SALISBURY–Rowan County Crosby Scholars announced that it is utilizing targeted enrollment to increase county-wide student involvement in their program during its Nov. 2 Board of Directors meeting. The program has enrolled over 4,100 Rowan-Salisbury students since its inception in 2013 and currently serves 1,900 middle and high school students for the 2016-17 school year.

Graduating its first class of seniors in June, 2016, the Crosby program sent 173 college freshmen off to 40 different colleges in five states this fall. Crosby Scholars awarded $54,500 in Last Dollar Grants to these freshmen — money that met unmet financial need and was raised through generous community support of the program’s BBQ, Bands and Boots fundraiser.

This year’s class of 197 seniors will graduate from every traditional RSS high school, as well as Rowan County Early College. Senior advisors trained by Crosby Scholars staff have been meeting with these seniors and assisting them with their plans for after high school. This year, the program is planning its second Senior Gala to celebrate the college acceptances of its Class of 2017, on the afternoon of April 30.

Every Crosby Scholar in grades sixth through 12th is required to attend academy workshops to prepare for college both personally and academically. More than 2,500 students from Rowan-Salisbury Schools have attended a Crosby Scholar academy since 2013. Students must also become involved in the community and last year alone, students enrolled in the program completed over 12,000 hours of community service. The minimum community service requirement to stay active in the program is two hours.

The Crosby Scholars program relies on its board to accomplish its mission of ensuring every Rowan-Salisbury student has the opportunity to pursue college or post-secondary education. During its meeting, the program recognized the following directors whose terms on the board have ended: Curtis Bland, Emily Blanton, Dr. Bret Busby, Michael Hanzlik, Carol Herndon and Marvin Moore.

The Rowan County Crosby Scholars program continues to work toward assisting every public school student in Rowan County with accessing the post-secondary educational option best suited for them.