PHOENIX — It’s graduation week at Arizona State University, and that means many families are celebrating with the newest Sun Devils.
That includes Kaisel Alcantara and Chad Rutan, who graduated this week and managed to do it without paying for tuition, all thanks to a partnership between ASU Online and Uber.
Alcantara is the first person in his family to have a college degree. He said, “it makes me feel like I’m a way-maker and I’m leaving a legacy for my four kids so they can also have someone to look up to."
Rutan returned to school to finish his degree after first starting on ASU’s campus in the 1980s.
“40 years after I started it’s amazing. It’s pretty fulfilling,” Rutan said of his experience.
The program lets drivers, couriers and also their families members get their tuition covered while attending school online, all for free.
“Drivers or couriers who have hit 2,000 lifetime trips and are either gold, platinum or diamond are eligible for 100% tuition coverage for ASU Online to get their undergraduate degree,” said Uber spokeswoman Liza Winship.
Rutan and Alcantara both drive for Uber. They said that the flexibility of being able to work when they had time to, and do school when they wanted is what really allowed them to achieve their goals.
Alcantara shared he is now hunting for a job using his degree as a Software Engineer. He’s still driving for Uber in his home state of New Jersey.
“My dream is to get a job in New York City and actually contribute my skills, all the things that I learned in these four years at ASU. I can use it to empower the community,” he said.
You can find more details about the program by visiting, https://uber.asu.edu/
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