STUDENTS will continue to get help in applying to college or career under a program approved by the GGUSD board Tuesday night (Shutterstock photo).

By Tatum Foulger/Orange County Tribune

Renewal of a partnership with the Foundation for California Community Colleges for the next academic year was approved by the Garden Grove Unified School District Board of Education when it met Tuesday night.

Since the 2016-17 school year, the district has had a partnership with the nonprofit Foundation for California Community Colleges through their California College Guidance Initiative project.

The CCGI project provides each student in grades six through twelve, college and career guidance units to develop awareness and provide for utilization of online planning tools with systematic baseline guidance and support as they plan and prepare for college and career. The program provides district students monthly lessons with their counselors where they are able to develop short-term and long-term college and career plans, increasing college and career readiness.

Community college students may benefit the most from the platform, according to CCGI president and founder Tessa Carmen De Roy. “Students can easily get derailed by administrative barriers,” she said. The CCGI tool is designed to efficiently organize the college financial aid application process, monitor student progress on application requirements, and reduce college admission rejection caused by bad data or missed deadlines.

The fee for the 2022-23 school year will be funded by College and Career Readiness grant funding, which is state-funded through California’s Cradle to Career Data System. The previous board meeting was recessed because of a member of the public and his refusal to comply with the stated GGUSD mask mandate.

The next board meeting is set for Tuesday, March 15. The GGUSD is a K-12 district serving most of Garden Grove and portions of Anaheim, Cypress, Fountain Valley, Santa Ana, Stanton and Westminster.