After welcoming a group of Posse Scholars from New Orleans each year since 2017, Case Western Reserve is preparing to add another.
The early success of the university’s partnership with The Posse Foundation to enroll promising urban students prompted campus leaders to add a second annual cohort that would start in the fall of 2022—and include students drawn from cities around the country.
In Posse’s original model, selected students all came from a single city. Once admitted to a specific cohort and university, the young people met regularly throughout the winter and spring to prepare for college.
Posse’s new program emerged after COVID-19’s arrival forced the foundation to transition many of its in-person gatherings online, including aspects of admissions and scholarship selection and pre-college preparation programs.
“I commend the Posse Foundation for applying lessons from their pandemic adjustments to bring their exceptional programs to even more students,” Case Western Reserve President Eric W. Kaler said. “Case Western Reserve is honored to welcome a second Posse cohort to our campus starting next fall.”
Case Western Reserve is one of 11 participating institutions; the group also includes Purdue and the University of Virginia.
“We are thrilled to expand our relationship with Case Western Reserve,” Posse founder and President Deborah Bial said. “CWRU really has been a great partner. The CWRU Posse Scholars are benefitting from an outstanding education, and the institution is deeply committed to increasing opportunity for students and to building an inclusive community. We look forward to the next chapter of this collaboration.”
Through the new model, Posse is recruiting students from 11 cities not previously part of the foundation’s programs—including Cleveland. The cohorts themselves will include students from multiple cities who, once selected, will conduct most of their preparatory sessions online before an in-person retreat experience taking place prior to their arrivals at their respective campuses.
“This is a tremendous opportunity for students, and for us,” Vice President for Enrollment Management Rick Bischoff said. “The leadership the scholars bring and the engagement they have with the university has an immense impact on our campus, and we’ve seen that first-hand from our previous Posse Scholars.”