University and A+ Federal Credit Unions Join Forces to Transform Middle Schools in Central Texas

$500,000 investment in RAISEup Texas will create systems change in education. 

Austin, Texas (August 20, 2015) – In Central Texas only 6 of 10 students graduate high school ready for college and careers. According to ACT, middle school is the critical time in a student’s education for building the critical thinking skills to be college ready, and far too often middle schools are not meeting that challenge. An unprecedented major investment by two leading financial institutions in Central Texas is poised to make a significant change in the lives of students by transforming teaching and learning in middle schools. University Federal Credit Union (UFCU), and A+ Federal Credit Union (A+FCU) have teamed up through a generous investment of half a million dollars to RAISE^up Texas, a program of E3 Alliance, as it scales up its nationally recognized model in Central Texas.

“We at UFCU are proud to partner with A+, E3 Alliance and our school districts to transform teaching and learning in our middle schools,” said Tony Budet, President/CEO of UFCU. “We are investing in RAISE^up Texas because it has a proven track-record of success with a great team leading it, and it is the right idea at the right time for the success of our kids and our schools.”

Kerry Parker, CEO of A+FCU, remarked, “A+FCU is honored to support an education model that helps children of all abilities to learn more effectively and achieve academically. The improved performance of students that use the RAISE^up Texas program can create a tremendously positive, long term effect on our community and aligns with the values of A+FCU and UFCU’s commitment to the future and success of our kids.”

RAISE^up Texas is a targeted, whole-school approach to improving student achievement in middle school. Every teacher in every subject uses research-validated tools to help all students “learn how to learn” and think critically to meet the high standards for college- and career-readiness. Six Central Texas middle schools have already implemented the model with great success: In every grade over multiple years, struggling learners in RAISE^up Texas schools gained more than 10 times as many points on pre- versus post-tests than their nationally-normed peers. Sixteen Central Texas middle schools are now joining the expansion project to take these compelling results to scale.