Destination: College

Program Description

Destination: College was incorporated in 1994 as a nonprofit to aid at risk students in Westchester County. In 2006, the head varsity basketball coach at Mount Vernon asked us to build a program to address gaps in the team's academic performance. Working with 12 volunteers and 30 student athletes, Destination: College initiated an after-school reading program to improve reading comprehension. The early success for one team grew, and we expanded the services offered and the number of athletes and high schools served.

Today, we work with:
175 student athletes
7 varsity teams
3 underserved high schools: Mount Vernon, Woodlands (Hartsdale) and Gorton (Yonkers)*
65 adult volunteers
Neighboring high school volunteers

Programs include:
Weekly Academic Enrichment with coach and team
Regent's Prep
SAT/ACT Prep
College /Federal Financial/NYS Aid Applications
SUNY Educational Opportunity Programs (EOP)
Higher Educational Opportunity Programs (HEOP)
Scholarship/Loan Counseling
NCAA Eligibility Review
College Retention/Success

Demographics

Race & Ethnicity

• Hispanic/Latino: 10%
• African American: 90%

Education Level and
Number of Students

• High School: 175
• Middle School: 0
• Elementary School: 0
• Post-secondary: 0
• Non-traditional: 0

Populations Served

• Academically At-risk
• Undocumented Students (2)

First-Generation

• More than 75%

Representative
Colleges Attended
by Alumni

• Binghamton University
• Cornell University
• George Mason University
• Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus
• University of Pennsylvania

Matriculation & Completion

• 4-yr College Matriculation: 75%
• 4-yr College Graduation: 67%