College Saving Accounts Gifted To Thousands Of Newark Kindergarten Students

NEWARK, NJ — It’s never too early to start planning for a university education.

Thousands of incoming kindergarten students in the Newark Public School District are being given the chance to open a college savings account via a $150,000 grant from the Prudential Foundation.

On Wednesday, district administrators announced the launch of Newark Saves, an initiative that creates a college savings accounts for 3,000 incoming Newark kindergartners beginning this school year. Learn more about the program here.

Each participating family will receive a $25 seed deposit to open their child’s 529 college savings account with financial services company Equitable. There will be chances for additional “incentive deposits” when they hit milestones involving parent-teacher conference attendance, maintaining strong attendance or participating in academic enrichment activities.

Financial literacy workshops and resources will also be made available to participating families.

The new program is also made possible through a partnership with the FOCUS Hispanic Center for Community Development.

Research shows that a family’s ability to pay for college is one of the strongest predictors of whether a student will graduate. Even modest savings significantly increase the likelihood of both enrollment and completion, administrators said.

“It’s not too soon to start thinking about 2038, when this year’s kindergartners will be starting college,” Superintendent Roger León said.

“As more Newark public school students are admitted to higher education institutions every year, the Newark Saves College Savings Program will help reduce cost as a barrier to attending or finishing college,” León said.

“Newark public school students have shown time and time again that they have what it takes to succeed in college,” Board of Education President Hasani Council agreed.

The Newark Public School District is the largest in New Jersey. It currently enrolls more than 41,000 students across 65 schools.

• See Related: Inspiring Newark Teen Accepted To Nearly Every Ivy League University
• See Related: Newark High Schools Keep Turning Out College Success Stories

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