What is a College Access Program?

            A College Access Program (CAP) is an organization (typically non-profit) that provides hands-on or one-on-one advising to encourage and help each student successfully complete education beyond high school. Many College Access Programs also serve adult students seeking to improve their quality of life or are making a career change through successfully participating in postsecondary education degree or certificate program.
 The College Success Network (CSN) of New Mexico a nonpartisan not for profit 501 (c) (3) was incorporated in 2006, governed by a Board of Directors and was originally founded in 2002 as the New Mexico College Awareness Coalition (NMCAC).  Since CSN’s incorporation, a collective group of dedicated college access practitioners including New Mexico Higher Education Department(NMHED), GEAR UP, New Mexico Student Loans, New Mexico Department of Labor, American Indian Graduate Center, Daniels Fund, New Mexico Lottery, New Mexico Forum for Youth in Community, New Mexico Public Education Department (NMPED) and others has been formed. In CSN’s short history, this collective group has become the recognized statewide college access network in New Mexico known as the New Mexico College Access Network (NMCan) through the continued collaboration with local and regional outreach programs, area business leaders and in partnership with the NMHED.
 Currently, CSN is engaged with a grant driven college access and career exploration campaign roped around a statewide college and career planning tool (web-portal) called Carve Your Path. The Carve Your Path campaign encompasses the  NMHED and other state departments best practices, CSN and our outreach partners through NMCAN, state mandated Next Step plan, college and career strategies to collectively develop, build and implement a statewide college and career planning tool available to the students, parents, educators and citizens of New Mexico.
           If you represent an organization, college access program or educational institution dedicated to increasing High School and College success rates, please e-mail us at [ email ]  or go to www.carveyourpath.org and click on NMCan to register you organization, educational Institution, or College Access Program.