Future U: Envisioning your Path to College

One of the long-standing foci of CHEPA has been on access to college for low-income youth. The gaps in college participation between low-income and high-income students, and between racial minority and majority students, have been well documented. Even among students who are academically qualified to attend a 4-year college, these gaps - which start with college entry and widen as students progress toward attaining a degree - are still large and have persisted for decades. Traditional funding and staffing plans are not expected to close these gaps in urban school services over the next several decades, even presuming the most optimistic of public-schooling scenarios. Middle-class kids in high-achieving schools with college-educated parents not only have better college-going services in their schools, but parents also pick up any slack in the system with their own resources. Immigrants from low-income families in large urban schools don't, can't, and won't. Unattended, this problem will lead to an increased migration of jobs that require a college education to countries with more competitively prepared employees. The "gating issue" is successful transition from high school to college.

Although we know that college counselors aid students in preparing for and applying to college, the student to college counselor ratio in low-income schools approaches 400:1. Given problematic funding and multiple needs, we do not see that ratio changing. One alternative that needs to be explored is the use of technology to supplement what college counseling services exist in public schools.

The provost's office at USC has provided the Center with $800,000 in subvention funding for the next three years to help kick-start the initiative. In making the funds available to the Center, Provost Max Nikias stated, "USC has a long-standing tradition of working on initiatives that will improve the economic and social well-being of society. Improving access to higher education is crucial for America's competitiveness in a global economy. CHEPA's track-record with providing research-based answers to public policy questions combined with the technological expertise of the Zemeckis Center for Digital Arts makes this project compelling and promising."

The technology we will develop will be in the form of a highly interactive, entertaining, web-enhanced, role-playing computer game that will strengthen students' college aspirations and help students learn about and apply to college. At CHEPA we recognize that while existing technological resources (i.e. Internet based) have the potential to reach many more students than any particular program or policy there is clearly a disconnect between the apparent availability of information and what students actually know about preparing for college. This disconnect suggests that passive dissemination of information is not sufficient. Rather, what is needed is an interactive and engaging form of delivery that recognizes the interests of adolescents and is sensitive to diverse backgrounds and worldviews. We believe that a video game offers a strategy to engage high school students. Through imaginative role play, Future U students will imagine themselves as successful college students, even as graduates of college. Participatory learning will provide players with opportunities to grapple with and relate to their current educational landscape and see how their actions might affect future possibilities. "Our objective for the game is to revolutionize the way students receive information about college and consequently improve college access for thousands of students across the country," explained Zoë Corwin, the post doctoral scholar who will direct the project.

As a collaborative team, CHEPA, the Electronic Arts Game Innovation Lab in the USC School of Cinematic Arts and two groups of high school students will work together to brainstorm and problem solve as the game develops. The EA lab is a research space and think tank where new concepts in game design, play and usability are being developed, prototyped and play tested in an environment separate from the constraints of commercial game development. The goal of the lab is to nurture concepts that push games beyond their currently defined genres, markets and play patterns and to make breakthroughs in these areas. Co-PI Tracy Fullerton and Project Director Jesse Vigil will oversee the technical side of the project. High school students from two local programs will join us. The Neighborhood Academic Initiative (NAI) is an after-school program that serves low economic, underrepresented, first-generation college-bound students and their families living in South Central Los Angeles. Foshay High School's Academy of Information Technology, also located in south Los Angeles, introduces students to career opportunities in today's digital workforce and equips students with the personal, analytical, technical and communications skills they need to think critically, take initiative and to use their skills to make a positive impact in their local community and an ever changing world. Both groups of high school students will participate in brainstorming, game testing and selected aspects of game design. Students participating in the project will be mentored by educators in CHEPA and game designers from Fullerton's Game Innovation Lab.

"As an interdisciplinary initiative," said CHEPA director Bill Tierney, "we hope to tap the multiple resources of the university in moving aggressively forward in our agenda to help increase the flow of low-income youth to college." Over the next three years, in addition to developing the content and platform for the project, the Center will host a series of seminars on the topic and aggressively seek external funding to enhance and expand our work. Zoe Corwin will direct the project and be assisted by CHEPA Director of Outreach Victor Garcia, and Outreach Advisor, Diane Yoon. For additional information go to www.usc.edu/dept/chepa/ or contact CHEPA @ 213-740-7218.