30 Aug 2024 Back to school 2019 : La Digitale Académie prepares to open its doors

What a journey since the launch of the Territorial Action Fund in Romans-sur-Isère ! Today, the Digitale Académie, one of the projects funded by this program, is preparing to open its doors thanks to the efforts of the City Hall, the Accès association, and numerous partner companies.

The Digitale Académie is a university campus that facilitates access to higher education for the most disadvantaged young people by offering over 3,000 distance learning courses. It also provides daily support for students through a coordinator. Following a successful first experience in Montereau, the Digitale Académie in Romans-sur-Isère will be the second to open in France.

According to Valérie Daher, Director of Break Poverty, “The Digitale Académie allows some of the most disadvantaged young people to access higher education in their own city. Without this campus, many young people in Romans would be deprived of this opportunity because they lack the resources to attend university.”

Thanks to the support of all the partners mobilized by Break Poverty Foundation for this project, 30 young high school graduates will have access from the start of the 2019 school year to a connected campus that will allow them to follow the training of their choice remotely: preparatory courses, BTS, Bachelor’s degrees, Master’s degrees, etc.

To support the students, an administrative agent and a coach have been recruited. The coordinator, Sarah, will be responsible for providing individual assistance to students and working with them to build their study schedules to prevent dropouts: “We know that our approach addresses real needs, as many young people are left behind because they lack the means to pursue their studies or feel ‘incompatible’ with the school system. It’s an exciting challenge!”

The program has already proven its worth with young people in Montereau. Davina shares: “I wasn’t accepted into any of my choices on Parcours Sup. Thanks to the Digitale Académie, I feel more comfortable than I did in high school. Everything is perfect, from the equipment to the educational team.

I’m preparing for the same BTS Communication as 3 other students. Together, we form a mini-class and support each other a lot. Here, everyone can go at their own pace, depending on their abilities and obligations. Our schedules are tailored to our needs.”

A big thank you to all the partners involved in this project: Accès association, City Hall of Romans-sur-Isère, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Region, Saint-Jean, Framatome, Krohne, C’PRO, Vinci Foundation for the City, VTD, Routière Chambard, McDonald’s, and Sodimas

Photo credit : la digitale académie.