Education News: What Happens When Every Kid Gets $50 in Seed Funding for College?

Saw Nye

When Sunset resident Saw Nwe entered the freshman class at the University of Pennsylvania this fall, she had money for books and living expenses thanks to San Francisco’s Kindergarten to College (K2C), the nation’s first universal savings account program for public school students. Saw was one of the city’s 3,900 high school graduates who have participated in K2C, including 600 who have been with the program since its inception in 2011.

Through K2C, San Francisco deposits $50 in a Citibank savings account for every child entering the school system, kindergarten through 12th grade. The program, initiated by then-Mayor Gavin Newsom and City Treasurer José Cisneros, puts students on a path to success by encouraging aspirations for higher education. Currently, about 52,000 students have K2C savings accounts, who all together have saved more than $15 million for post-secondary education.

Find your child’s account balance here. 

Pathway to college
College was always in the cards for Saw, although her path to UPenn has been unusual. She and her family emigrated from Burma in 2018 when her mother was awarded a visa through the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program. Saw attended James Denman Middle School where she learned about the K2C program. After receiving her savings account with $50, Saw’s family continued to make deposits as they were able. 

Like one in four K2C participants, Saw also took advantage of opportunities for additional rewards, including city matching funds for her own small deposits and for completing tasks like checking her balance and scheduling college visits. Students can also earn financial rewards for participation in K2C-sponsored activities including an art and video contest focused on college aspirations.

Saw excelled at Lowell academically and was recognized as an AP Scholar with Distinction. She competed in cross country and track, worked on the Lowell news site, and volunteered at school events. Through Lowell, she connected with UCSF mentors and did a scientific research internship at the University.

“I really loved Lowell,” she says. “Everyone – teachers and friends – were very supportive both in school and out. It shaped me into who I am today.”

Inspired by her science research experiences, Saw plans to study bioengineering at UPenn, with a long-term goal of doing medical research.

Program focus
While open to all, a special focus of the K2C program is low-income families who may not have banking or savings accounts, according to program manager Mohan Kanungo of the city’s Office of Financial Empowerment. Kanungo cites research that has shown that children from low- to moderate-income households with college savings – even small amounts – are more than three times more likely to attend college and four times more likely to graduate from college than those without such savings. In fact, half of the families participating in K2C qualify for free or reduced price lunch. 

Now that the first cohort of K2C savers has graduated, Kanungo looks forward to watching their educational trajectory. “I’m eager to see from our data if the program increased the likelihood of our students going to college and ultimately, of graduating,” he says.

San Francisco can already boast one significant success as K2C has been widely replicated. More than 5 million children in 38 states are now enrolled in 128 college savings account programs, including municipal programs in Oakland, Los Angeles, and New York City, and statewide programs in California, Pennsylvania, Indiana, and Maine. 

Graduating seniors still have time to claim their money for college. Every student with a K2C account has at least $50. Families with younger students are encouraged to view their balance online and make deposits into their account. 

Reported and written by volunteer community journalist Jan Cook. We encourage residents with journalism experience, retired journalists, and student journalists in high school and college to volunteer as writers for Supervisor Engardio’s newsletter. Interested? Apply here. Do you know a story you would like to see featured in the newsletter? Tell us about it here.