Yale Pledges $20 Million to Help Educate New Haven Students at Other Universities

Yale University has announced a scholarship program for students in the predominantly black New Haven public school system. The full-tuition scholarships are not for these students to enroll at Yale, but rather they are for New Haven high school graduates who plan to attend a public college or university in Connecticut.

In order to qualify for the scholarship, New Haven high school graduates will have had to maintain a B average, contribute at least 40 hours of community service, have a 90 percent attendance rate, and a clean disciplinary record. It is estimated that between 200 and 250 New Haven high school students will meet the qualifications each year. Recipients will have to maintain a 2.5 grade point average in college in order to continue to receive funds.

Yale will contribute $4 million annually to the New Haven Promise scholarship program for the next five years. The scholarships are not need based and will cover  all of the recipient’s tuition at a state educational institution. But they will not provide for room and board.

Yale University president Richard C. Levin stated that the scholarships will ultimately help the university because "Yale’s strength is inextricably linked to the community’s strength."

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