Mission
Statment
The
California Student Opportunity and Access Program (Cal-SOAP)
was established by the state legislature in 1978. Today, Cal-SOAP
is instrumental in improving the flow of information about postsecondary
education and financial aid while raising the achievement levels
of low-income elementary and secondary school students or geographic
regions with documented low elgibility or college participation
rates, and who are first in their families to attend college.
Today, Cal-SOAP projects operate in 17 locations
throughout the state by consortia made up of secondary and postsecondary
schools and community agencies. Cal-SOAP works in cooperation
with other intersegmental outreach programs to avoid service duplication.
Current
Cal-SOAP projects include: Central
Coast(Santa Maria), Central
Valley (San Joaquin), East
Bay (Oakland and Richmond), Long
Beach, Los
Angeles, Merced,
North Coast (Eureka),
North Valley
(Yuba), Sacramento,
San Diego
and Imperial County, San Francisco,
San Jose, Santa
Barbara, Solano, South
County Gilroy, and South San Joaquin.
Because
each project specializes in serving students within its community,
the type of programs and services may differ. However, the projects
share the common goal of improving the flow of information about
postsecondary education and financial aid while raising achievement
levels of targeted students. Some common services provided by
the consortia includes college and career advising, tutoring,
parent involvement, and college awareness workshops.
Click
here to view the San Jose Cal-SOAP Menu of Services
The Cal-SOAP program is administered by the California
Student Aid Commission, with individual projects applying each
year for continued state funding. By law, each state allocation
must be matched by an equal or higher level of local resources.The
Student Aid Commission is assisted in administration of the program
by a 12-member, legislatively mandated advisory committee.
Cal-SOAP has extensive intersegmental participation,
including:
- 126 public school districts, from the largest in the state to
small, rural districts, plus individual high schools;
- Nine of the 10 campuses of the University of California system;
- 18 of the 23 campuses of the California State University system;
- 42 of the state's 109 California Community Colleges.
- 16 of the 77 Association of Independent California Colleges
and Universities members; and;
- 53 community-based organizations.
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