An initiative of Better Make Room, UpNext is a FREE text-messaging college support tool that gives high school seniors and college students across the country free personalized support on all things college access: college search and application, federal student aid, and even student loan repayment. With the generous support of the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, We can provide UpNext free of charge, making sure that hundreds of thousands of students have the support they need to reach higher and achieve their dreams of going to college.

According to an internal analysis of Common App data from the 2016-2017 season, only 48% of Common App’s first-generation and low-income applicants earned a Bachelor’s degree within six years, compared to 78% of their continuing-generation and higher-income peers. We know we have to do better, including ensuring that college-bound first generation students are set up for success on day one when they arrive on campus.

The Beating the Odds Summit helps combat the phenomenon of “summer melt” by celebrating and encouraging students to persist and attend college in the fall. In 2014, Mrs. Obama met with a small group of ten college-bound students at the White House to celebrate their commitment to education, despite overcoming immense obstacles along their journey to higher education.

Over the years, Mrs.Obama expanded the small gathering to include more college-bound students representing urban, rural, foster, homeless, special needs, and underrepresented youth who had beaten the odds to overcome incredible obstacles to persist through high school and commit to attending a postsecondary institution. During these Beating the Odds Summits, Mrs. Obama invites successful professionals who, like herself, were first-generation college students to inspire students and prepare them for college in the fall, thereby combating summer melt.