MINDS MATTER BAY AREA EXPANDS REACH BEYOND SAN FRANCISCO TO OAKLAND AND SAN JOSE TO HELP STUDENTS FROM LOW-INCOME FAMILIES ACHIEVE COLLEGE SUCCESS

Minds Matter San Francisco Now Called Minds Matter Bay Area to Reflect Growth as Impact Increases Across the Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 11, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Effective now, as announced tonight at their annual "School Night Dinner Fundraiser" on October 11, Minds Matter San Francisco is now called Minds Matter Bay Area (MMBay). The organizational nonprofit name change reflects an expanded geographical footprint that will increase college access for motivated students from low-income families across the Bay Area. Beginning with Oakland and San Jose, the expansion will ultimately encompass additional cities around the Bay Area.

"We are not changing who we are as an organization, but where we operate," said Irene Shih, CEO of Minds Matter Bay Area. "Our mission remains the same: connecting driven and determined students from low-income families with the people, preparation, and possibilities to succeed in college, create their future, and change the world. We are building upon our past successes by bringing what works in San Francisco and around the country to students living in the Bay Area, starting with opening new sites in Oakland and San Jose. By investing in our students today, we unlock their potential for tomorrow."

The nonprofit name change comes after 12 years of success in San Francisco and opportunities to expand impact. The growth will equip students across the Bay Area to be prepared for, and accepted into, selective colleges nationwide.

The expansion beyond San Francisco will begin in Oakland and San Jose. Eventually, MMBay's services will cover these counties: Sonoma, Napa, Solano, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, Alameda, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Sacramento, Placer, San Joaquin, and Fresno.

Minds Matter Bay Area will focus expansion efforts on key school districts in San Francisco, Oakland and San Jose, with special attention given to underserved students at schools with higher poverty rates. In these schools, motivated and hard-working students nevertheless experience lower graduation rates and higher instances of college undermatching. MMBay is uniquely positioned to make a difference for these students. As a volunteer driven organization, MMBay is actively searching for volunteer leaders in Oakland and San Jose to spearhead these new sites and to serve in this role as Founding Volunteer Site Directors.

Founded in 2010, 100% of MMBay alumni have been accepted to 4-year colleges, 78% attend some of the most selective schools in the country, and 100% are on track to graduate from college within 4 years. Compared with similar peers, Minds Matter Bay Area students are 23X more likely to graduate from a selective college that prepares them for successful careers and beyond. Many of MMBay's graduates are attending a Tier 1 most competitive private school (e.g. Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Stanford, Middlebury, USC) or University of California public school system (UC Berkeley, UCLA). 

Since 2010, Minds Matter Bay Area (MMBay) has focused on breaking the cycle of intergenerational poverty by solving for "college undermatching": the underrepresentation of high-achieving, low-income students at selective colleges across the country. MMBay is a mentorship-focused nonprofit that connects driven and determined high school students from low-income families with the people, preparation, and possibilities to succeed in college, create their future, and change the world.

MMBay is a regional chapter of the national Minds Matter organization. Since its founding in New York City in 1991, the effectiveness of Minds Matter has been affirmed – 100% of its students have been accepted into a four-year college. The organization has expanded to twelve cities nationwide, including Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Denver, Los Angeles, New York, Philadelphia, Portland, San Francisco, Seattle, the Twin Cities and Washington D.C.

Our students participate in a rich set of programs including young professional mentorship, academic planning programs, MMBay-supported summer college programs for high school students and SAT and ACT instruction. Our volunteers, alumni, and staff collaborate to bring consistent care, deep learning opportunities, and sustainable resources that expand our mentees' options, help them believe in their own potential, and model for them the quality of service that they should pay forward to others.

To learn more, visit: mindsmatterbay.org

SOURCE Minds Matter Bay Area