The STARS College Network, a coalition formed in April 2023 by Vanderbilt University and 15 other prominent colleges and universities, will double in size after a year of landmark growth in creating opportunity for students from America’s small towns and rural communities.
The coalition—which is dedicated to ensuring that students from small-town and rural America have the information and support they need to enroll and graduate from the college or university of their choice—will welcome 16 new members this year: Amherst College, Auburn University, Dartmouth, Duke University, Georgia Institute of Technology, Southern Methodist University, Spelman College, Stanford University, University of Alabama, University of Arizona, University of Arkansas, University of California Berkeley, University of Denver, University of Notre Dame, University of South Carolina and The University of Texas at Austin.
STARS founding members are Brown University, California Institute of Technology, Case Western Reserve University, Colby College, Columbia University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Northwestern University, The Ohio State University, University of Chicago, University of Iowa, University of Maryland, University of Southern California, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Vanderbilt University, Washington University in St. Louis and Yale University. STARS is led by the University of Chicago and Vanderbilt and headquartered at the University of Chicago.
Each STARS member combines its own resources with STARS philanthropy to support pipeline programs and recruiting efforts aimed at students from small-town and rural America, as well as offering financial aid and on-campus programs to support students who enroll.
“As one of co-founding institutions of STARS, we’re incredibly proud of the efforts we’ve made as an organization to reach small-town and rural students. The astounding numbers we’re seeing support the impact STARS is having,” said Douglas L. Christiansen, Vanderbilt’s vice provost for university affairs and dean of admissions and financial aid. “With the addition of 16 new members to the STARS organization, we’ll be able to double our reach and continue to encourage these students to set their sights for higher education.”
An estimated $7.4 billion will fund STARS’s mission over the next decade, which includes the financial aid provided directly by participating institutions to students and expanded support for the initiative from foundations, nonprofits and new funding from governmental agencies. Trott Family Philanthropies will build on its initial $20 million gift that served to launch STARS with an additional investment of more than $150 million over 10 years in programs that prepare, recruit, and support rural students.
This extraordinary growth follows a year in which STARS outreach connected with 1.6 million people, including students, families, educators, administrators, foundations, legislators, companies and other organizations. STARS institutions directly engaged with more than 700,000 students.
“STARS’ first year demonstrated that there is an appetite and imperative for our nation’s leading universities and colleges to better serve the massive talent pool in our small towns and rural regions,” said Byron D. Trott, chairman and co-CEO of BDT & MSD Partners. “STARS and its affiliated programs are opening doors in higher education for high-achieving rural students they might not have found otherwise; and the students, campuses and our economy will all be the better for it.”
In its first year, STARS:
- Visited 1,100 rural high schools in 49 states to bring information about a wider variety of institutions directly to students and educators
- Gave prospective students and educators more opportunities to experience STARS campuses firsthand through free trips to visit colleges and summer programs that help prepare students academically and socially for college
- Provided monthly virtual panels with college admissions staff from network schools, with topics designed to meet students wherever they are in their college search process
- Addressed math preparation gaps through a new partnership with Khan Academy and Schoolhouse.world that provides students with free courses and tutoring
- Partnered with local and national businesses to provide internships and job opportunities for the next generation of rural America
- Inspired additional philanthropic giving across the country and new partnerships with leading college access organizations, including the College Board, Davis New Mexico Scholars, Ayers Foundation and Palouse Pathways
- Sparked national media coverage, academic research, conferences and policy conversations about how to enhance college access for rural and small-town students
- Advocated for federal, state and local legislation to support rural and small-town communities
Students from rural America often face more than the standard obstacles to attending college. While they graduate high school at roughly the same rate as students in metro areas, they are only half as likely to graduate from a selective college or university.
STARS addresses a variety of issues that contribute to this disparity. Because of distance and cost, college admissions offices may bypass small towns and rural communities, making students in those areas less likely to encounter college-related ads or attend events on campuses.
College counselors in rural high schools, if there even are counselors, are often overburdened. The average national caseload for rural counselors is 310 students, with a high of 574 in rural Michigan. This means that students may have less access to educators and college access professionals who are familiar with the full spectrum of college opportunities.
Importantly, these students may not think they can afford college. Many do not have the networks and resources to help them understand the financial aid and other support available to them. Further, many rural students are ill prepared to embark on the college admissions process, including with respect to standardized testing critical to the admissions process.
By combining resources and committing to a plan to overcome those challenges, STARS member institutions help a wide variety of students at every step of their journey, whether they ultimately attend a STARS institution or not.
John Palmer Rea, Vanderbilt’s associate director of admission, leads a robust team of admissions officers that plan programs and recruitment efforts as part of the STARS initiative. “Leading our office’s efforts to provide college access opportunities to students like me has been one of the highlights of my career,” Rea says. “It’s been incredible to work alongside many dedicated rural and small-town counselors and advisers from across Tennessee and the country. With the expansion of the STARS network, we know we will have an even greater impact in the years to come.”
The STARS College Network hopes to motivate other institutions, alumni and philanthropists to increase their efforts on behalf of rural students. Research shows that college graduates from rural areas often return to their communities, so efforts to help rural students get the greatest benefit from higher education can create a virtuous cycle of support, success and giving back to the next generation.
Tennessee has the fifth-largest rural population in the country, which made the state an important focus for Vanderbilt University STARS.
Since the inception of STARS, the university has been involved in events geared toward small-town and rural community outreach, including:
- Co-presenting at the 2024 Southern Association for College Admissions Counseling Annual Conference on the topic
- Planning and leading STARS in the South, a consortium trip of 10 STARS universities through Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas
- Hosting Commodore Celebrations—regional events for admitted small-town and rural Tennessee students
- Inviting admitted small-town and rural students to become a “Vandy Fan for a Day,” with free attendance to a Vanderbilt baseball game along with a post-match reception
- Ensuring that admissions staff attended celebrations at area high schools to congratulate admitted students from small towns and rural areas across the state
And those efforts paid off—for fall 2024, Vanderbilt saw a 26.8 percent increase in applications from small-town and rural students from Tennessee and an impressive 93.9 percent increase in admitted students from those areas.
