National Programs

A Better Chance *
Grades: 4-9
A Better Chance is the oldest and only national organization of its kind changing the life trajectory for academically talented youth of color via access to rigorous and prestigious educational opportunities for students in grades 6-12. Our mission is to increase the number of well-educated young people of color who are capable of assuming positions of responsibility and leadership in American society. We carry out our mission through our signature College Preparatory Schools Program, which annually recruits, refers and supports about 500 Scholars at more than 300 Member Schools in 27 states.

Academically Interested Minds (AIM) – Kettering University
Grades: 11
AIM (Academically Interested Minds) is a five–week residential pre–college summer program which began in 1984 and has continued to thrive over the years. The program is designed to augment Kettering University's efforts to reach a greater number of multicultural students who have a strong interest in the areas of engineering, math, science and business.

ACE Mentor
Grades: 9-12
The ACE name stands for Architecture, Construction and Engineering. The ACE program stands for mentoring high school students and inspiring them to pursue careers in design and construction. Teams are composed of 15–25 students and their industry mentors. Each team is set up to emulate an actual design team, with students guided through a mock design project by their architect, engineer, and construction management mentors. The ACE Mentor Program of America, Inc. not only engages sponsors and volunteer mentors to expose students to real– world opportunities, it financially supports each student's continued success through scholarships and grants.

ACT–SO
Grades: 9-12
The NAACP's Afro–Academic, Cultural, Technological and Scientific Olympics is a yearlong achievement program designed to recruit, stimulate, and encourage high academic and cultural achievement among African– American high school students.

Breakthrough Collaborative
Grades: 6-8
Breakthrough offers underserved youth 240 hours of academic instruction over 6-week, intensive summer programs. Breakthrough students complete three summers of rigorous academic instruction in math, science, and literacy, as well as study skills, public speaking, and leadership. Students receive individual high-school options counseling to help them successfully earn admission to four-year colleges.

C5 Youth Foundation
Grades: 8-12
The mission of the C5 Youth Program is to inspire high-potential youth from risk-filled environments to pursue personal success, to prepare them for leadership roles in college, work and community, and to motivate them to become role models for others. We do this by engaging middle and high school students from under resourced communities in five years of intensive leadership experiences including year-round leadership development programs, signature summer activities, community service, and preparation for continuing education and career development.

Carleton Liberal Arts Experience (CLAE)
Grades: 10
Carleton College is honored to host an inspiring summer program designed for the best and brightest college– bound students representing high schools across the country. The Carleton Liberal Arts Experience (CLAE) will select 50 high school students who have just completed their sophomore year and bring them to Carleton, all expenses paid, for a one– week summer program. The CLAE program introduces the strengths of a liberal arts education through an array of courses in science, art, social sciences, and technology.

Development School for Youth – All Stars Project Inc.
Ages: 16-21
The Development School for Youth (DSY) is the All Stars Project's innovative outside–of–school leadership and business training program. In partnership with businesses and caring corporate professionals DSY offers supplemental educational, social and internship experiences in a variety of workplace settings.

Girls Who Code
Grades: 11
Launched in Spring 2012, Girls Who Code is a national nonprofit organization working to close the gender gap in the technology and engineering sectors. With support from public and private partners, Girls Who Code works to educate, inspire, and equip high school girls with the skills and resources to pursue opportunities in computing fields.

Hispanic Scholarship Fund (HSF)
Grades: 9-12
The HSF's mission is to increase the number of Hispanic college graduates by awarding scholarships and assisting students and their families in navigating the barriers to college access and completion.

“I Have a Dream” Foundation
Grades: K-12
The "I Have A Dream" Foundation provides long-term support to help children from low-income communities achieve their full potential by promoting personal empowerment, high school graduation, postsecondary success, and financial support for postsecondary education. Our approach is unique in that we sponsor cohorts of students in under-resourced public schools or housing developments, and work with these "Dreamers" from early elementary school all the way through high school. Upon high school graduation, each Dreamer receives guaranteed tuition assistance for higher education.

Jack Kent Cooke Foundation
Grades: 7-12
The Young Scholars Program provides the most personalized, generous scholarship experience in the nation. The Foundation works closely with Scholars and their families to construct a tailored educational program that includes, but is not limited to, support for summer programs, distance learning courses, and music and art instruction. Some Young Scholars attend a private school if none of their public school options adequately serve their academic potential; however, many stay in their public schools.

Leadership Enterprise for a Diverse America (LEDA)
Grades: 11-12
LEDA (Leadership Enterprise for a Diverse America) is a not–for–profit organization devoted to developing leaders for our nation by helping exceptional public high school students who come from underserved backgrounds gain admission to the country's leading colleges and universities.

