As a new school year starts and an election season continues, there’s good news and a big question about something that transformed my life and the lives of thousands of other young Minnesotans. Both involve Minnesota’s hugely popular and effective, 40-year old Post Secondary Enrollment Options (PSEO) program.

The program allows 10^th-12^th graders to take free college/university courses, on campuses or online. Research shows PSEO saves Minnesota families and taxpayers millions of dollars a year. 

The good news is that a statewide coalition of youth and adults supporting PSEO convinced state legislators not to adopt changes proposed by five education groups that would have dramatically reduced these opportunities — for example, eliminating the option to do full-time PSEO. Legislators listened to young people. Their voices mattered. 

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The other good news is that when offered 102 different study options, legislators made studying PSEO by the respected, nonpartisan Office of Legislative Auditor their No. 1 priority. That study starts this fall. 

However, research by Catalyst for Systems Change, which I direct, and People for PSEO found that the vast majority (68%) of Minnesota public school districts are not providing the legislative-required information to students and families on their websites. 

In statewide discussions about law-breaking, this has been mostly missed. So the question for the governor and legislative candidates becomes – what will you do about this? 

Thousands of us care because PSEO changed our lives. Countless students can succeed in PSEO. Many never learn how it can help them. 

Educators told me that PSEO probably would be too challenging for me. I enrolled anyway and did well. The greatest obstacle wasn’t the college coursework. It was someone else’s expectation of what I was capable of. When I enrolled in PSEO, I was my high school’s only Black male participant. 

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I wasn’t the only Black male capable of succeeding there. I simply refused to accept someone else’s limitations as my own. Those fears belonged to them, not me. 

That experience taught me an important lesson: Every generation should pass on its wisdom, but never its limitations. Encouragement prepares young people for opportunity. Fear convinces them to avoid it. 

We shouldn’t ask young people, “How smart are you?” The better question is, “How are you smart?” PSEO allowed me to answer that question for myself. For the first time, I was trusted with meaningful responsibility. I explored subjects that interested me, challenged myself beyond what others expected, and discovered I was capable of far more than I had been led to believe. 

PSEO didn’t simply prepare me for college. It transformed the way I saw myself.

Today I help bridge communities, institutions and policymakers to create systems that better serve young people. I’m here because some adults invested in my potential and because I walked through a door others suggested I leave closed. 

The OLA study is an opportunity to ask a bigger question: How can Minnesota more effectively help students identify and develop their talents? Young suburban, rural and urban Minnesotans want clearer information, greater access, and educational pathways matching their interests and aspirations. 

Perhaps PSEO’s greatest potential is as a bridge connecting K–12 education, higher education and the workforce. Too often these systems operate independently, while students are expected to navigate them alone. Imagine instead an education system where schools, colleges, employers and communities cooperatively help each student identify their interests and strengths. Imagine students being able to explore what they are passionate about via college experiences, and meaningful career pathways. 

Related: Minnesota State prepares to pilot new technology to combat financial aid fraud. Is it enough? 

Education should enhance, not limit students’ potential. Opportunity without access is a promise waiting to be fulfilled. Likewise, a program can exist on paper while remaining invisible to the students who would benefit from it most. Information matters. Encouragement matters. Expectations matter. Accuracy matters. 

The poet Langston Hughes challenged us to become Dream Keepers. Becoming a Dream Keeper today means creating educational systems that encourage curiosity, trust young people with meaningful responsibility and refuse to let adult concerns limit a child’s future. 

We’re asking the OLA and candidates: How will you help Minnesota strengthen communication, expand access and refine funding? Good answers will do far more than improve a program. We’ll become better stewards of the next generation’s potential and contributions to our future.

Khalique Rogers is the executive director of Catalyst for Systems Change, a statewide Minnesota organization that partners with young people and communities to remove systemic barriers, shape public policy and create pathways to opportunity. He is also a 2026 Bush Fellow and a former PSEO student.

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