Annual20192019 Report Annual Report WELCOME Dear Friends, Visit the ScholarMatch college center on a fall afternoon and an inspiring scene will unfold before you. It’s just after 3:30pm, and our high school students are arriving to write, research, plan, and most importantly, to hope. Sitting at communal tables with friends, staff, and volunteers, they grab snacks and laptops from our cabinets and get to work. Some are animatedly discussing their essays, some celebrate with friends and staff as they hit “submit” on a college application, and some are quiet - deeply concentrating on the work before them. The room is filled with hope and anticipation. Something big is happening for them. This year, something big happened for us too. In June, we opened a second college center, in a new city. With the support of the local community and the Ric & Suzanne Kayne Foundation, we now bring free college access services to the students of Los Angeles. Within days of opening, the space was already full — and that same hope and anticipation filled the room. Just like our first center in San Francisco, the students of Los Angeles are determined to choose their future and become the first in their families to earn a college degree. At ScholarMatch, we do everything we can to help our students reach new heights. With their determination, hard work, and hope, they succeed at astounding rates. They are beating the nation’s average graduation rate, landing jobs at top companies like Oracle and Google, and serving their communities through their work, activism, and volunteering. And it all started in a room filled with hope, and with students, staff, and people like you. From all of us at ScholarMatch, thank you. You are the community that fuels our work and elevates us to new heights. We can’t wait to continue the climb. With Gratitude, ScholarMatch alum and Los Angeles native Jairo Tomas cutting the ribbon to officiate the grand opening Diana Adamson of ScholarMatch Los Angeles. Executive Director 2 | 2019 Annual Report 2019 Annual Report | 3 Most Popular Where Our Students Student Majors Biology, Business Administration, Matriculate Computer Science, Psychology, Political Science, Public Health Over 150 ScholarMatch volunteers convened at our annual conference American University Hampshire College Tufts University ABOUT US Bakersfield College Holy Names University Tulane University Bard College Humboldt State University UC Berkeley Baylor University Laney Community College UC Davis Vision Mission Berkeley City College Lewis and Clark College UC Irvine Biola University Los Angeles Trade Tech College UC Los Angeles We envision a world where all students Our mission is to support first-generation college students Boston University Loyola Marymount University UC Merced have access to higher education earn a bachelor’s degree within five years. We provide Cal Poly, Pomona Macalester College UC Riverside and the opportunity to succeed in individualized advising, targeted financial support, and Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo Mills College UC San Diego a fulfilling career. career mentoring all the way to graduation. Carleton College Moravian College UC Santa Barbara Chabot College New York University UC Santa Cruz City College of San Francisco Northern Arizona University United States Military Claremont McKenna College Ohio State University, Columbus Academy at West Point History CSU Bakersfield Ohio Wesleyan University University of Chicago 2,600+ CSU Chico Ohlone College University of La Verne Founded in 2010 by author Dave Eggers, ScholarMatch began as a San CSU Dominguez Hills Orange Coast College University of Michigan, Francisco-based crowdfunding platform for scholarships and quickly Students CSU East Bay Princeton University Ann Arbor evolved into a college access and persistence organization, serving Impacted CSU Fullerton Rollins College University of Nevada, Las Vegas low-income and first-generation students. We work both in-person CSU Long Beach San Diego State University University of North Carolina, and virtually to provide game-changing college counseling, free online CSU Los Angeles San Francisco State University Chapel Hill tools, strategic scholarships, and critical support services. CSU Monterey Bay San Jose State University University of Pennsylvania $871K CSU Northridge Skyline College University of San Francisco Today, ScholarMatch makes college possible for more than 2,600 Awarded in CSU Sacramento Smith College University of Southern students annually, the most students we have ever served in our history. CUNY Hunter College Uptown Sonoma State University California Our work includes college access centers in both San Francisco and Los Scholarships Davidson College St. Mary’s College of California University of the Pacific Angeles, a virtual college coaching program for high school seniors across Duke University St. Olaf College University of Virginia El Camino College Stanford University Vassar College the country, as well as college scholarships, college persistence, and career Florida Agricultural Stony Brook University Wesleyan University readiness programming. We look forward to continuing this vital work 500+ and Mechanical University Swarthmore College West Los Angeles College to support students nationwide, at every point of the college journey. Volunteers 4 | 2019 Annual Report 2019 Annual Report | 5 Who Are PROGRAM MODEL ScholarMatch Students? Seven Years of Support The ScholarMatch program spans seven years and provides support to 92% underserved, first-generation students throughout their entire college First-Generation journey: from application to graduation and into a meaningful career. College Students High school students begin in Destination College—our college What Is Targeted access program that matches students with a volunteer College Coach to tackle all things college application. As students enter college, they Financial Support? join our Scholars Program, which takes them all the way to the Our scholarship model is designed to drive college 95% finish line. Through 1:1 and small group advising, targeted financial persistence and remove barriers that would Students of Color support, and career mentorship, students are equipped with the tools, otherwise prevent students from reaching graduation. resources, and connections to persist through college, graduate, and Targeted financial support includes funds for: launch their careers. college activities to encourage engagement with campus life, school-related expenses and $35,633 career exploration, emergency situations, and loan Median Family repayment once students graduate. Income Program Timeline Destination College Scholars Program High School Junior High School Senior College Freshman College Sophomore College Junior College Senior College Graduate Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4 Year 5 Year 6 Year 7 Career Programming Students Match Students participate in career with College Coach skill-building workshops and Students are paired 1:1 Students Meet are paired with a volunteer Alumni with a College Coach College Advisor Students begin working with their Career Coach to support with Students are invited to who guides them through College Advisor, a ScholarMatch attaining internships. participate in our alumni building a college list, staff member, who provides critical program, launching in writing essays, applying guidance throughout college. Summer 2020. for financial aid, and more. Students Apply to Targeted Loan Repayment College Program Financial Support Post-graduation students Students Join ScholarMatch Students apply to our Scholars Program Students receive up to five years receive loan repayment grants Students join our program and work in-person to receive college advising, of strategic scholarship support of up to $15,000 to pay back at one of our drop-in centers or virtually. career mentoring, and a scholarship. totalling $5,500 per year. federal student loans. 6 | 2019 Annual Report 2019 Annual Report | 7 ScholarMatch high school seniors rep their college gear at College Signing Day, a national event hosted by Michelle Obama Destination College, San Francisco 1,002 Located in the vibrant Mission District neighborhood, our San Students Served Francisco center serves as a community space for Bay Area high school students to access free college application support, from editing personal statements to applying for financial aid. A bustling day at our DESTINATION COLLEGE college center may include an SAT prep course in the morning, a visit 27 from a college representative in the afternoon (with pizza, of course!), College Rep Visits College creates a direct pathway to improve student outcomes and “I’m so grateful and an evening session of College Coaching, where dozens of highly increase economic mobility. However, first-generation students trained volunteers work shoulder-to-shoulder with students to tackle face the unique challenge of having little to no guidance applying to for everything college applications. Thanks to longstanding community partnerships, college. ScholarMatch’s Destination College programs combat this by ScholarMatch we’re able to expand our free services to local high schools and 123 ensuring that every student, regardless of their background, has the non-profits by delivering college readiness workshops offsite. College Workshops resources they need to reach their college dreams. Our free support has to offer, from services are open to any low-income student and include 1:1 college free SAT/ACT application assistance, financial