Minds Matter
Grades: 10-12
Minds Matter is a three year program that begins in students’ sophomore year of high school. Minds Matter offers its students a combination of individualized mentor support and group instruction that provides students with the resources, information and guidance that they need to gain admission to, enroll in and succeed at four–year colleges. Each student is partnered with two mentors and assigned instructors from our Math Matters, SAT/ACT test preparation and Writing and Critical Thinking programs. In addition, our students have the opportunity to attend a top–tier summer program during their sophomore and junior year as well as participate in leadership development activities.

Minority Introduction to Engineering & Science (MITES) – MIT
Grades: 11
Through the MITES (Minority Introduction to Engineering and Science) program, The Office of Engineering Outreach Programs offers three rigorous residential and online academic enrichment programs for promising high school juniors who are interested in studying and exploring careers in science and engineering. By submitting a MITES application, students are automatically considered for one of three academic enrichment opportunities: a one–week residential program, a six–week residential program, and a six–month online enrichment program.

National Hispanic Institute
Grades: 9-College
We are both a national and international organization that provides Latino young people with the structures and settings to envision themselves as future community leaders, practice their skills in leading and working with others, and engage in critical discussions to define their calling while preparing themselves for the mission of changing lives. Dedication to personal excellence, a strong belief in family and culture, and service to others are the core values and beliefs that drive the work of the Institute and embrace its vision.

National Space Club Scholars
Grades: 10
The National Space Club Scholars Project is a summer intern experience for up to 30 high school students to work with space scientists and engineers. The purpose of this project is to provide students with an opportunity to experience how research and development organizations operate on a day–to–day basis in direct support of NASA's mission to inspire the next generation of explorers. Participants are assigned to work with a technical professional in a field related to the student's stated interests. The available areas of interest include Earth and space systems science, computer science, and engineering.

National Urban League
Grades: 6-12
The National Urban League works to provide economic empowerment, educational opportunities and the guarantee of civil rights for the underserved in America. The Education and Youth Development (EYD) divison develops innovative programs to support academic achievement, civic involvement, and the physical and emotional development of children and youth. The EYD achieves its goal of fostering academic excellence through the development of policies and programs that focus on early childhood education, college preparedness and youth leadership programs.

Posse Foundation
Grades: 12
Founded in 1989, Posse identifies public high school students with extraordinary academic and leadership potential who may be overlooked by traditional college selection processes. Posse extends to these students the opportunity to pursue personal and academic excellence by placing them in supportive, multicultural teams—Posses—of 10 students. Posse partner colleges and universities award
Posse Scholars four–year, full–tuition leadership scholarships.

Princeton University Summer Journalism Program
Grades: 11
We welcome about 20 high school students from low–income backgrounds every summer to Princeton's campus for an intensive, 10–day seminar on journalism. The program's goal is to diversify college and professional newsrooms by encouraging outstanding students from low– income backgrounds to pursue careers in journalism. All expenses, including students' travel costs to and from Princeton, are paid for by the program.

QuestBridge
Grades: 11-12
QuestBridge is a powerful platform bridging the nation's brightest, under– served youth and leading institutions of higher education and further opportunities. We are an aggregator of excellence. QuestBridge provides a single, internet– based meeting point which links exceptional students with colleges, scholarship providers, enrichment programs employers, and organizations seeking students who have excelled despite obstacles. By facilitating these exchanges, QuestBridge aims to increase the percentage of talented low–income students attending the nation's best universities and the ranks of national leadership itself.

Research Science Institute– MIT
Grades: 9-11
Each summer, 80 of the world's most accomplished high school students gather at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) for the Research Science Institute (RSI). RSI is the first cost–free to students, summer science & engineering program to combine on–campus course work in scientific theory with off–campus work in science and technology research. RSI scholars first participate in a week of intensive STEM classes with accomplished professors. The heart of RSI is the five week research internship where students conduct individual projects under the tutelage of mentors who are experienced scientists and researchers. During the final week of RSI, students prepare written and oral presentations on their research projects.

Science and Engineering Apprenticeship Program (SEAP)
Grades: 9-12
The Science and Engineering Apprenticeship Program (SEAP) provides an opportunity for students to participate in research at a Department of Navy (DoN) laboratory during the summer. The goals of SEAP are to encourage participating students to pursue science and engineering careers, to further their education via mentoring by laboratory personnel and their participation in research, and to make them aware of DoN research and technology efforts, which can lead to employment within the DoN.

The Short– Term Research Experience for Underrepresented Persons (STEP–UP)
Grades: 11-12
The High School STEP–UP provides hands–on summer research experience for high school students interested in exploring research careers in the biomedical, behavioral, clinical and social sciences. The program provides exposure to the core NIDDK mission areas of diabetes, endocrinology and metabolic diseases; digestive diseases and nutrition; and kidney, urologic and hematologic diseases.

