Dear Friends of Minds Matter Boston,
It has been an extraordinary year filled with unprecedented challenges and unacceptable injustice. Yet, in this turbulent time in our history, Minds Matter Boston has emerged stronger and more committed than ever to our students and mission.
The COVID-19 pandemic forced us to abruptly pivot, adapt our program, and find new ways to meaningfully connect with and support our students. I want to thank our entire team and community for rising to meet this challenge. We will remain a virtual program for the remainder of 2020 and reassess our plans in the new year.
Systemic racial injustice is another kind of epidemic we faced this year and have a responsibility to address. Ensuring our students can access educational opportunities that open new doorways to economic mobility is a concrete way we are working to combat the systemic inequities they face in education and the workforce. We are committed to using our organization’s platform, not just now, but in a consistent way moving forward, to promote inclusivity and advance anti-racist work.
Despite the challenges of the year, our organization maintained strong student outcomes:
100% of seniors were accepted into a 4-year college;
76% were admitted into a competitive college (as defined by Barron’s Top 3 Tiers);
92% of seniors’ financial need was met through earned scholarships and financial aid, with an average first-year aid package of $47,000;
100% of seniors believed that MMB played a major role in helping them get to college;
93% of seniors said MMB provided an important service during the pandemic and created a safe and stable community for them.
There remains a great deal of uncertainty as we head into a new program year. There’s a natural instinct to want to hold tight, weather the storm, and maintain the status quo until things settle down; however, we are taking a different approach. The pandemic is having a disproportionate impact on the communities we serve, and we feel a sense of urgency to double down on expanding our reach and impact.
That’s why I’m excited to announce that this fall we will embark on an ambitious three-year growth effort that will expand our enrollment by 75%. Today, we are turning qualified students away because we do not have the capacity to serve them. We have a responsibility to our community to become an organization capable of serving every qualified student who applies. I hope I can count on your support to help us reach this goal.
These are challenging times, but the resiliency, tenacity, and drive for positive change demonstrated by our students gives me hope. I know that if we follow their lead, we can build a better future together. Thank you, as always, for your belief in our students and support of our work.
Sincerely,
Rachel Kanter
Executive Director