Background
ACE Scholarships Houston launched in 2017 to provide equal access to quality schools for lowincome children across the greater Houston area. ACE Houston is a program of ACE Scholarships, a 501(c)(3) non-profit founded in 2000 in Colorado. ACE Colorado has accumulated data demonstrating that once a child is empowered with school choice, he or she consistently attains high graduation rates, ACT scores and college matriculation rates.
Today, thanks to the support of local business leaders, ACE Houston serves over 800 children at over 60 schools throughout the metro area. However, the need continues to outpace our ability to provide support to children, and there are thousands of empty seats in our ACE partner private schools.
Needs
Despite the U.S.'s
commitment to equality for all its citizens, not all American children receive
a quality education. Too many low-income students are trapped in
poor-performing public schools by the confines of their zip codes. As a result,
economically disadvantaged children have fewer opportunities for academic
success than their middle and high income peers.
By providing underserved children with access to quality schools, ACE Scholarships closes the opportunity and achievement gaps. Against all odds, ACE's K-12 scholars not only out-perform their peers academically, but they also engage in more character building activities and habits. According to ACE’s most recent evaluation report, ACE scholars of all ages spend nearly twice as much time exercising, completing homework, and participating in extracurricular activities than the average student. At the same time, ACE high school students spend approximately 1.5 fewer hours per day on mobile devices than other Colorado teens. By increasing positive time use, ACE scholarships promote persistence in school and beyond. ACE scholars outperform their peers in every subject on the ACT, a key indicator of college and career readiness.
Impact Statement
Unlike traditional reform efforts which can take years or decades to take hold, ACE provides immediate assistance to families who need it most. Education cannot wait for children who are in school now, and with ACE, it does not have to. Once in the quality school of their choice, our scholars thrive. Many ACE scholars enter the program two or three grade levels behind their peers but achieve proficiency after just two years in the program. ACE elementary students are 2.5 times more proficient in reading than their low-income peers and ACE middle schoolers are 5 times as proficient in math. On top of that, our current four-year high school graduation rate is 100%. ACE scholars also spend more time completing homework, doing chores, and engaging in after-school sports and arts activities than their peers.
Most compellingly, ACE Scholarships has a direct and lasting impact that ripples throughout entire families and communities. Once on scholarship, ACE parents are more likely to volunteer at school, eat dinner with their children, and pursue higher education themselves. Furthermore, our scholarships have a direct impact on society as a whole. As high school and college graduates increase, the financial burden to society is alleviated. With 1.2 million drop-outs per year and each one requiring nearly $290,000 in assistance over the course of a lifetime, the costs are astronomical. ACE's third party research team estimates that based on our graduation rates, ACE has saved taxpayers approximately $459 million in costs associated with high school dropouts.