The Southern Ohio Center of Excellence (SOCOE) is a regional non-profit college access program that identifies state and national higher education resources and best practices and collaborates with local partners to disburse the information to young people and adults in the Ohio counties of Adams, Brown, Clinton, Fayette, and Highland to assure that they have the information that they need to enroll in and successfully complete postsecondary education including two and four year degrees, certifications, and apprenticeships. The mission of the SOCOE is “To increase the number of young people and adults in the Regional Center service area entering into and successfully completing postsecondary education.”

SOCOE utilizes partnerships with OSU Extension, Workforce Investment Act Boards, and Chambers of Commerce as key associates because they have a common mission of educating more Ohio residents and because they have offices that provide services in all five of the service area counties. Southern State Community College is the fiscal agent for the SOCOE program and is a major contributor of in-kind services. Other local partners, such as school districts, criminal justice systems, faith based community organizations, etc. will be added when appropriate collaborative opportunities arise.

Program Goals and Objectives

The Southern Ohio Center of Excellence has three stated access goals which are to:

1. Develop P-16 Programs that guide the student through the college pathway until graduation;
2. Develop adult Resource Centers to assist students in enrolling and succeeding in postsecondary education;
3. And address poverty issues that inhibit young people and adults from entering into and completing higher education.

SOCOE will establish task forces to address the issues surrounding Access, Advocacy and Sustainability. Currently, the SOCOE is serving as an umbrella organization bridging the gaps in student services as well as creating new programming in pilot high schools in each of the five service-area counties.

Programming

Five schools, one in each of the five counties in the SOCOE service area, are serving as pilot schools in which the P-16 model is being developed. Five in-school College Access Advisors will work with high school students on the college pathway at West Union, Eastern Brown, Wilmington City Schools, Miami Trace, and Whiteoak. Three of the five schools are located in the Appalachian area of Ohio. Other services coordinated by the Southern Ohio Center of Excellence include:

• Classroom enrichment activities spanning grades 2-8 that focus on early college awareness
• College Tours
• Adult Advising & Access Services
• Career Fairs
• Last Dollar Scholarships
• Resource Centers established in each of the five counties

GEAR UP

Adams County has been chosen as one of the eight counties to receive Lighthouse GEAR UP support. This funding will expand the college access work in West Union Junior/Senior High School and increase the amount of college access programming serving students in Adams County. GEAR UP Ohio envisions every student, regardless of his or her parents’ wealth, ethnic background or geographic location, graduating from high school with the knowledge and skills he or she needs to succeed in college and the workplace—and it sees a future in which fewer students need remediation during their first year of postsecondary education. For more information, please visit http://www.regents.state.oh.us/gearup/index.html

Progress Made
Currently, SOCOE has an advisor in each of the five pilot high schools working with students and parents. The Center has also hired and trained four AmeriCorps*VISTA volunteers to work on sustainability planning and development. Along with a Director of Advising and the Executive Director, the SOCOE has a staff, including volunteers, totaling 12 individuals. When the coordination of all SOCOE programming is complete, the number of persons working in the Center will be approximate.

Adams/Brown/Clinton/Highland/Fayette Counties
Ms. Brenda Martin
Southern Ohio Center of Excellence
Southern State Community College
12681 U.S. 62
Sardinia, OH 45171

800-628-7722 x 2785
937-695-0414 (Fax)
E-Mail: bmartin@sscc.edu

College Access Program Map