A Better Chicago Makes a $500,000 Investment in Chicago Scholars to Expand Successful REACH Pathways to Middle School Students
CHICAGO – A Better Chicago has announced a $500,000 Challenge Grant investment in Chicago Scholars to expand its REACH Pathways initiative to Chicago middle school students. Chicago Scholars’ REACH Pathways is an app that provides personalized college and career readiness support to Chicago students, using research-backed curriculum and gamified skill-building that help them plan concrete steps toward higher education or skilled employment.
“Chicago Scholars has shown the impact of trusted mentorship and evidence-based supports for Chicago high school and college students,” said Beth Swanson, CEO of A Better Chicago. “We know the middle school to high school transition is a pivotal point where college and career exposure influences long-term outcomes. We are excited to support Chicago Scholars in expanding REACH Pathways to engage middle school students in exploring and planning for college and career pathways.”
Chicago Scholars is a nonprofit organization focused on helping first-generation, under-resourced students navigate high school and college through mentoring, college counseling, leadership and career development. Chicago Scholars launched the REACH Pathways app in 2022 to provide high school students with 24/7 access to personalized supports that complement in-person advising. More than 25,000 Chicago students have joined REACH Pathways since its launch.
A Better Chicago’s funding will support the creation of new programming and an implementation partnership with High Jump and Project OneTen to embed REACH Pathways into existing programming and engage 600 students in the first year. High Jump provides two years of academic enrichment for 7th and 8th grade students with demonstrated financial need, while Project OneTen provides targeted coaching and academic supports for Black and Latinx boys in 9th grade – both with the goal of increasing bachelor’s degree attainment. The expanded programming will include developing and piloting the REACH Generative Skills Tree, an AI-powered tool that will provide students with tailored learning sequences and career and college recommendations based on their goals and interests.
“This grant is a celebration of partnership and possibility. We are thrilled to join A Better Chicago in advancing bold solutions for Chicago’s young people,” said Jeff Beckham, co-founder and CEO of Chicago Scholars. “Along with our partners High Jump and Project One Ten, we’re creating lasting pathways to success, leadership, and economic mobility.”
Chicago Scholars’ REACH Pathways initiative was selected for A Better Chicago’s Challenge Grant following a rigorous review that affirmed the organization’s program effectiveness, leadership, operational efficiency, and the scalability of the proposed solution to support Chicago youth experiencing poverty in achieving postsecondary success.
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About A Better Chicago
A Better Chicago is a venture philanthropy that invests in the most promising nonprofits providing opportunity for youth experiencing poverty. We’re a supercharger. We have deployed more than $83 million in unrestricted funding and management support to help the nonprofits in our portfolio grow. Our donors want to make pivotal, well-researched investments that lift the outlook for our city.