California Funders for Boys and Men of Coloraligns leading philanthropic entities with the goal of improving opportunities for Black, Latino, Asian/Pacific Islander, and Native American young men in the San Francisco and Los Angeles communities. The network offers programming and legislative advocacy to remove structural barriers.¹⁷¹

Sacramento, California

Take Off: Institutional Innovations for College Men of Color is a project of the University of Southern California’s Race and Equity Center. The philanthropic-supported project supports 12 community colleges nationwide to bolster initiatives advancing the success of Black learners and men of color.¹⁷⁰

Los Angeles, California

Regional partnerships in the Seattle area focus on advancing Black learner success through data-driven strategies and support from middle school through postsecondary education. In the same region, a Black and Brown Summit, sponsored by community partners, is an annual event designed to empower and motivate Black and Brown young men in high school to excel in academics and strive for excellence.¹⁶⁸

Seattle, Washington

The National Black Justice Coalition is a civil rights organization with a focus on education that is working to end discrimination against Black LGBTQ+ individuals.¹⁶⁷

Washington, D.C

Under the Achieve Atlanta initiative, higher education institutions and college access partners support Atlanta Public Schools to provide district-wide college advising to all juniors and seniors.¹⁶⁶

Atlanta, Georgia

The National Cares Mentoring Movement seeks to transform the lives of impoverished Black children through a national network of volunteer mentors. An example is the collaboration between higher education and community partners in New York City.¹⁶⁵

New York, New York

The Child Care Access Means Parents in School program helped 3,300 student parents pay for child care with payments of $385 per month on average. Appropriations for the program have increased from $15 million in FY 2017 to $75 million in FY 2023. In FY 2022, 300 new institutions were awarded $150,000 per year on average.¹³²

Washington, D.C

YouthBuild is a pre-apprenticeship program to expand postsecondary opportunities for those without high school diplomas. The program serves 5,000 youth across 40 states.v

Washington, D.C

The College and Career Readiness Evaluation Consortium is a collaboration of 28 GEAR UP grantees across 630 middle and high schools interested in understanding the impact of interventions.¹³⁰

Washington, D.C

Texas leveraged its state-funded work-study program to create a mentorship program to improve completion and career readiness.⁹⁵

Austin, Texas

Tennessee created a statewide mentoring program for financial aid recipients. Volunteers support students with navigating enrollment and meeting Promise program requirements.⁹⁴

Nashville, Tennessee

New York funds higher education adult opportunity programs and training centers, which focus on GED preparation, job training, etc.⁹³

Albany, New York

Kentucky commissioned a study of dual credit outcomes and found participating students were more likely to persist, achieve higher grade point averages, and be college-ready. However, students of color were less likely to participate in the program.⁹²

Frankfort, Kentucky

Indiana created the “You Can. Go Back.” campaign to reach former students and offer support to complete what they started.⁹¹

Indianapolis, Indiana

Idaho does not make high school graduates apply to public higher education. It uses its integrated data systems to proactively admit them to public institutions.⁹¹

Boise, Idaho

California authorized:

• A cradle-to-career, consumer-facing longitudinal data system. A diverse group of community leaders, educators, and researchers is developing the data infrastructure.⁷⁰

• Community colleges to include prison course costs in their standard budgets and use the universal fee waiver.⁸⁸ The participation and performance of incarcerated students are strong. This is a critical strategy, because 28.5% of the state’s male incarcerated individuals are African American.⁸⁹

Sacramento, California

The Rochester Institute of Technology’s Men of Color Honor and Ambition program provides personal, academic, cultural, social, professional, and leadership development to undergraduate males to positively impact academic success, increase retention, and develop successful leaders.³⁹

Rochester, New York

The Men of Color Health Awareness projectrecruits men of color into health and research fields.³⁸

Springfield, Massachusetts

Southern University-Shreveport’s program encourages minority males to pursue science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields in which they are underrepresented. Members are provided with scholarships and stipends for tuition, books, housing and meal plans, professional development activities, mentorship, and academic support services.³⁷

Shreveport, Louisiana

CUNY ACE (Accelerate, Complete and Engage) is a comprehensive support program for low-income students pursuing bachelor degrees. The program combines financial assistance for tuition, transportation, and books with academic and career counseling. The first cohort experienced a four-year graduation rate 16 percentage points higher than a comparison group.³⁶

New York, New York