California Students Develop Solutions to Address Community College Completion Crisis

Will Compete for $25,000 to Turn Ideas Into Campus, Community and Online Projects

WASHINGTON, Feb. 22, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Each year, only three out of 10 California community college students complete their postsecondary education. This spring, 100 of these students will gather at the Hilton San Jose to discuss ways they can prevent the other seven from being left behind.

The Mobilize.org Target 2020 California Summit, held on April 15 - 17, will include three days of discussion and problem solving, as students share challenges they face in achieving their academic goals and collaborate on solutions to help all students overcome them. The top five solutions will win Democracy 2.0 Awards; a share of $25,000 and a year of expert support to be implemented as campus, community or online projects.

"California's community college students are full of ideas to help improve their educational experience," said Maya Enista, CEO of Mobilize.org. "It often includes more peer-to-peer support and creative ways to better use existing campus and community resources. Our goal is to help channel these resources and facilitate the relationships students need to transform their ideas into projects that will benefit the entire campus community and help each student achieve their personal academic goals."

In addition to collaborating, summit participants will hear from Deborah Rappaport, president of The Rappaport Family Foundation, Steve Ngo, board member of the San Francisco Community College Board of Trustees, David Smith, executive director of the National Conference on Citizenship and founder of Mobilize.org, and regional representatives for the Community College League of California.

Target 2020 California Summit partners include the Rappaport Family Foundation, the Community College League of California and the Community College Success Network. National partners include the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.

The Target 2020 California Summit is the second in a series of three to ensure student voices and solutions are included in the national dialogue on college completion. The third will be held in New York City this fall.

For more information, please visit www.Mobilize.org/Target2020CA.

About Mobilize.org

Mobilize.org improves the way democracy works by investing in Millennial-led solutions. Utilizing technology and social networking to connect Millennials on and offline, its national Democracy 2.0 Award Summits convene Millennials from around the country to discuss issues impacting our society and to develop sustainable solutions to address them.

SOURCE Mobilize.org