By Barry Wise Smith
Photos courtesy of College Choice Foundation and Brittany Sturdivant
In the almost 12 years that College Choice Foundation (CCF) has existed, 283 students have come through the program, collectively amassing more than $132 million in financial aid and scholarships, gaining admission to a variety of colleges across the United States and 43 graduating from schools with little or no college debt.
The College Choice Foundation’s mission is to help high-achieving, low-income students from the Birmingham area navigate the complex college admissions process by providing resources and guidance to help them apply to, enroll in and graduate from college—preferably with as little debt as possible. And with a 98 percent graduation rate amongst CCF scholars (the average rate for the population served is less than 30 percent) and kids being admitted to schools like Boston College, Boston University, Emory, Harvard, Tulane, Northeastern, Notre Dame, University of Chicago, Yale, University of Southern California, Wake Forest and more, CCF is clearly doing something right.
The Start
Like many non-profits, the genesis of CCF springs from personal experience growing into a passion. Josephine Lowery, CCF’s co-founder and executive director, grew up poor and exercised control by excelling in school. But when it came time to go to college, Lowery assumed she would stay home and go to college locally. Fortunately, Lowery’s high school guidance counselor had a different idea and encouraged her to apply to schools she had never heard of, even paying her application fees to make it happen. “I decided to go to Sewanee because of the rocking chairs on the cover of their catalog, and it was the best decision I ever made,” she says. Lowery graduated from Sewanee and went on to law school at the University of Georgia but never forgot her counselor’s kindness—and that she someday wanted to pay that kindness forward.
Cut to 2014, when Lowery ran into Dr. Mark Bateman, a longtime Samford professor who passed away in 2023. Bateman offered to help Lowery’s oldest daughter Savannah navigate the college admissions process and find her college fit. “He just off-handedly said to me that he wanted to the same things he did for my kid and others for kids who didn’t have the same resources,” Lowery remembers. “Mark was deeply curious about the decision-making process and passionate about making higher education accessible to all.”
Their conversation turned into an action plan involving the daughter of Lowery’s landscaper, who they provided with ACT prep classes. She improved her score and got a full-paid education at Washington University in St. Louis and became CCF’s first scholar. In 2016, CCF became a 501©(3) and in 2020 expanded into the Birmingham City School system. This year, CCF added students from five new schools—Alabama School of Fine Arts (ASFA), Cornerstone High School, Holy Family Cristo Rey Catholic High School, Jefferson County International Baccalaureate High School (JCIB) and Restoration Academy. This year’s class of Scholars includes 50 high school juniors and seniors and 155 college students.
Resources for All
The Bateman Scholars Program (named for Dr. Bateman) provides up to eight years of support—from junior year in high school through up to six years for college. Some of the resources provided to students include individualized writing coaching for college essays and scholarship applications; college visits; laptops for high school seniors who need one; small-group ACT prep classes; tutoring for students who need academic support; mentorship; résumé sessions and updates with a professional; support in the financial aid process; a two-day intensive college readiness camp called SOAR for graduated seniors focused on building study skills, financial literacy and mental wellness awareness; a dorm essentials giveaway and financial support for college move-in; stipends for books and indirect expenses; flights home for certain students; winter clothing for students attending school in cold climates and individual check-ins by staff.
“In a time of uncertainty and growing inequality in higher education, CCF is more committed than ever to ensuring that a student’s potential, not their financial circumstances, defines their future,” Lowery says. “We believe every Scholar deserves the chance to not only attend the college of their choice but to graduate with minimal debt and the confidence to lead. CCF ignites transformation, one student at a time.”
CCF has worked to address barriers at each stage of the process, investing in individualized and responsive services in order to increase college access and college going mindsets in low income communities. And the resources are clearly creating results. “This completely changed my life,” says Mariam Abdelhalim, CCF scholar and Boston College graduate. “College Choice changed not only what my future looked like but what I thought I’d be able to accomplish. I’m the eldest daughter of an immigrant mother who felt I couldn’t go to a good school due to financial burdens, but College Choice showed me that I could go to any college I put my mind to. CCF and my mentors helped guide me and showed me I’d be able to attend an incredible university. I decided to take a leap and go to Boston College, which has opened endless opportunities.”
And the success isn’t limited to one student. To date, 43 CCF Scholars have earned college degrees. Of the students who received services from high school through college, 98 percent graduated within six years, most within four. Of the students who graduated, 44 percent graduated with no student loan debt. Among the 56 percent who did borrow, the average debt was $14,656 over four years, about half the national average of $29,000 for bachelor’s degree recipients.
Bright Futures
And while the numbers are impressive, often it’s the unseen ripple effects that are the indicators of lasting success. By investing heavily in individuals, CCF believes that students return to their communities and become mentors, role models and sources of knowledge for their families and community. “Our scholars are creating lasting change for themselves, their families and their communities, evidence of the generational impact that access to higher education makes possible,” Lowery says.
CCF Scholar and Harvard sophomore Jacari Dillard agrees, “Access and exposure are the gateway to success and upward mobility. CCF embodies this through their free ACT prep, sessions, mentorship opportunities and college visits across the nation. My journey to a free education at Harvard University is incomplete without CCF. CCF pouring resources into me in high school allowed me to succeed in college, gain leadership on campus and become a change maker.”
Julie Gentry, CCF’s Programs Director, sums it up, “One of the best parts of my role with College Choice Foundation is showing students the possibilities their own hard work has unlocked. They have already chosen education as their way forward, and we simply help them see what is within reach. It is inspiring to continue walking alongside them through college, because the goal has never been just access; it is graduation and the opportunities that follow.”
