San Francisco Unified School District and ConnectEDU Partner to Help Students Prepare for High School, Post-Secondary Education and Careers

BOSTON, Aug. 31, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- With the goal of assisting students as they prepare for high school and beyond, San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) and ConnectEDU (www.connectedu.com), the leader in developing web-based high school, college and career access solutions, today announced a major partnership to place ConnectEDU's Connect!™ platform district wide in San Francisco.  As part of the Plan Ahead curriculum, all ninth graders within the San Francisco school system will be using Connect!.

The "Plan Ahead" course prepares ninth graders to succeed in high school and to set goals for post-secondary education and careers. The course exposes them to a range of potential careers and helps them develop the skills, the attitudes, and the behaviors they will need as they embark upon their lives as young adults.  

The Connect! platform will be used by SFUSD to create opportunities for more than 20,000 students to build new relationships with colleges and employers, as well as provide them with the resources needed to create an informed plan for life after high school. With student consent, Colleges can even streamline their recruiting process using ConnectEDU's StudentRecruit, the premier enrollment marketing tool, to connect with SFUSD students, in addition to the millions of other students using Connect!. The Connect! platform makes every aspect of preparing, planning, applying, financing, and transitioning to college and/or careers faster, easier, and cheaper for all involved.  SFUSD had previously deployed the Connect! platform on a pilot program basis with support from the San Francisco Education Fund before deciding to expand the program to all  students across the system.

"ConnectEDU is proud to partner with SDUSD to assist students as they begin planning the next stage of their education and start considering careers that might be of interest," said Craig Powell, CEO and founder of ConnectEDU.  "The Connect! platform is a powerful tool that will have an immediate impact by assisting thousands of students in San Francisco, not just in the classroom, but by also by starting to build relationships with schools and employers."

"We are excited to continue our relationship with ConnectEDU and leverage student data to identify at-risk students earlier," said Maureen Carew, Director of San Francisco Promise and Bridge to Success, college planning initiatives within the San Francisco Unified School District. "With Connect! our students will have the tools they need to successfully plan for college and a career."

ConnectEDU's Connect! platform will work with SFUSD student information and data systems to create a custom environment for each student. Once these systems are integrated, students can navigate the college-application process and prepare for careers with maximum efficiency.  Over 100 teachers and  counselors have been receiving hands-on training from ConnectEDU representatives to help prepare for the deployment during the 2011-2012 school year.

About ConnectEDU, Inc.:  (www.connectedu.com)

ConnectEDU, Inc. is the web-based leader in empowering students to manage their education, launch their careers, and secure a more stable financial future.  Created, developed and run by people who have worked in every area of college counseling, admissions, and career development, ConnectEDU uses information technology to connect real students and real data with real colleges, and real career opportunities. ConnectEDU makes the college admissions process simpler, more efficient, more reliable and more effective. The Company's approach gives every student, from every neighborhood across the country, the best opportunity to achieve their dream of a college education and promising career.

SOURCE ConnectEDU