Cherae Hendy
Madeira School ’06, Ithaca/Cornell ’10

“For the past five years, The Oliver Scholars Program has been similar to an extended family to me. The dedication they offer to Scholars is not only inspiring to me as a student, but also a testament to the Program’s continuous generosity.  I am extremely grateful to the Oliver Scholars Program and the opportunities and experiences they have made available to us.”

Dalton ’04, Yale ‘08

Where I’m from
I live with my mother in the Bronx. She never finished high school and cannot really speak English. My neighborhood is made up mostly of Hispanics and Blacks. Most people in my community have not gone to college and many of the people my age do not plan on going. 

Who We Serve…

• Aspiring Oliver Scholars…
  • are in the top 10% of their class.
  • are active members of their school and home communities.
  • represent over 100 middle schools in New York City.
• Nearly 66% of Oliver Scholars have parents who never attended college.
• The Oliver Scholars Program serves those in need. 49% of Oliver families represent single parent households and nearly 25% receive public assistance or disability income. The average household income for Oliver's families is $43,709.
• The Class of 2011 breakdown:
• 39% African American.
• 57% Latino.
• 7% Bi-Racial.

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How They Do…

• The Oliver Scholars Program has graduated over 800 African American and Latino students from top independent high schools and universities.
• Since the Oliver Scholars Program's inception in 1984, 97.6% of Oliver Scholars matriculate to college. This is three times the national rate for African Americans and four times the rate for Hispanic Americans.
• 99.5% of Oliver Scholars matriculated to college in 2004-08.
• 86% of Oliver Scholars attended the Top Colleges and Universities as characterized by US News & World Report.
• 34.6% of Oliver Scholars enroll in Ivy League universities compared to the national average of 0.32%.*
• Upon graduation from their independent schools, each class of Oliver Scholars will have completed over 6,000 hours of community service, much of which is conducted in the underserved communities in which Scholars reside.
• 55% of Oliver Scholars enter the following professions: education, not-for-profit, social service, government, public policy, law and healthcare.
• 28% of our Mentors are Oliver alumni.

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Oliver's ROI...

For every $1000 invested in Oliver, our Scholars receive five times the value measured by financial aid awarded to attend independent schools where the average tuition is $30,000. In 2005-2008, the total financial aid granted to Oliver Scholars was approximately $5 million.

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*Sources: http://www.go4ivy.com/ 53,800 undergraduates at Ivy League universities;

http://www.factfinder.census.gov/ 17,063,732 undergraduates across the nation.