New Jersey City University and the Boys and Girls Club of Hudson County recently announced a comprehensive partnership aimed at empowering underserved and underrepresented students to pursue postsecondary education, including peer mentorship opportunities and conditional admission to NJCU.
The first-of-its-kind initiative between NJCU and a youth organization was introduced during a Memorandum of Understanding signing ceremony July 8 attended by leaders from NJCU and the BGCHC, legislative leaders and high school-age students participating in the BGCHC program.
The partnership, which will promote educational opportunities, social and economic mobility, and conscious and engaged citizenship for Hudson County students, will focus on initiatives to facilitate pathways towards pursuing a college education at NJCU.
Upon successful completion of BGCHC programs and meeting NJCU’s admission requirements, participants will receive conditional admission to NJCU and a 15% tuition discount for up to four years if they remain in good academic standing.
“This unique partnership is at the heart of honoring our institutional responsibility to the community that we are privileged to serve,” NJCU interim President Andrés Acebo said. “Too often, for both social and systemic reasons, young people’s promise is dimmed. The Boys & Girls Clubs of Hudson County is a source of light in these students’ lives and for their families, and we have an opportunity here to brighten that light even more.
“As a product of Hudson County, this collaboration is personally meaningful, because it was organizations like the Boys and Girls Club that were significant catalysts in my own academic and professional journey. We want to empower the students of Hudson County to have the same opportunities for social mobility that we did, and this partnership enshrines our university’s commitment to create pathways so this is an attainable goal for those who have for too long been underserved and underrepresented. We look forward to working with the Boys and Girls Club leadership to further our aligned vision for a future in which any student can attain the self-actualization that they deserve for themselves, their loved ones, and their communities.”
“I’d like to thank President Acebo and NJCU for their partnership that extends valuable resources to our participants,” Gary Greenberg, CEO of Boys and Girls Club of Hudson County, said. “Our goal is to provide a healthy space where students can enhance their abilities so that they have the greatest chance at success. Higher education is still one of the most impactful ways in which today’s youth can increase their future earning power. This partnership allows our kids to explore that space and see it as a real option for them if they decide to choose this path when the time is right.”
The programs offered by BGCHC will focus on peer mentorship, precollege programming that will expose local students to college life, career exploration and skill-building workshops. NJCU’s Men of Color Initiative members will serve as peer mentors to BGCHC participants by providing academic guidance, personal support and leadership development. BGCHC participants will also have access to NJCU’s Pre-College: GEAR UP College Bound Program, designed to enhance college readiness through academic enrichment, test preparation and college application support.
