238 first-generation students will enter Park City High School this fall - and every single one will walk in the front door with access to the power of Bright Futures programming.
This will be the second year of the expanded Bright Futures program, which launched last year and smashed all expectations. The goal: to ensure that every first-gen student at PCHS has a path to post-high-school success.
The outcomes in 2025/26 were nothing less than astonishing:
- 133% increase in first-gen students accessing support:
- 100 students participated in 2024/25
- 233 participated in 2025/26!
- 90% increase in parent participation!
Pepper Elliott, the PCEF-funded dedicated Bright Futures Counselor, will again be embedded within the PCHS counseling team. This role ensures every first-gen student receives specialized, intensive guidance in addition to their traditional A-Z counselor. In its first year alone, this investment from PCEF donors has already paid huge dividends.
"Pepper sees every student for the bright future they can have, and she has made it her mission to meet with every first-generation student… I have personally witnessed several times students receiving an appointment slip for Ms. Pepper and then coming back with a twinkle in their eye and a statement of ‘Do you know that I can go to college?!,’” said Holly Huggins, PCHS Special Education Teacher.
“You start to see a shift; their attendance can increase, and the seriousness with which they approach their classes can increase as well. It does really help to have a person in the counseling office who is willing to let them know, 'Hey, I believe in you and the bright future ahead of you.' Then little by little you can watch the students start to believe in that bright future too."
Students who want to pursue post-secondary education work early and often, starting with Dream Big in grades 9-12. Dream Big students spend hours every day in the summer months tackling a rigorous academic curriculum to succeed in Advanced Placement (AP) and concurrent enrollment classes.
Together, Bright Futures and Dream Big help students as they navigate:
- the right college and/or post-high-school path
- college visits
- how to apply
- creating & following budgets
- how to find the right scholarships
- family support
- how to work through financial aid forms
- one-on-one individualized coaching
- financial assistance... and more.
Every step of the way, students have a safety net of one-on-one individualized coaching and, what many students say is one of the most powerful benefits of Bright Futures, peer support and encouragement.
Post-Graduate Plans
The work doesn’t stop with high school graduation…
All 72 Bright Futures students who graduated from PCHS in spring of 2026 are about to embark on their post-high school plans. For many, the education continues on a campus: 53 BF students are registering for college classes - that’s a 36% increase over last year!
Take a look at the data:
- 100% of BF grads detailed post-grad plans, which include joining the military, religious service, and special education.
- 27 are on track to earn the Bright Futures Scholarship → that's a 59% increase over last year.
- This fall (2026), there are 78 BF students in college.
- As of spring 2026, 30 Bright Futures students have graduated from college!
Measurable Donor Impact
The impact Bright Futures donors have is staggering. Contributions fully fund program support, professional development, tuition assistance, and emergency aid - and bridge the financial gap that could otherwise prove insurmountable.
Funding impact highlights:
- 100% college acceptance rate for Bright Futures-Dream Big students.
- 74% academic progression rate for college students.
- 50% college graduation rate, more than double the national first-generation graduation rate of 24% by age 24!
Thanks to your support of the dreams of our first-gen students, Park City's Bright Futures students are defying the odds. Your investments positively impact our community on a generational scale - thank you!
