Contact: Kimberly Gormley
Director, Marketing & Communications
Ohio College Access Network
614.947.3504 (Office) or 614.668.2954 (Mobile)

OhioCan! Go to College Campaign Hires Chief Fundraiser

Columbus, Ohio – The Ohio College Access Network (OCAN) announces this week that Matthew Carle, J.D., the Network's newly appointed Director, Development and Community Relations will spearhead the upcoming OhioCan! Go to College campaign’s fundraising efforts to garner millions in scholarship dollars for Ohio’s neediest students.

While the official OhioCan! Go to College campaign is set to kick-off this spring, Carle will initially manage the distribution of state challenge funding to local communities and other statewide entities such as colleges, universities, foundations and corporations. Once the campaign is launched he will work with OCAN’s leadership to spread the college access message and leverage support toward scholarships and internships for students from low-income families or those who are first in their families to attend college.

Carle brings political, fundraising and communications expertise to OCAN through his experiences managing every aspect of campaign organizations. He has previously served as campaign manager for George Voinovich, Mike DeWine and Betty Montgomery as well as a consultant for Communications Counsel, Inc. As Field Staff Director for the Ohio Attorney General’s office, he also managed a statewide grassroots organization responsible for establishing intergovernmental relations with state and local officials, legislators, and business and community leaders. Most recently, Carle worked for a Columbus-based law firm where he provided legal advice and consulting services on public policy issues.

"Matthew will help the OCAN team carry out new initiatives to aid all Ohioans in pursuing their dream of earning a college degree. He brings a wealth of experience and a unique outlook on statewide education investments and will certainly contribute to the success of this fundraising campaign," said Reginald A. Wilkinson, Ed.D., President & CEO of OCAN.

Ultimately, OCAN and OhioCan! Go to College will help accomplish Governor Strickland’s goal to increase the number of Ohioans with a college degree by 230,000 by 2017.

###

The Ohio College Access Network (OCAN) was founded in 1999, by KnowledgeWorks Foundation, in collaboration with the Ohio Board of Regents, the Ohio Department of Education and the Ohio Business Roundtable.  OCAN works to establish college access programs across the state and is the first statewide coordinating body for college access programs in the nation. The goal of the organization is to help more Ohio students pursue postsecondary education through the work of local college access programs, which provide financial aid advising, last dollar grants, career guidance, and other services.  Currently, 36 college access programs serve nearly 200 of Ohio’s 612 school districts, and 17 private/parochial schools in 46 counties touching nearly 175,000 students annually. For more information visit: www.ohiocan.org.