Hancock Promise has expanded to provide local high school graduates the chance to complete two years of classes tuition free at the North County community college.

Allan Hancock College leaders announced the Promise expansion during the annual Career Exploration Day where about 2,000 local middle school and high school students can learn about Hancock’s academic programs and possible job opportunities. 

“It’s transformative because obviously in two years you can get an associate’s degree at Allan Hancock College,” Superintendent/President Kevin Walthers said. “This is how we change the odds — we make college affordable by investing in our children.”

Friday morning’s announcement followed a Hancock Foundation event where leaders revealed they had surpassed $10 million in the Promise endowment thanks to donations from businesses, individuals, faculty, staff and others.

“That $10 million allows us now to turn our first year free at AHC into two years free at Allan Hancock College,” Walthers said. 

Hancock Promise, paying one year of tuition, was unveiled in 2017 with a goal of building a $10 million endowment to have the funds to sustain the program for two years. 

The effort to collect funds took longer than planned after being interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Hancock second-year student Yaquilina Aguirre Martinez expressed appreciation for donors to Hancock Promise, saying they made it possible to pursue higher education as she prepares to transfer in the fall to a University of California campus to continue her education in sociology.

“Thanks to the support, students like me are able to receive the higher education that we deserve,” the Pioneer Valley High School graduate said. “I’m so excited that other students will have the same opportunity as me and will now be able to get the Hancock Promise for two years.

“The Hancock Promise is the reason why I am standing here with pride today. It provided me with opportunity to attend school without the financial stress. As a result, I was able to focus on all my classes with a clear and steady mindset.”

As Walthers spoke, middle school and high school students gathered for an event linked to the Hancock’s Bulldog Bound program to ensure they know about the opportunities at Hancock.

“All of these students that are here today are meeting with faculty members, meeting with industry about potential careers and then how they can get on that path through Hancock College,” Walthers added. 

In the six years since the Hancock Promise launch, the program has seen more than 8,400 students. 

Unlike many community colleges across California, Hancock has seen an increase in attendance by high school graduates since launching a Promise program, Walthers said.

Statewide, it’s about 32%, and Hancock captures about 40% of local high school students who further their education at Hancock, according to Walthers. Before the pandemic, the number hit 50%, and Walthers expects Hancock will see the number rise again. 

“We’re already seeing more students graduating, more students completing, and what’s perhaps most important for this community is for the last four years we’ve had more Latino graduates in our graduating class than we had total graduates just eight or nine years ago,” he said. “So, that’s really changing the odds for students that have historically been left out of higher education.”

Promise saves students more than $2,400 in tuition and fees but also provides early registration for classes, personalized academic counseling and free tutoring.  

“We expect we will continue to have probably 1,500 to 1,800 students a year in one of the two years,” he added.

To be eligible for free tuition, students must enroll at Allan Hancock College directly after graduating from a high school in the district, including public, private and home schools, or completed a high school equivalence test through a local adult education program within the district.

Students taking advantage of the second year must meet designated standards such as having completed 24 units, including college-level math and English, before starting their second year. 

“We want this to be a completion program. That’s the goal, is we want this to be a culture of completion here in northern Santa Barbara County,” Walthers said. 

Any class of 2023 student falling short can earn the credits this summer to be eligible for the Hancock Promise’s second year.  

The Allan Hancock College Joint Community College District encompasses the Santa Maria, Lompoc, Santa Ynez and Cuyama valleys.

Information about becoming a Hancock Promise student can be found by clicking here. A checklist for Hancock College students can be found here.