Kendra Gagner took a vacation day Monday, so she could attend a community engagement event at the Dougherty Family College at the University of St. Thomas with her son and nephew. “I’m trying to get these kids interested in college,” she said.
Gagner, a single mom who lives in St. Paul, was especially interested in the affordability of Dougherty Family College, which offers under-resourced students a two-year associate degree and a path to a bachelor’s degree. “They say the least out-of-pocket is a little over a thousand dollars [per year],” said Gagner. “You can’t get that anywhere.”
During the half-day event held on the college’s downtown Minneapolis campus, more than 50 young people and their parents learned about the financial, academic and personal supports offered by the college. In addition to the low tuition, Dougherty Family College offers a lot of resources for free--textbooks, laptops, meals, even Metro Transit passes. What’s more, admitted students are matched up with faculty mentors and placed in paid internships at companies like Target, U.S. Bank and 3M.
Dr. Buffy Smith, Dean of Dougherty Family College, has been trying to get the word out about the “best-kept secret in Minnesota” since the school opened in 2017. “Yes, we have these wonderful supports. That’s magical. Yes, we are very intentional about making sure it’s affordable. That’s critical,” she said. “But the real magic, the real special sauce, is the community.”
Dougherty Family College is intentionally small; it admits between 150 and 170 first-year students. There’s room for 300 scholars total in the two-year program.
The school also uses a cohort model, which means scholars attend classes with the same classmates. That, along with a two-week summer enrichment program, helps incoming students feel a sense of belonging.
“It felt very welcoming,” said Gwen Yang, of Oakdale. “It just helped a ton to really feel included in this place.” Yang was part of a student panel which fielded questions during Monday’s engagement event.
Mel Owens, another first-year scholar on the panel, recalled how difficult high school could be. “I’ve always had a hard time asking for help, getting things done, turning in assignments,” said Owens, who has ADHD. And now? I’ve actually kind of surprised myself,” they said. “I still have trouble turning things in, but I’m so much more able to ask for help and talk to teachers.”
Dr. Smith, a former sociology professor whose research focused on obstacles faced by BIPOC first-generation college students, knows what students need to succeed--”a campus where they are culturally affirmed, where they are validated, where they can see themselves in their professors, in their staff, in the texts that they read, in the homework assignments.”
“When a scholar feels that this is their space, they can thrive,” said Smith, who was the first in her family to attend college. 80% of the College’s students are also first-generation students; more than 94% are students of color.
Smith and her faculty expect Dougherty Family College graduates to continue their education and earn bachelor’s degrees, if not at University of St. Thomas, then at the University of Minnesota or another four-year school. That’s why there’s a transfer counselor on staff. So far, 75% of the school’s grads are either attending a four-year college or have already earned their bachelor’s degrees.
DaWayne Lowery is the 17-year-old who attended the event with his mom. A senior at Community of Peace Academy, he was impressed with Dougherty Family College, except for one thing. “I’m an athlete, and the one thing this school doesn’t provide is that you can’t play for the D-1 teams,” said Lowery. “I’m going to have to do my research on that, see how good the intramural leagues are. But that would be one of the only things stopping me from going here.”
For more information on Dougherty Family College, go here.