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District introduces short-term contract for college-advising contractor Alan Booker
Summary
Alan Booker, an independent college-planning contractor, presented services he provides to Niagara Falls High School students; the board signaled a short-term contract on the agenda to formalize work already paid in part by grants.
Alan Booker, an independent college-planning contractor who works with Niagara Falls High School, described services he provides to students and families to help with college applications, financial-aid review and scholarship navigation, and college-readiness seminars. Board President Mark introduced Booker and said the board would consider a short-term contract to formalize that work.
Booker said Booker College Planning has worked in Western New York since October 2007 and that since Sept. 1, 2024, he had provided approximately 50 one-on-one advisory sessions to Niagara Falls High School students through March 7, 2025. "I review financial aid award letters and offer letters," Booker said, adding that he helps families understand the balance between loans, grants and scholarships.
Board President Mark told the board that the district has written Booker into grants, including the P-TECH and early college grants, so some of his work is funded by those grant sources. "Your approval of a resolution or a short term contract for Booker College is this," Mark said, introducing the resolution that appears on the agenda for board action in a future meeting.
School staff and board members praised Booker’s outreach and contribution to both college and trade pathways. A board member said she had previously paid out of pocket for Booker’s services for her own children and described FAFSA navigation as time-consuming work that complements school counseling.
The presentation listed colleges Niagara Falls students have chosen after working with Booker, including Buffalo State, Niagara University, SUNY Fredonia, SUNY Niagara and the University at Buffalo, and several merit-based awards Booker linked to students (examples discussed in the meeting included award amounts reported by Booker, such as a trustee scholarship of $25,000 a year at Niagara University and other merit awards; Booker described the list as partial and said more awards were forthcoming).
The board did not record a vote during the presentation. The agenda includes a short-term contract/resolution for Booker College Planning to be considered at a formal meeting; the transcript shows the resolution was introduced but a formal vote is pending.
Ending: The presentation was largely informational with board members noting the program’s fit inside grant-funded initiatives; the contract resolution is on the board agenda for formal consideration at a subsequent meeting.
