The Ohio College Access Network is a nonprofit organization that partners with the state of Ohio and the private sector to help Ohioans enroll in and complete college by creating and supporting community-based, locally-run college access organizations. OCAN is a public-private partnership that has gained support from corporations, foundations and a state appropriation in the Ohio Board of Regents College Readiness budget from 2002-2009. Known as the College Access Initiative public funding supports the expansion of college access programming, regional education partnerships and the provision of professional development opportunities for college access professionals. OCAN’s goal is to help Ohioans pursue life-long learning with specific focus on assisting historically underserved populations of all ages have access to and secure resource to pay for education beyond the high school level. OCAN’s work aligns with the state’s Strategic Plan for Higher Education 2008-2017 and will help Ohio reach its goal to exceed the national college educational attainment average by increasing the rate of college graduation by 20% over the next decade. The mission of the Ohio College Access Network is to provide advocacy and support to college access organizations by building partnerships with national, state, and local entities to increase capacity and strengthen the network of innovative programs to increase the number of individuals who access and complete a post-secondary education.