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» AMARILLO ISD
7
It’s True! For the First Time, All AISD High School Students Can Earn 60 Hours
of College Credit, Plus Books and Fees, at No Cost to Them.
THE TASCOSA HIGH SCHOOL REBELS
were six games into
what was an undefeated season at that point in 2017,
when number 61, off ensive lineman Reece Radney,
found himself sitting in the locker room listening to the
words no player with a promising football future wants
to hear.
“All I remember is being carted off the fi eld and the
doctor saying he thought I tore my knee,” says Reece.
Colleges were showing interest in Reece and he was
defi nitely interested in them. But that October night in
Midland as the Rebels of Tascosa took on the Rebels of
Lee, one passing play would change the course of Reece’s
future. Midland Lee went for Tascosa’s quarterback,
taking Reece down in the process. He suff ered a hard
hit to the knee.
“I think it was meant to be,” says Reece, looking
back. “As much as I love football and wanted to play in
college, I think this is what was meant to be.”
Surgery, months of recovery and some wise words
from his parents would get Reece back on track, though
the path was much diff erent than he had imagined.
“Prior to that, I thought maybe I wanted to be an
engineer or a police offi
cer,” refl ects Reece. “But aft er
my surgery, the recovery really opened my eyes to
physical therapy.”
A Game Changer
A Doctor of Physical Th
erapy degree (DPT) requires
a bachelor’s degree and three years in a physical therapy
program. With football scholarships off the table, Reece
was looking at a heft y load of college debt.
“Th
at’s why I’m so thankful for the THRIVE
Scholarship,” he says. “My mom told me about THRIVE
while I was still recovering. At the time, I was pretty sad
and didn’t want to think about college. But she and my
dad helped me heal from that and see things the way I
do now… I’m trying to get a doctorate degree and that’s
a lot of money. Th
e THRIVE Scholarship will let me
focus on things other than worrying about my fi nancial
status.”
Debt creates stress and fi nancial stress is something
Reece’s mom, Brandy Radney, didn’t want her son
to experience. “We had fi lled out the FAFSA and, of
course, he qualifi ed for student loans. But the way we
teach our kids about money is to not have debt,” says
Brandy. “So for him to have the THRIVE Scholarship
to pay for his fi rst two years of college is a blessing.”
Free College
Th
e idea of free college for students who graduate
from any AISD high school became a reality last
summer when the AISD Board of Trustees voted to
become the fourth partner in the THRIVE Scholarship,
sharing the cost of funding the scholarship with
Amarillo College, the Amarillo Area Foundation and
the Amarillo Economic Development Corporation.
“We have long been helping our students develop
a plan for those next steps aft er high school. Whether
they choose traditional college, a trade school,
certifi cate program or the military, our students grow
up in our schools hearing the words, ‘What’s your
plan?’,” says Tracey Morman, director of counseling and
college & career readiness for AISD. “With THRIVE,
we’re able to not only guide them as they plan, but we
can eliminate for them one of the biggest barriers in
achieving a college education, which is the cost.”
Whereas the long-running Achievement through
Commitment to Education, or ACE, scholarship
program had only been available to students at Caprock
High School, Palo Duro High School and those living
in portions of the Tascosa High School boundary,
THRIVE is open to every student at any of AISD’s four
high schools, regardless of income. THRIVE pays for
books, tuition and fees for up to 60 hours at Amarillo
College. A “last money in” scholarship, THRIVE picks
up the tab once all other fi nancial aid and scholarships
available have kicked in.
However, “free” college doesn’t mean THRIVE
comes without any expectations of the student, Tracey
cautions. To become a THRIVE Scholar, students must
meet residency, enrollment, academic, attendance
and conduct requirements. “With THRIVE, AISD is
investing in the futures of our students. But we also
want our students to realize their value and invest in
themselves by going to class and putting in the work.”
High Stakes
THRIVE isn’t just an investment in students, it’s an
investment in the future of Amarillo and the Panhandle.
Ask just about any entity with a stake in workforce
development and they’ll say a skilled labor workforce is
in short supply in Amarillo, that the so-called “middle
skills” address a real need in our community, and that
Amarillo ISD must be the conduit for a pipeline of
technology workers.
We had fi lled out the
FAFSA and, of course,
he qualifi ed for student
loans. But the way we
teach our kids about
money is to not have
debt,” says Brandy.
“So for him to have the
THRIVE Scholarship to
pay for his fi rst two
years of college is a
blessing.