Program areas at Boys Hope Girls Hope
Programming (12 U.S. Affiliates). BHGH helps young people leverage their strengths and reach their potential through year-round, out-of-school time programming that addresses academic achievement, physical and mental health, career launch, and service to the community. This long-term relationship spans from middle school to college and career launch. We also provide a safe, stable environment for those who benefit from the full-time structure and necessities provided by our residential programs. We connect our scholars to mentors, internships, and other academic and professional development support during college, along with a lifelong community of alumni who support their continued success. BHGH Network Headquarters helps our 12 U.S. affiliates and 2 Latin American affiliates by providing them with opportunities to bring our young people together for joint programming, as well as offering training, performance management, technology and administrative support, and scholarship funding for collegians. Our diversity is a key asset: 40% of our senior leadership team, 55% of team members, and 96% of our scholars are Persons of Color. 56% of our scholars are young women. All come from urban communities and face barriers such as trauma, community violence, and extreme poverty, with 82% coming from households with less than $50,000 annual income and all our Latin American youth from poor families. They also have tremendous ability and thrive with us. In 2023, 96% of our high school seniors went to college, compared to the 69.7% US average- and this is critical because data shows college graduates are less likely to be unemployed and live in poverty.
Supporting Scholars To and Through Post-Secondary Education. We leverage the transformative power of education to help our scholars realize their goals. This includes providing opportunities to connect scholars to college, internships, and career tracks earlier in their lives through our Envision U week-long event, while also providing standardized test prep and support with college selection, applications, campus visits, and student aid applications, all done in significant collaboration with our university partners. We also assist graduating high school seniors with College Transition Plans that include financial planning, and collegians with College Persistence Plans that include check-ins with college success team members. To further help scholars stay on track in post-secondary education, we join forces with affiliates to reduce debt by providing scholarship support. Eligible scholars are enrolled in 15 credit hours and earn a 2.5 or higher GPA. In addition to our high college persistence rates, more than 80% of our collegians are at or below the threshold of $5,500 of debt per year, compared to the national annual average of approximately $10,000 (calculated using Student Loan Hero's four-year estimate of $39,400).
International Assistance. Our two Latin American affiliates serve populations of great need, with 100% of these scholars living in extreme poverty. Esperanza Juvenil, our affiliate in Guatemala, operates 5 homes for girls, 3 homes for boys, and two campuses with their own schools certified by the Guatemalan Ministry of Education, serving youth from third grade through high school from age 9 into their 20s. Ser y Crecer, our affiliate in Mexico, operates 4 homes for collegians and an afterschool Academy. In these programs, young people grow up in environments where they feel safe and known as they develop nurturing and positive relationships with their peers and caring adults.