Salinas, Calif. – The Hartnell College Foundation and Bright Futures of Monterey County are happy to share about the collaboration with CalKIDS, a fund in California that provides free college savings accounts for millions of kids. 

In Monterey County, there are over 64,000 qualified children with $33 Million available. A campaign to disseminate information and promote registration began in May and will continue through 2024. The CalKIDS campaign is made possible by the support of funders United Way, Teresa Matsui, and Betsy & Barry Adler. 

“Local Families from our community have the opportunity to claim these funds to support their children’s future and we are excited to work with all of our steering and community partners and supporters to ensure that thousands of Monterey County children claim their free college funds,” said Jackie Cruz, vice president of institutional advancement at Hartnell College and executive director for the Hartnell College Foundation. 

CalKIDS was created with the intention to inspire a college-going mentality from an early age. CalKIDS believes that children have a future worth saving for and this is the reason why the State of California is investing in newborns and students directly to help set them on a path toward college. 

The Foundation is proud to be managing this project in Monterey County under the umbrella of Bright Futures Monterey. Community partners, steering partners, and core conveners are supporting these efforts. 

"The CalKIDS initiative represents a significant effort to support students and families in overcoming barriers and challenges, with the ultimate goal of closing the equity gap,” said Tony Amezcua, director of Bright Futures Educational Partnership. “CalKIDS will be a game-changer, providing critical support to families and students who might otherwise struggle to achieve their full potential.” 

Research demonstrates that children with a college account are three times more likely to enroll in college and four times more likely to graduate, than those that don’t. Each child may qualify for up to $1,500 to start their college savings account. These accrue interest and each youth can access the funds as early as 17 years old. 

Irma Lopez, manager at the Alisal Family Resource Center said that their goal at the district is to reach out to all of the families in the 2024-25 school year and encourage parents to register their child if they qualify for this free scholarship money. 

“This program was created to help students that qualify for this program dream of access to higher education, and for families to start a savings account with this free scholarship money,” said Lopez. “This seed money is a great starting point for students in preparation for college/university or a vocational training opportunity upon graduating from high school.” 

The Foundation and Bright Futures hope to reach out to most or all eligible children through the marketing campaign, the partners, the schools, and word of mouth. 

“CalKIDS is a powerful tool for promoting success and ensuring a more equitable future for all," said Amezcua.

To get more information and to fill out the form, go to www.calkids.org. 

ABOUT HARTNELL COLLEGE FOUNDATION 
Hartnell College Foundation was established in 1979 by a committed group of community volunteers to support Hartnell College with its philanthropic work, support for scholarships, innovative programs, state-of-the-art facilities, public-private partnerships, and bond campaigns to support the educational success, and workforce training of the citizenry of the Salinas Valley. 

ABOUT BRIGHT FUTURES
Bright Futures fosters progress in local education outcomes, from cradle to career, with a priority focus on closing racial equity gaps. We do this by engaging people in the pursuit of shared improvement goals and by supporting change-makers across the community as they create measurable results. Bright Futures is a proud member of the Strive Together network, a national movement of over 70 cradle-to-career partnerships throughout the United States with the shared goal of increasing educational attainment and economic mobility for children and their families. 

www.brightfuturesmc.org
www.strivetogether.org
www.hartnellfoundation.org