Case Western Reserve University announced today that it has partnered with QuestBridge, a national nonprofit organization dedicated to providing promising low-income students the opportunity to attend selective U.S. colleges and universities.
“Case Western Reserve is honored to work with QuestBridge to bring more promising students with limited financial resources to our campus,” President Eric W. Kaler said. “The mission of QuestBridge matches our own commitment to ensure that affordability does not keep smart, talented students from enrolling in leading research universities like ours.”
With roots dating back more than three decades, QuestBridge today collaborates with 48 higher education institutions, among them Columbia, Dartmouth, Duke and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Each year the organization manages an extensive application and selection process where student finalists get the chance to “match” with a member college or university—and receive a full, four-year scholarship.
“Case Western Reserve’s commitment to making higher education more accessible and supporting students from low-income backgrounds resonates deeply with us,” said Ana McCullough, QuestBridge CEO and co-founder. “We are eager for our QuestBridge Scholars to take part in the vibrant community at Case Western Reserve.”
The QuestBridge announcement comes just four months after Case Western Reserve expanded its engagement with The Posse Foundation, which brings students from diverse backgrounds to college campuses in groups designed to provide one another support and encouragement.
The university joined Posse in 2017, welcoming its first cohort of students from New Orleans that fall. This fall’s additional component will include a second cohort, with participants drawn from cities around the country through a virtual process. Posse students also receive full, four-year tuition scholarships from the university.
In 2019, Case Western Reserve joined the Say Yes National Higher Education Compact, in which the university committed that accepted Say Yes Cleveland students would be able to attend CWRU tuition-free. The university also provides tuition-free opportunities to accepted students from East Cleveland.
“Diversity and inclusion have long been core values at Case Western Reserve,” said Vice President for Enrollment Management Rick Bischoff. “Programs like these help us attract and enroll outstanding students who might not otherwise apply because of concerns about cost. We deeply appreciate all of our partners in these efforts—and are thrilled that we can now count QuestBridge among them.”