WHO: Hartford Youth Scholars is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that works with Hartford students – beginning when they are in middle school – and helps them get “to and through” college. WHAT: Our mission is to give students from Hartford the opportunity to change their lives through education. HOW: We prepare our Scholars to successfully complete a four-year college degree by offering them access to exceptional educational opportunities and providing them with ongoing, comprehensive supports. WHY: We envision these Scholars attaining college degrees and then returning to work and live in Hartford, thereby inspiring and helping to cultivate similar achievements in younger Hartford students. HYS helps highly motivated Hartford students gain access to and graduate from best fit secondary schools and colleges. The organization provides Scholars and their families with academic and mentoring support for 10 years, beginning the summer before students enter 7th grade and continuing through college graduation. HYS was originally founded in 2005 to address the achievement gap in Hartford by funding scholarships for local youth to attend independent high schools. HYS soon learned that the funding of these scholarships did not meaningfully address Hartford’s achievement gap, and the organization targeted its focus to instead provide middle school students with services helping them to develop strong study, personal, social and other skills making them prepared for academic excellence in high school and college.