Dateline: July 5, 2007

Fundraiser underway for PEAK scholarship plan

More than 40 incoming freshmen at Clarendon High School may be the first beneficiaries of a new program that would guarantee paid access to a college education.

Efforts to fund the PEAK (Promoting Education, Achievement, and Knowledge) Scholarship plan are picking up as the Clarendon Independent School District continues to work with Clarendon College to raise money to fund the program.

“We need to raise $1.5 to $2 million over the next five years to make it happen,” said Clarendon Superintendent Monty Hysinger.

Clarendon schools have already made a big contribution to the fund by raising about $25,000 during the last school year. That’s $11,000 more than their goal for the year, and enough for organizers to think they can go ahead and start the PEAK plan with incoming freshmen, the class of 2011.

Some college alumni have already contributed to the plan also, and the CC Foundation is running a fundraising campaign in this week’s Enterprise.

Hysinger said the idea is as follows. PEAK would pay for tuition and fees through an Associate’s Degree or equivalent certification at Clarendon College.

Guidelines will include a requirement that the student spend all four years at Clarendon High School. The student must be a resident of the Clarendon school district, a GPA of 80 or better will be required, and the student can have no major disciplinary actions on his record.

Students will also have to apply for all financial aid that they are eligible for.

“The program will always be ‘last money in,’” Hysinger said. “We want the kids to get all the grants and scholarships they can, and then we’ll make up the difference on tuition and fees. That way the money will go further.”

Hysinger said a part-time employee will probably have to be hired to run the program, but he reiterated the “tremendous opportunity for parents and kids” that PEAK represents.

Clarendon College officials say tuition and fees for 15 semester hours and one lab course at CC costs $1,140. The same coursework last fall at West Texas A&M University cost $2,257, and that figure reached $3,478.75 at Texas Tech University.

Work originally began on the PEAK program last year when Hysinger learned of similar plans benefiting students of Caprock, Palo Duro, and Dumas high schools.

“I thought about our students and how we have Clarendon College right here in our back pocket,” Hysinger said. “I wondered why we didn’t do something to get more of our students to go through our college.”

Hysinger met with then CC President Myles Shelton, and the two of them began laying the groundwork for the plan.

Clarendon ISD is committed to raising $14,000 per year to the PEAK fund with the high school raising $4,000, the junior high raising, $4,000, and the elementary, which has more students, raising $6,000.

A major fundraising component for CHS is the Bronco Wall at Fifth and Sims streets. Alumni or Bronco supporters can buy an inscribed brick for $64, and $50 of that goes to the PEAK fund. The first donors’ names have already been inscribed, and bricks are still for sale by contacting CHS Principal Larry Jeffers or visiting the school’s web site at www.clarendon.k12.tx.us.

Clarendon ISD also has already put in place a program to use state incentive money to pay for concurrent college classes for high school students.

Hysinger said if the schools can’t reach their goal of $1.5 million or $2 million, the effort is still worthwhile.

 “Even if we don’t realize the dream, we’ve still raised money for scholarships,” Hysinger said. “Raising $20,000 per year is still a lot of money available for kids in Donley County.”

For more information or to contribute to the PEAK fund, contact Clarendon Superintendent Monty Hysinger at 874-2062 or Clarendon College Foundation President Walt Knorpp at 874-2521 or use the self-addressed envelope inserted in this week’s Enterprise.