Our Focus

The Program focuses on motivated high school students throughout South Central Los Angeles. Our students lack the financial resources to attend college and graduate schools without assistance. Most of our students lack essential family support and the educational, cultural and social experiences necessary to ensure their success in college and in their careers. In the public high schools that our students attend, less than 50% of the entering freshmen will graduate with a high school diploma. Our students live in South Central Los Angeles, the most economically deprived, dangerous and crime-ridden area in Los Angeles. SCS attempts to provide our students with the key elements of support that will help them to overcome these almost insurmountable obstacles. With this assistance, all of our students are working successfully toward their college degrees and are moving on to graduate and professional schools.

How We Help

South Central Scholars provides a wide range of support to our students:

SCHOLARSHIPS: Our scholarships are intended to close shortfalls between the amount of money offered in the financial package from a university (grants, loans, and work study) and the actual cost of a student's college education. In some cases, these shortfalls would prevent students from attending college altogether. The shortfalls are particularly severe for the working poor where even an entry level job for a single parent can reduce all three parts of a student's financial package.

All of our scholarships are for each student's entire academic career.

MENTORING PROGRAM: The Fund links students with caring, educated adults who can provide encouragement, guidance, advice and friendship. Students are partnered with mentors who have succeeded in careers in which the student has an interest. In addition to one-on-one relationships with mentors, group events are scheduled every one to two months to allow groups of students to share social, educational and cultural experiences with mentors and guests in a group environment. These activities help our students to stay connected to The Program and it creates a strong peer network.

JOBS/INTERNSHIPS PROGRAM: The Program provides students with unique summer job opportunities. These jobs not only supplement the income of our students but provide them with opportunities to explore fields in which they have an interest. SCS has provided students with jobs in medicine, medical research, law, publishing, advertising, engineering, finance, accounting and related fields. Through our jobs/internship program, students begin the process of networking with employers, building their self esteem and working on their career development. Our employers attempt to provide our students with increasing challenges and responsibilities to prepare them for their futures.

SUPPORT COMMUNITY: The members of SCS (mentors, employers, volunteers and students) serve as a support community to students as they progress through and graduate from college and graduate school. Each year our graduating college students will become members of this support community. This enlarging community is designed to keep our students involved with The Program and to assist new students as they are accepted into the program. Our goal is to instill a sense of social responsibility and dedication to academic success in South Central Los Angeles.