Way2GoMaryland Open House on Preparing for College Comes to USM-Hagerstown on Saturday, May 3

 

Representatives from USM Institutions will be Present to Offer Guidance

 Adelphi, Md. (April 7, 2014) -- Way2GoMaryland, the University System of Maryland's (USM) campaign to encourage students and their families to begin preparing for college early, holds its next free-of-charge event from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, May 3 at the University System of Maryland at Hagerstown (USMH), located at 32 W. Washington St. in Hagerstown, MD. The event is designed for sixth to tenth-grade students and their parents/guardians who live in/around around Washington County.

The event will bring together current college students and admissions and financial aid representatives from USM institutions to chat with students and their parents/guardians about preparing and paying for college. Event attendees will also have the opportunity to hear from the College Savings Plans of Maryland about saving for college. In addition, they will be treated to a free lunch and chances to win door prizes.

In conjunction with this event, Way2GoMaryland is running an essay contest in which 6-10th grade students living in/around Washington County are encouraged to participate. Submissions must be received by April 25, 2014; winners will be announced and prizes will be awarded at the May 3 event. Students must be present to win.

Online registration is available through April 30. Registration details can be found at http://way2gomaryland.org/event/way2gomaryland-may-3-2014-event. Students and their families may also attend by signing in at the "Walk-Up Registrations" table during check-in, beginning at 9 a.m., though pre-registration is strongly encouraged. For further details about the event and pre-registration, please contact Jennifer Rose via email at jrose@usmd.edu or by phone at 301-445-2756.

As part of its 2020 Strategic Plan, the USM is committed to helping Maryland achieve its goal of 55-percent college degree completion (either a two-year associate's or four-year bachelor's degree, attained by 55 percent of the state population 25 years and older). Toward that state goal, the USM seeks to increase student enrollment and expand baccalaureate degree production by an additional 10,000 degrees.

By the year 2015, USM has pledged to cut by at least half the gaps in college-going and college- completion rates that separate low-income and underrepresented students from other young Americans.

Way2GoMaryland is part of this effort,encouraging more students, especially those in middle school, to begin preparing for college early. An early start on the path to college can help students:

  • pursue the right mix of secondary school coursework and be successful;
  • prepare for the college search and application process;
  • gain access to adequate financial aid; and
  • complete undergraduate degrees successfully and prepare to enter the workforce and/or pursue graduate and professional studies.

For more information about Way2GoMaryland, please visit http://www.way2gomaryland.org/.

 

 

Contact: Mike Lurie
Phone: 301.445.2719
Email: mlurie@usmd.edu