Completing high school.
Going to college.
Completing college.
College debt.
All are very big challenges for many students across the country. Students in Indianapolis are no exception.
Many students don’t even make it through the first step — finishing high school. Others do and they go to college, but then don’t complete college. And yes, some make it through college, but then are faced with a lot of debt. Is this a good system? Can we do better?
I think so.
GEO Academies address these challenges head on. We help our students finish high school on time. We have close to 100% graduation rates every year. How?
We go beyond the talk of next steps and actually help our students experience the next step — real college — while in our high schools. We enroll our students in real college courses on real college campuses while in our high school. By doing so, they see they can compete at the next level — college — thus they then have a reason to complete high school.
And we cover all the costs, so there is no financial obstacle and no debt to repay.
Our approach has led to students earning associate degrees and full bachelor’s degrees while in our high schools from Ivy Tech Community College, Indiana University Northwest and Purdue Northwest — at no cost to them.
Our Gary, Indiana school is the only high school in the country with students doing this — earning bachelor’s degrees, that is. In May of 2024, we celebrated two young men having earned full bachelor’s degrees in neuroscience from Indiana University Northwest and Purdue University Northwest. In May, we will celebrate our fourth student to earn a full bachelor’s degree from PNW while in our high school.
In 2019, Indiana Black Expo invited GEO to bring our model to Indianapolis. In May, five young ladies will graduate from GEO Next Generation Academy having already earned their associate degree.
More than 60% of our 2025 graduates will earn the Indiana College Core (one full year of college) and/or a career certification. For reference, 60% is Indiana’s statewide goal for 2030. We will hit that in 2025. Last year, we had our first student earn his associate degree and he is now enrolled in Purdue University’s engineering program in Lafayette.
GEO Academies believe students can do more than tradition expects. And they do. Empower them. Watch them soar.
Kevin Teasley is the founder of the Indianapolis-based GEO Foundation.