College Greenlight helps underserved students and community-based organizations connect with colleges and explore financial opportunities

College Greenlight, a nationwide online portal for first-generation and traditionally underserved students to research and connect with colleges and scholarships, unveiled its website today at the National Partnership for Educational Access annual conference.

A new service of industry-leading college search site Cappex.com, College Greenlight makes it possible for first-generation and underrepresented students to discover, apply to and attend their best-fit colleges and achieve better college outcomes. Students who create a free profile on the site can find colleges that are the right fit academically and socially, as well as pinpoint campuses that provide support programs to aid in their success once enrolled.

College Greenlight helps expand the college network available to students and provides an engaging environment for learning about and connecting with colleges.

“Too often, students from under-resourced backgrounds find their options for attending college limited,” said Jonathan April, general manager of College Greenlight. “College Greenlight expands the universe of opportunities available and helps students discover colleges that match them academically, socially and financially, greatly increasing their chances of success.

“In addition, colleges across the country are seeking to increase their level of diversity. College Greenlight is the first site of its kind that has the active involvement of colleges, helping them find students from a variety of backgrounds that will be successful on their campuses.”

Another unique attribute of College Greenlight is that it will provide a hub for community organizations and mentors to support their students throughout the application process as well as to monitor their success throughout their college careers. Through the site, mentors will be able to keep track of key outcomes such as applications per student, FAFSA completion rates, college acceptances, graduation rates and financial aid received. The site will be free to community-based organizations and the students they serve.

College Greenlight has selected Chicago Scholars as its first Premier Partner. As a Premier Partner, Chicago Scholars will provide the service to its more than 800 students mentored from the college selection and application process through college graduation and beyond. “We think College Greenlight is a game-changing platform, helping to level the playing field for our students,” said Karen Foley, president of Chicago Scholars.

The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Carleton College, and Oberlin College will be the first three universities to use College Greenlight to connect with students.

“As the largest university in the state, we are committed to serving the diverse students in Illinois,” said Stacey Kostell, University of Illinois director of admissions. “We are looking forward to connecting with high-achieving students through College Greenlight to help us meet that mission.”

About College Greenlight

College Greenlight is an online portal for first-generation and traditionally underserved students that makes it possible for them to discover, apply to and attend colleges that fit them academically, socially and financially. In addition, it provides high school counselors and community-based organizations a free platform to provide support to those students throughout the college search and admissions process. College Greenlight is a service provided by Cappex.com, a leading college search website that has relationships with hundreds of colleges nationwide and more than five years of experience helping millions of students achieve their college dreams. It is committed to the belief that all students deserve to attend a college that will allow them to succeed to their fullest potential. For more information, visit http://www.collegegreenlight.com.

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