KALAMAZOO (WKZO AM/FM) –The Kalamazoo Promise has reenergized the Kalamazoo Public Schools and been a leader in the Free Scholarship movement nationwide.
But is it improving the lives of Kalamazoo grads and providing a source of talent to the local community?
The W.E. Upjohn Institute has received a $360,000 grant from the Strada Education Network to find out how it’s worked so far by tracking the early grads, to see if they have made it into their chosen field, what their salaries are and whether they have been able to find work locally.
Researcher Brad Hershbein says they will be assembling data from available resources and sending out surveys to past graduates to find out if the innovative multi-million dollar experiment is keeping its promise, and paying off.
The results of the research may take a year to compile and publish.
