Meet Trailblazer Carey McClure

Today we’d like to introduce you to Carey McClure.

Carey, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I have always worked in the non-profit world… helping those less fortunate. I have raised money for ministries, educational and medical groups as well as housing programs for low-income families. In 2012, while working with a single mom in her mid 30’s and her pregnant teenage daughter… I realized that YES, this family needed a home to stabilize their life. Sadly, to bring in enough to make the mortgage payments, the daughter would have to quit school, so she could get a job to support her and the family, and soon to the newborn child. She was bright, articulate… but needed an income to support three generations of family. I was saddened to tears… here was another very capable young lady having to work multiple part-time jobs to maintain an income… she would never achieve what I perceived as someone who could run or own her own business… hiring others and making a positive impact on her community without some help.

That is when Collegiate Crossings was officially born.

I had been working in the college planning arena for a few years, as our two oldest daughters had high hopes for education and careers. I had spent time researching scholarships, application processes, SAT/ACT testing, FAFSA applications and the like, as my girls were looking at attending schools out of state, that we could not afford. My mission, “how can we make this possible”. So, by word of mouth, clients started calling. This side job became too much, so I left the housing program and with my husband, incorporated College Crossings.

This work has taken us all over Colorado and to many places around the US… with one goal, to work with students and their families to fulfill their dream of being college graduates. In doing this, they would be creating a career to support themselves, family and in turn become active, giving part of their community

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
This is EXTREMELY fulfilling… to watch students that never thought this possible…enter college, graduate and start a career they only thought a dream!! But, there are days that make our work trying.

MONEY… being a large percentage of the students we work with are first generation or low-income, they cannot afford our services. My husband and I have to come up with ways to pay the bills for the business and ourselves.  Collegiate Crossings is blessed to have grants from corporate and private foundations as well as amazing individual donors. We also run special fund-raising events, but we don’t want to be in the event business as we are in the post-secondary education business. We do have clients that are financially capable of paying and they do pay for our services, which helps the bottom line as well. We are now offering on-line teaching and prep, which carries a fee to those who want to participate. Finally we host workshops at churches, schools and through athletic programs. These events also carry a small fee, which goes to support Collegiate Crossings

Our biggest hurdle is always going to be finances as the need always outweighs the resources… nothing new for small and large non-profit organizations.

Please tell us about Collegiate Crossings – what should we know?
One on One contact with clients is our hallmark. Collegiate Crossings many times begins with a large group format, but then quickly moves to get students and parents into a face to face, one on one setting to start talking specifics. It is here the ‘magic’ begins… as students start to see their future unfold… finding the right FIT school (size, location, public/private…) discussing and planning on who is to pay for this education (scholarships, grants, work-study…). This work can take a while, and the process can be daunting. We believe FIT plus FINANCES equals FINISH. Finding the right fit for a student plus the finances means they will finish college and be ready for the workforce.

We work with students, so as to give them ownership into this process, this is key… this is not Collegiate Crossings and their parents making the plans… it is their life and it needs to be their plan. There can be lots of tears and at times frustration… as this is a long process with lots of moving parts.

Like all the best relationships… it comes down to time spent with each client student and their family. In the end, it is one GIANT celebration to watch a fearful teenager to become a confident, prepared adult!

Do you recommend any apps, books or podcasts that have been helpful to you?
Our team watches videos, attend seminars and talk with many high school administrators and counselors. Someone always has something new or better to share… we work at being a sponge of this information for the sake of my students.

My husband and I also substitute teach at least once a month to interact with students… to stay on top of current social and relational concerns. As empty-nesters, we are now “OLD” in their eyes, so we have to work at understanding current trends, language and issues they are facing. This gives us a better understanding of who we are working with

I also make a point of visiting several colleges and universities each year to get a feel for the campus and its programs, as there are 1000’s of post-secondary education schools. The more I know about the schools my students are interested in the better the conversation.

During a recent family wedding trip to Europe, my husband and I traveled to several international colleges and universities… as Collegiate Crossings has students interested in education abroad.

Contact Info:

• Address: 2571 Skyline Court, Erie, Co 80516
• Website: collegiatecrossings.com
• Phone: 720-352-4304
• Email: collegiatecrossings@comcast.net
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CollegiateCrossings/

Image Credit:
all photos are personal and taken by Andy McClure

Suggest a story: VoyageDenver is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.