What are the estimated costs for implementing the strategy?

• PeerForward Team: $31,000 per team of eight students and one educator to serve a whole school
• PeerForward Affiliate: $120,000 per district, up to 15 teams
• AmeriCorps-funded college advisor: $172 (based on College Advising Corps average cost/student) per student

How will the strategy limit significant recurring costs while ensuring long-term sustainability?

Some college advising organizations do not charge districts but do ask schools to provide a space for their advisors to work. Michigan created a state-wide advising corps leveraging AmeriCorps funds, a cost-effective strategy that could be replicated at the district-level

PeerForward partner schools build a sustainable peer-to-peer practice that drives toward the desired outcomes in a manner that extends beyond adding a single new counselor or a temporary, grant-funded position. PeerForward is designed to adjust services (and therefore costs) after initial training and implementation. Districts may choose to continue full service, or switch to their scalable train-the-trainer model.

What is the anticipated timeline for launching the strategy?

Developing an advising program or creating a partnership with an existing program should occur the spring before launching the program. Recruiting and training near-peer advisors should begin in the summer and into the early fall to begin working with students at the start of the school year. Advisors will work with students on FAFSA and college applications in the fall and into the spring then help students select a postsecondary option and complete the necessary enrollment steps in the late spring and through the summer.

What internal and/or external capacity (e.g. personnel, infrastructure, training, etc.) is needed to launch the strategy? To monitor and sustain it?

Launch

• School Leadership to support the training and integration of advisors into the school community
• Training for new advisors
• Workspace for advisors
• Student recruitment support for organizations that work with a cohort of students

Monitor and Sustain

• Program Advisor – a school-based staff member (teacher, counselor, coach, administrator etc.) to support the program and advisors
• Student recruitment support for organizations that work with a cohort of students
• Collaboration between advising organization and school staff to monitor individual students’ progress and progress toward the school’s overall goals
• Access to school facilities for advising sessions and events

What are the first 3-5 steps to take to implement the strategy?

1. Identify program partners and finalize partnership agreements;
2. Recruit student leaders and advisors and/or students to be served by the advising program
3. Train and onboard advisors, integrating them into existing structures and programs

What are potential challenges for implementing the strategy?

1. Challenge: An existing college advising program may not exist in the districts’ community
   • Solution: Reach out to existing programs to see about expanding to your district, work with PeerForward to train your own students, or develop your own near-peer advising program.
2. Challenge: Turnover of trained staff and/or advisors may affect program continuity
   • Solution: Help create strong relationships between advisors, school counselors, and other school staff to ensure program continuity and to strengthen the culture of college and career.
3. Challenge: Unexpected circumstances prohibit in-person training and interaction, as recently experienced with the pandemic
   • Solution: Programs have successfully transitioned to virtual advising methods, which can also help scale programs and reach students in more communities.

What are models of schools, districts, and/or organizations that are successfully implementing this strategy?

• PeerForward has partnered with schools in Prince George’s County Public Schools for several years and has had a districtwide partnership for five years, working with 26 schools.The majority of students are Black, Hispanic, and low-income. In the challenging 2020-21 academic year during which most schooling occurred online, PeerForward teams held the line on FAFSA completions, dropping only 2.6% when similar schools serving low-income students nationally have experienced a drop of 12% and those serving more than 40% minority students have dropped by 15%. Prince George’s County advisors offer their perceptions of the program here. And here is an example of how PeerForward teams support district-wide college access efforts.
• College Possible is in seven states and utilizes near-peer AmeriCorps advisors to guide low-income students to and through college. Similarly, College Advising Corps places well-trained recent college graduates from one of their partner universities as a full-time college advisor in high schools. Advisors supplement existing high school counseling staff to reach even more students.
• Broward County’s BRACE Cadets are peer mentors who are trained on college and career advising topics and then return to their schools to lead college preparation initiatives, such as FAFSA completion events, parent nights, and college fairs.

What are some additional resources for districts/states interested in implementing this strategy?

• Peer Forward Open Access Resources – Visit to access a range of effective college access resources, including a Youth Activation Guide, Need Assessment template, and a Resource Guide for Undocumented Students.
• College Advising Corps Virtual Advising Guide includes strategies and effective practices in virtual college advising
• AdviseMI is a statewide initiative to increase access to college advisers.
• Establishing a State-Level Postsecondary Advising Network offers recommendations for creating corps of near-peer advisors at the state level, which could be replicated regionally as well.