Kirk Sargent: First Foundation CEO on the programme supporting lower socioeconomic students through tertiary study

Another option to go alongside fees free study. 

The Labour Government introduced First Year Fees Free in 2018, providing tertiary students with up to $12,000 in tuition cover for the first year of provider-based study, or the first two years of work-based learning.   

The Coalition Government has changed the scheme from this year, applying it to the final year of study instead.  

The policy had three objectives, to incentivise learners, particularly disadvantaged learners, to finish their studies; to reward learners who complete their programme of study; to reduce the overall cost of study. 

However, officials say, like its predecessor, this policy is likely to fail too.  

First Foundation is a wraparound programme that picks up academically talented but low-income students in year 12, giving them support, mentorship, and financial assistance for university.   

First Foundation CEO Kirk Sargent told Kerre Woodham they’d welcome the chance to grab that $12,000, invest it into young people and get more people coming through the tertiary environment. 

He says New Zealand has a productivity issue, and programmes like this could be a solution that would benefit the economy in the long run.  

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Carrywood and Morning's podcast from News
Talk sab AS.

Speaker 2 (00:12):
We've been discussing labor introduced first year fees free and
twenty eighteen we the taxpayer provided up to twelve thousand
dollars in tuition fee payments for the first year of
provider based study or the first two years of work
based learning. Didn't work in terms of their stated objectives
of getting disadvantage students in first and family to universities,

(00:34):
so the current government changed the scheme from this year
so it applies to the final year of study. But
again Ministry of Education Analysis says this won't work either
in terms of getting disadvantage students to finish degrees and
have lifelong learning. Something that does work is First Foundation.
They support bright young kiwis whose circumstances make it harder

(00:58):
to attend university, giving them financial assistance, exposure to the world,
and a dedicated mentor. CEO Kirk Sargent joins me, now,
good morning to you one Kerry. Would it have been
better for First Foundation to have got the twelve thousand
dollars for each disadvanced student to help with your program
and to extend it.

Speaker 3 (01:20):
Love there's plenty of opportunities for us to scale the
work that we're doing and to support a really talented,
amazing talented young people who come from low socio economic communities.
And you know, we would welcome the chance to grab
that twelve thousand dollars and put it, put it into

(01:40):
those young people and actually support their economy and get
more people coming through the tertiary environment.

Speaker 2 (01:47):
What's your success rate with students that come from desol
one or two schools and disadvantage families.

Speaker 3 (01:54):
Yeah, I mean the retention rate of low socio economic
students through the education system and tertiary are pretty dire.
We retain through our program which takes them from year
twelve through to the third or are university that retention
rates it about ninety three percent. Need to recognize that,

(02:17):
you know, these they are on a journey. So some
of them don't make it in a linear pathway through
a lot of them do. But you know, when things
don't go according to plan, we stay at the distance
with them, help them to readjust and realign and then
you know, with the support of the mentor and the
corporate partners and get them through to that. You know,

(02:38):
that endpoint which is, you know, obviously successfully successfully complete
too for study.

Speaker 2 (02:45):
Yeah, I know how it works. I've seen how it works.
I've been privileged to meet some of the graduates and
see how it works. Can you explain to those who
don't know about First Foundation how it works?

Speaker 3 (02:58):
Yeah, great question. So we we pick up the students
in year twelve who are academically talent, talented and come
from low income households. Last year, the average household income
of sixty three thousand and five point five people in
those households. We then, yet thirty is difficult for any student.

(03:25):
For students whose parents and family have not gone to
university in the past, there's a lot to navigate in
terms of conversations at home and what does that look like?
And where do I study and what do I study?
So we put a mentor alongside of them to help
them on that junior it's kind of replicating some of
those conversations that my kids have at the kitchen table

(03:45):
on a regular basis. In addition to that, we've got
a full program called Exposed to the World of Work,
And you know, some of their international research stays that
there's a real discrepancy between high income households and low
income households about the world of work and what are
all those opportunities in the vaiable networks and connections that

(04:05):
come with that. So we've got a full program of that.
Some of that is with our corporate partners is of
five weeks work experience over the summer, you know. Some
of them that's just about doing the basics really well.
Others it's about I'm ready getting those valuable networks. And
then the final part of that is the financial assistance,
which really gives the families permission saying, you know, I've

(04:27):
got a scholarship, my child's scholarship. We're giving them permission
to go off to university and go on that journey.
Another thing that happens in that year thirteen year is
the mentors work very closely with the students to apply
for every other scholarship going. So you know, it's tapping
into all of the other resources that exist out there,
but typically are picked up by the high socioeconomic families

(04:51):
and communities.

