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Helping Low Income Single Parents In College

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Neighborhood Foundations

Going to college, raising a family, and holding down a job isn't easy.  And it's even more difficult for a single parent.  But for 48 families, there's help now.  The Scholar House has its grand opening in Newport, Wednesday.

The program provides subsidized housing, tutoring, workshops and child care for low income, single parents who are working toward getting a post-secondary degree. 

Neighborhood Foundations executive director Tom Guidugli says residents must be enrolled at Northern Kentucky University, Gateway, or Cincinnati State and must maintain at least a 2.0 GPA. 

“This is really, truly focused on developing people to get ready for the job.”

He says the idea is to remove barriers to education and employment. “(To) help you get educated so you can change your life yourself, by going to school and getting a job out in the community (so) that you can support your family.  And basically get you off of community support systems,” he says.

Neighborhood Foundations worked with Brighton Center on the daycare aspect and any child under the age of five must be enrolled in the Early Scholars Child Development Center.

There are nine other scholar houses in Kentucky, and Guidugli says former Cincinnati State president O'dell Owens also showed interest in starting one in Cincinnati. 

“It’s been a tried practice for probably about 12 years. Very successful actually, and the people that go to the Scholar House graduate about double the percentage rate of the regular student body.’

There are a total of 48 units at the Scholar House, at 400 West Sixth Street, in Newport. Thirty-six families have already moved in but all apartments are already spoken for.

The program is funded primarily through Kentucky housing tax credits and grants. 

Bill Rinehart started his radio career as a disc jockey in 1990. In 1994, he made the jump into journalism and has been reporting and delivering news on the radio ever since.