Austin Aspires

Austin Aspires will bring together community resources and families to challenge all learners to seek excellence and equip them to achieve results through shared community vision, evidence-based decision making, collaborative action, and investment and sustainability. During the 2022-2023 school year, staff in our Aspires leaders of tomorrow (alot) program, worked intentionally with more than 500 students in grades 5-12. Over 90% of these scholars were students of color and 83% come from families living in poverty. These students averaged a 91% attendance rate, and nearly 70% of the scholars are on track to graduation. We seen an increase in students of color, specficially students identifying as hispanic, enrolling in above grade level courses (in 2019, 13.9% of students enrolled in honors/ap/concurrent enrollment/pseo courses identfied as hispanic. In 2023, that percentage had increased to 21.5%. The total number of student population identifying as hispanic at that time was 29.5%.)

During the 2022-2023 academic school year, 788 tutoring was provided to students in grades k-12 at no cost to the child or family. Qualified tutors provided support to these scholars in public spaces including the ymca, library, the child's school and the Aspires' office. Families reported that they seen an increase in their children's grades, completed work turned in, and attitude towards school after their child began working with a tutor.

In excess of 500 families with children prenatal through age 5 received support through our wee aspiree program. In this program, families are connected to needed resources to ensure their child gets the best early learning experience possible. This includes connection to childcare, preschool, basic needs resources and more. As one family recently shared, "you make me a better parent".