San Antonio Education Leader Named To National College Access Advisory Team

Online, July 3, 2012 (Newswire.com) - On Thursday and Friday, June 28 and 29, local education professional Eyra Perez represented San Antonio in a national discussion on college access and success in Washington, D.C. Through an exclusive invitation from the College Board, Perez shared her expertise as a member of the new College Access Program (CAP) Advisory Team in developing successful programs and partnerships to equip San Antonio students for college success. Her input will contribute to a strategic plan for the establishment of a national collaborative framework between college access professionals and school counselors.

Through her role as the Executive Director of the San Antonio Education Partnership, Perez leads a team of 17 College Access and Success Advisors placed in 25 San Antonio high schools, who provide college resources, guidance and assistance to students and their families with key services. The advisors work in harmony with school counselors to assist students with goal setting, career planning, college entry and enrollment, financial aid and college transition.

"We selected Eyra for her experience and expertise in building effective partnerships. She is assisting with the development of a national framework for effective relations between college access professionals and school counselors in order to increase the college success of all students," said Patricia J. Martin, Vice President of the National Office for School Counselor Advocacy (NOSCA) with the College Board.

NOSCA believes that school counselors and college access providers are critical school-based professionals who have significant impact on children's futures and are essential to their attainment of meaningful future career options. NOSCA assembled the CAP Advisory Team to provide input and guidance regarding this critical collaboration between school counselors and college access providers.

"I look forward to sharing the student-centered strategies we are implementing in San Antonio with other organizations from across the nation to increase their college success," said Perez in preparation for the assembly. "Likewise, this is an opportunity to study new research and promising practices that can be implemented with local partners and collaborators in our efforts to achieve the greatest educational transformation in the country," she added.

For more information on National Office for School Counselor Advocacy (NOSCA), go to http://advocacy.collegeboard.org/college-preparation-access/national-office-school-counselor-advocacy-nosca. To receive news from the San Antonio Education Partnership, visit saedpartnership.org.

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The San Antonio Education Partnership is a nonprofit organization celebrating more than 20 years of providing key services and college scholarships to at-risk high school students, equipping them for college success. In partnership with the City of San Antonio, the corporate community, school districts, local colleges/universities, Communities Organized for Public Service (COPS) and Metro Alliance, the San Antonio Education Partnership provides direct services to more than 35,000 students and their families in career awareness, college entry and enrollment, financial aid, and college transition through its three programs: Road to Success, Scholarships, and cafecollege.