Partner institutions have awarded the Posse Scholars a total of $115 million, the largest amount yet in the foundation’s history.
Posse recruits students from urban areas who show strong leadership potential and academic talent but might otherwise be overlooked by the traditional admissions process. Students are chosen on the basis of demonstrating the potential that they could one day become the nation’s leaders, administrators and CEOs.
Scholars receive 8 months of training before arriving on campus in “posses” of 10 students each. The intention is that the groups will support each other on their journey through college and beyond.
“Posse is really a leadership program that cares about diversity in a very deliberate way,” Bial said.
Looking ahead to the future of the organization, Bial said that she hopes to grow the number of partner institutions from today’s 51 to 100 by 2020.
Though that would mean doubling the number of partnerships in only a fraction of the time, Bial sees that as a more than tangible goal.
