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Program Excel Exceeds Goal During Challenging Year

Submitted by Dee Dee Snyder, snyder.426@osu.edu

PEDuring the 2021-2022 academic year, due to the Covid enrollment dip, ATI did not enroll enough students in the eligible student populations needed for Program Excel to meet its required service goal—which would result in losing the grant. Anticipating this, the team developed and executed a critical plan to reach and engage incoming students during Summer 2022 to meet the gap in the number of students served for the year. As a result, Program Excel exceeded their goal by the end of the summer.
   
 As a condition of receiving its federal funding, Program Excel is required to serve 210 eligible students annually. Two-thirds of those students must have eligibility that is either first-generation and income-eligible or registered through Disability Services. One-third of the students with disabilities must also be income-eligible.
   
Beginning January 2022, the team embarked on a multi-faceted plan to engage incoming students during the summer. Divided into three work groups, the team developed and implemented targeted outreach including: 
   • Buckeye Excitement (specific topics and talking points for individually engaging incoming students), 
   • Parent and Family Newsletter (fostering additional support for students and awareness for families), and
   • Ramped Up Promotions (creating and enhancing how the grant reached students).
   
   Thank you to the Program Excel team for your creativity, focus and commitment to achieve this outstanding accomplishment!
   
   Special kudos to Dave Dietrich for his understanding and support to help us collect data and reach students during the summer.