, 2020) – E3 Alliance (Education Equals Economics) has been awarded a multi-year grant to begin scaling the work of the Austin College Attainment Network (ACAN) to increase the number of students completing a postsecondary credential in the Central Texas region. The $1.3 million “Intermediaries for Scale & Institutional Transformation” grant, provided by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, will support E3 Alliance, ACAN, and regional IHE partners, as part of the foundation’s effort to improve postsecondary completion throughout the country. E3 Alliance and ACAN, with the support of the foundation, will work with Central Texas colleges and universities, as they build capacities and capabilities to better bolster many more students in the process to and through postsecondary education.
E3 Alliance is a critically important intermediary in Central Texas, and an essential collaborator in helping the state of Texas reach its postsecondary completion goal: 60x30TX. E3 Alliance directs their work by convening key stakeholders in education to study regional data, and to create a common action plan to improve educational outcomes. One of these groups is ACAN, which is comprised of nine core community-based organizations and five core IHE partners. ACAN organizations provide direct service to Central Texas’ most in-need students, and work to support those same students to and through postsecondary education.
With support from the Gates Foundation, E3 Alliance and ACAN will collaborate with these five postsecondary institutions to dramatically improve outcomes for students in Central Texas—especially low-income and first-generation students, students of color, and working adults. E3 Alliance was one of 12 total awardees across the country. This support will help E3 Alliance and ACAN scale mature, data-driven practices to help transform institutions of higher education as they aim to reduce success disparities by race and income, promote continuous improvement through the use of data, and identify, implement, and evaluate critical campus-level changes in policy and practice.
All 12 awardees will focus on four priorities: Increasing awareness of transformation strategies, informing key campus-level decisions about change options, supporting transformation by providing guidance and resources, and building connections across postsecondary institutions to accelerate learning and sharing of data and knowledge.
About
E3 Alliance (Education Equals Economics) is a nationally recognized, data-driven, education collaborative in Central Texas, with a mission to transform education systems so all students succeed. Founded in 2006, E3 Alliance partners with 15 independent school districts, eight Institutions of Higher Education (IHE), Region XIII Education Service Center, and over 200 community and industry partners. These organizations work together to advance “The Blueprint for Educational Change™,” the regional strategic plan to build the strongest educational pipeline in the country.