IEdited release
08/12/25
The Iowa Department of Education announced that it was awarded nearly $500,000 in competitive federal AmeriCorps funding through the Volunteer Iowa Commission. The grant will fund and expand Iowa’s ‘Course to College’ statewide postsecondary education coaching program, which has supported high school and college students in accessing and succeeding in postsecondary education since 2017.
Through the Course to College program, selected high school seniors serve as AmeriCorps student leaders who support their peers’ postsecondary aspirations. Additionally, college students and recent college graduates can serve as college coaches, providing in-person and virtual assistance to help students navigate the college application and financial aid processes.
The student leaders and postsecondary success coaches receive intensive training throughout the year as they help plan and execute career and college-ready events. Featured student events have included Application Day, Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) completion events and Decision Day celebrations, which support students’ decisions to enter into military service, Registered Apprenticeships, certificate programs or two- and four-year colleges and universities.
School counselors who serve as summer transition associates focus on helping students complete the FAFSA and ensure that students who have applied for and been accepted into college or other postsecondary programs successfully enroll, submit necessary information and attend at the start of the term.
More information is available at the following link: