In 1966, the Governor and the Legislature approved a bill to provide access to higher education for the “educationally and economically disadvantaged” students in New York State. The program known as Search for Education, Elevation, and Knowledge (SEEK) was begun at The City University of New York (CUNY). The College Discovery Program, which was already in existence at community colleges in New York City, was continued, and the State University of New York (SUNY) started the Educational Opportunity Program (EOP). In 1969, legislation established the Higher Education Opportunity Program (HEOP) at independent colleges and universities in New York State. In 2006, the Governor and the Legislature approved a name change in honor of the important role former Assemblyman Arthur O. Eve played in increasing access to higher education in New York State.
These programs are designed to meet the special needs of students from disadvantaged backgrounds. Among the strategies available to meet these needs are testing, pre-freshman summer programs, counseling, tutoring, coursework, and financial assistance.
In general, students in opportunity programs are individuals from families with low incomes, with high potential for successful collegiate experience but who have not acquired the verbal, mathematical, and other cognitive skills required for collegiate level work. Generally, their grades fall in the bottom half of their high school graduating classes. They are students who have not earned Regents diplomas, are assigned to high schools which have poor records for developing students, or have been tracked or scheduled into general, commercial, or vocational high school programs.
Students eligible for HEOP will generally rank low on such traditional measures of collegiate admissions as SAT scores, high school average, or class standing.
Opportunity programs are available for students living in urban and rural areas. They are available at two and four year levels, at public and independent colleges, and in every academic discipline and career field. Students are selected without regard to age, color, religion, creed, disability, marital status, veteran status, national origin, race, gender, genetic predisposition or carrier status, or sexual orientation.
