Abby Saxastar raised $80,000 on [RaiseMe], which will fully cover her tuition at Stetson University, a private college in central Florida. "I've always been very successful in school and I've also done a lot of volunteer work," said Saxastar. "But I still had to figure out how to pay for college."
By highlighting and rewarding certain academic and extracurricular activities, [RaiseMe] helps level the college playing — and paying — field for low-income students who may not receive the same kind of parental advice at home as their higher-income peers.
With its new "family assistance scholarships," [RaiseMe] is hoping to enable a growing movement among selective colleges to recognize contributions by low-income students — those who are often shut out of the traditional college admissions horserace because of family obligations and limited opportunities.