Speaker 2 (04:52):
Yeah, who know where the scholarships are and know how
to gun for them so correctly.

Speaker 1 (04:57):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (04:58):
So with the corporate partners, they get a part time
job and quite often that continue says they get that
initial experience during the summer holidays, but quite often that
turns into regular part time work, doesn't it while they're
going through university, Not always, but quite often, And they

(05:18):
also get a mentor to help them throughout their studies.
It is so much more than just saying here's twelve
grand for your first year, go for it. You need
so much more than that when you're coming from a
background where where university isn't standard.

Speaker 3 (05:33):
Yeah. Absolutely, you know that all the research says a
financial only scholarship has little impact. You know, it's valued.
And I've got at lunch with seven amazing alumni today.
The conversations I think will be they won't talk about
the twelve thousand dollars. They'll talk about the role that

(05:54):
their mentor playing and connecting them with all these other
people seeing the world of opportunity to exists. You know,
and we know what the research says around what number
of careers young people know when they leave school. It's
about nine. But you and I know that there's nine
thousand different careers out there, so they are introducing them
to all of those as well as what's happening in

(06:16):
the work experience, so you know, they'll go into the
corporate partner and they're very keen observers of life, and
they'll be looking at what is you know, what are
the roles that are there, and having conversations over the
water cooler, which again my kids will get naturally as
part of our family and our from our circumstances. These ones.

(06:37):
The families are really supportive, they just don't not really
know how to offer that support in the most practical way.

Speaker 2 (06:45):
I remember talking to a woman who was sort of
hovering at the back and I said, are you okay
when I was waiting to MC one of the graduation ceremonies,
and she said, oh yeah. She was just in her
jeens and a s England and she said, oh yeah,
it's just my daughter's graduating. She was getting one of
the scholarships, not graduating from university. She was it was

(07:07):
the scholarship, you know, first foundation announcement of the scholarship.
And I said, we'll come up the front. You know,
this is your girl. You've got to You've got to
be there. And she said, no, I'll sit at the
back because this is the first day I'll be losing her,
you know. She recognized that she was having to let
go of her daughter, not keep her where she was,
and it was heartbreaking and so brave of her.

Speaker 3 (07:32):
Oh yeah, there's a there's a lot, a lot of
those sort of barrass that people have become, right, And
you can imagine the other side of that is the
daughter's conversation with the family about hate, I want to
go to university, you know, just getting to that, yeh,
it's okay for me to let you go as such
an one where yeah, I.

Speaker 2 (07:54):
Was, Yeah, it's a fantastic, fantastic organization because it works,
and I've seen it work, and it's the partnerships that
you make, and it's the investment of time and belief
in these kids so much more than just the money.

Speaker 3 (08:09):
Yes, absolutely, Look, we've got you know, two hundred and
eighteen corporate partners on board, got three hundred and thirty
young people right now. You know, one of the options
that we're really exploring is, you know, could we get
a dollar for dollar matching program with the government and say,
you know, it harves the cost or its doubles the

(08:30):
number of students who could potentially go through the program
with them. And we've got we've got mentors lining up
just waiting, you know, to be there to be supporting
these young people. And ultimately, you know, New Zealand's got
a real productivity issue. You know, having a fully functioning
workforce with everybody who has the potential able to take

(08:52):
those opportunities is going to be great for the New
Zealand economy moving forward. You know, why wouldn't we see
this as the answer? Absolutely one of them, one of
the solutions across.

Speaker 2 (09:02):
Many I couldn't agree more. Thank you so much for
your time, Sergeant, and enjoy your lunch with your alumni
CEO of the First Foundation. It really is well worth
exploring and why will be taking up with our political
leaders as well.

Speaker 1 (09:17):
For more from Kerry Wood and Mornings, listen live to
News Talks at B from nine am weekdays, or follow
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