The HSF/BGCA/GSF Alliance, funded by The Goldman Sachs Foundation (GSF), includes funding for three-year pilot programs at Clubs in Chicago and San Antonio. The Clubs in these two cities were jointly selected by HSF, BGCA and GSF based on multiple criteria including the number of Hispanic youth served, staff commitment and overall community support. HSF, BGCA and GSF hope to reach up to 2,500 students and parents at these Clubs over the three-year pilot.

Through this pilot, HSF conducts interactive workshops, known as My Future, My Choice, My Education, at these target Clubs. These sessions provide information and support to help youth navigate their way from middle school to high school to college and on to successful professional careers.

The HSF/BGCA/GSF initiative also offers bilingual sessions for the parents through a program entitled PASOS. During these gatherings, parents come to better understand the U.S. education and grading system and they examine issues such as testing, financial aid and helping their children with their studies.

The HSF/BGCA/GSF alliance includes opportunities for high-achieving Latino youth to attend a special developmental program, the Next Generation Venture Fund (NGVF), administered by the Johns Hopkins University Center for Talented Youth (CTY). NGVF tests and identifies high potential youth who receive special programming to enter America’s finest colleges and universities after high school. The tailored programming starts with workshops, mentoring, academic advising, special support materials and tracking by HSF. One student from each Club is then invited to participate in the multi-year NGVF program that includes a parent-student contract articulating expectations; an individualized five-year academic/extracurricular education plan; advanced courses on selected college campuses for two summers; distance-learning courses developed by Duke, Johns Hopkins and Stanford Universities; entrepreneurship and leadership programs; intensive year-round advising; college entrance exam preparations; and mentoring opportunities.