Smith Summer Science and Engineering Program (SSEP)
Grades: 9-12
The Smith Summer Science and Engineering Program (SSEP) is a four–week residential program for exceptional young women with strong interests in science, engineering and medicine. Each July, select high school students from across the country and abroad come to Smith College to do hands–on research with Smith faculty in the life and physical sciences and in engineering.

Stanford Institutes of Medicine Summer Research Program (SIMR)
Grades: 11-12
This is an eight–week program in which high school students from diverse backgrounds are invited to perform basic research with Stanford faculty, postdoctoral fellows, students and researchers on a medically–oriented project. The goals of the program include increasing interest in biological sciences and medicine in high school students, helping students to understand how scientific research is performed, and increasing diversity of students and researchers in the sciences.

Stanford Medical Youth Science Program
Grades: 9-12
The Stanford Medical Youth Science Program works to increase knowledge about the sciences and health professions, and offer guidance about the college admissions process to low–income and/or underrepresented minority students. To meet this goal, SMYSP offers a university–based five–week Summer Residential Program and school–based academic year health disparities curriculum.

Summer Humanities Institute– Stanford
Grades: 11-12
Students will spend three weeks on the beautiful Stanford campus, living in residence. They will spend the first two weeks intensively studying and researching a topic in history or philosophy, attending daily lectures by the faculty members, and participating in group discussions and activities in the afternoon. During their third week, students will work closely with their professors, graduate students, and writing mentors to produce original research projects. These papers present an opportunity for students to use what they have learned at Stanford to develop their own answers to the central questions that are addressed by the humanities.

Summer Internship Program in Biomedical Research (SIP) – NIH
Ages: 16 and over
Summer programs at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) provide an opportunity to spend a summer working at the NIH side–by–side with some of the leading scientists in the world, in an environment devoted exclusively to biomedical research. Internships cover a minimum of eight weeks, with students generally arriving at the NIH in May or June. The NIH Institutes and the Office of Intramural Training & Education sponsor a wide range of summer activities including lectures featuring distinguished NIH investigators, career/professional development workshops, and Summer Poster Day.

Summer Research with the National Institute on Drug Abuse
Ages: 15 and over
This program is designed to provide high school and undergraduate students from underrepresented groups with meaningful research experiences and mentorship in the field of drug abuse and addiction. Each year up to 50 NIDA research investigators offer their labs and their time for eight to ten weeks to mentor up to 60 students interested in drug abuse research.

Summer Search
Grades: 9-12
The mission of Summer Search is to find resilient low–income high school students and inspire them to become responsible and altruistic leaders by providing year–round mentoring, life–changing summer experiences, college advising, and a lasting support network.

Telluride Association Sophomore Summer
Grades: 10
Telluride works with university faculty to create exciting courses designed to inspire young people to explore the histories, politics and cultural experiences of people of African descent and a variety of other topics.

Telluride Association Summer Program (TASP)
Grades: 11
A Telluride Association Summer Program (TASP) is a six–week educational experience for high school juniors that offers challenges and rewards rarely encountered in secondary school or even college. Each program is designed to bring together young people from around the world who share a passion for learning. Telluride students, or TASPers, attend a seminar led by college and university scholars and participate in many other educational and social activities outside the classroom.

Ventures Scholars
Grades: 9-College
The Ventures Scholars Program is a national nonprofit membership program designed to promote access to higher education for young adults interested in pursuing math and science–based careers.

W.E.B. Dubois Scholars Institute
Grades: 10-11
The W.E.B. DuBois Scholars Institute provides leadership, scholarship, community service, and entrepreneur training along with exposure to science and technology for high–achieving youth attending secondary schools. It was founded with an aim to develop a cadre of brilliant leaders/activist scholars with a commitment to contributing their talents for the betterment of others by solving major problems facing our society.

Women's Technology Program (WTP) – MIT
Grades: 11
The MIT Women's Technology Program (WTP) is a rigorous four–week summer academic and residential experience where female high school students explore engineering through hands–on classes, labs, and team–based projects in the summer after 11th grade.

Youth Leadership Conference on Asian and Pacific Islander Health – Stanford
Grades: 9-12
The Youth Leadership Conference on Asian and Pacific Islander Health is a four day conference at Stanford University. High school students from across the country are invited to attend to gain leadership skills for effecting change in local communities. Conference participants will meet other students interested in making a difference in public health. Leading medical experts, professors, and policymakers will speak on issues of Asian and Pacific Islander health. Students will also have a chance to apply the skills they gain in an outreach planning simulation.