BRYC's Fiscal Year 2021 Impact Report

ACT Performance

College Persistence For Fiscal Year 2022

14.5% U.S. 4-year low-SES graduation rate

72% BRYC 4-year degree completion rate

77% BRYC 4-year + 2-year degree completion rate

at these colleges & many more

COVID Aid

Young Hero

The pandemic left many College Fellows stranded at school, so BRYC immediately went to work raising funds for transportation home and other unexpected expenses. Generous support from Capital Area United Way, the Lamar Family Foundation, and individual donors also made it possible for BRYC to distribute mobile hotspots, laptops, and direct payments to BRYC families who faced unemployment or financial hardship as a result of COVID-19. Over $13,000 of these funds have been disbursed since April 2020.

Senior Fellow Ivory Gipson was named one of only six 2021 Louisiana Young Heroes. Nominated by Executive Director Lucas Spielfogel, Ivory maintained a near-perfect GPA and was a three-sport varsity athlete, band member, vice president of the Goal Society, and held down a part-time job. He will attend Skidmore College in New York on a full-ride scholarship.

New Faces

As we get closer to our goal of serving 500 high school Fellows by 2022-2023, our team is also growing to meet the complex needs of Fellows, BRYC graduates, families, and volunteers. We recently welcomed four new full-time staff members who round out our team with a wide range of experiences and expertise.

Nothing but the Best

We were delighted and honored to be ranked #11 on the 2020 “Best Places to Work in Baton Rouge” list for small and medium employers.

Our Fellows deserve the best from BRYC, and a stellar team and workplace culture are how we deliver.

Health Fellows Scholarship

DEI is in our DNA

Building an equitable healthcare system demands diversity in every health and wellness field. With a vision of advancing equity by expanding access to these careers, BRYC partnered with the Baton Rouge Clinic to award scholarships worth $50,000 in total to two high school Fellows and four College Fellows who are pursuing healthcare-related degrees.

Our commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) is never-ending, and we’re constantly working to ensure our team both reflects and understands Fellows’ unique experiences. Led by Board Chair Chaunda Allen Mitchell, PhD, team members participated in monthly DEI training sessions to strengthen actively anti-racist behaviors in all BRYC spaces.

Virtual Village Within days of the March 2020 lockdown, BRYC kicked off a 100% virtual curriculum, doubling program hours without sacrificing quality. The 2020-2021 school year saw heightened emphasis on instructional coaching to maximize facilitator effectiveness, the launch of a comprehensive Individualized Fellowship Support (IFS) system, and—for the first time since BRYC’s founding—every Fellow paired with a dedicated mentor.

Gates Millennium Scholar Port Allen High School Valedictorian and Student of the Year Naturi Scott was named a Gates Millennium Scholar—only the second student ever to receive the honor at her school. During senior year, Naturi kept busy with sports, SGA, Beta Club, peer tutoring, and several other school organizations. She will study chemical engineering with a focus in environmental health at Emory University in Georgia.

Volunteers “I always knew what was expected of me and my Fellow...I know it's been an extremely challenging year, but y'all handled it gracefully and beautifully.

Can't wait to serve again next year!”

VIPs (volunteers investing in passions)

- Kelly Rownd, 3-year VIP

Hours of 1:1 mentoring and tutoring

98% agree

Value (calculated at $22.77/hour) Source: independentsector.org

i recommend volunteering at BRYC to others.