We are excited to announce our 5th 2023 Fall Grant Recipient!

Thanks to our generous Legacy Giving Circle donor community, Chicago Scholars is receiving a $25,000 grant towards college and career support for 1st generation and low-income students.

Initiative Location: Chicago, Illinois

Initiative Cause Areas: Education

UN Sustainable Development Goals: 04 Quality Education

Initiative Description: At Chicago Scholars, we envision a vibrant Chicago empowered by diverse leaders from every neighborhood. Our Scholars come from low-income households, are first-generation college students, and do not have the social capital or information to navigate the unfamiliar, complex transitions into college and career. They reside in and attend high school in Chicago. Our theory of change is that targeted investments toward these critical transitions can enable Scholars to overcome the barriers they face and succeed. Through college counseling, mentoring, and providing a supportive community to our Scholars, we ensure that these promising students realize their full potential as students and leaders.

Initiative Impact: Our 7+ year program model is structured around achieving three, 5-10 year outcomes: 1) Scholars are leaders and influencers; 2) Scholars are matriculating to, persisting and graduating from college; 3) Scholars are earning competitive salaries. We believe that student outcomes are best when we work to change student behaviors (Prepare Scholars for the World) and the policies, supports and practices of the colleges where students enroll and the companies where they will work (Prepare the World for Scholars).

Our 4 primary outcomes:

• On-Time Matriculation:
  Goal: 95% of Scholars matriculate to college on-time, Class of 2026
• Year 2 Persistence
  Goal: 93% of Scholars persist to Year 2 of college, Class of 2025
• Graduation
  Goal: 80% of Scholars earn a bachelor’s degree from a 4-year institution within 6 years
• Internships for All – as an indicator of career pathway
  Goal: 75% of Scholars have an internship prior to completing college