CARA ensures that first-generation college students, low-income students, and students of color have the knowledge and support necessary to enroll in and persist through postsecondary education.
While public school students need opportunities to learn about college and career pathways, most public high schools and institutions of higher education are not structured to provide this assistance. CARA’s programs and policy research address these inequities by putting young people at the forefront of this work. We partner with high schools, community-based organizations, and higher education institutions to transform access and success guidance from an ‘enrichment for some’ to an ‘entitlement for all’.
We do this through two primary focus areas:
- Institutional Capacity Building: We build the capacity of high schools, colleges, school districts, and nonprofit partners through both our whole school and peer-to-peer models.
- Original Research & Policy: We conduct original research on post-secondary access & success, with a focus on policies for institutional change and peer-to-peer advising.
Who We Serve
What We Do
College Inquiry, CARA’s whole school model, works intensively with schools for 3-4 years, helping them to build their college-going infrastructure and culture.
Learn MoreCollege Inquiry embeds post-secondary exploration in students’ regularly scheduled day throughout their high school years. It provides:
- Targeted staff coaching and professional development on the post-secondary landscape and stumbling blocks for first-generation college students
- Support for college office best practices
- Sequenced 9th-12th grade field-tested curriculum for post-secondary exploration
CARA’s peer-led college access and persistence programs help first-generation college students define and realize their post-secondary aspirations with support from their peers, from application through persistence.
Learn MorePeer Leaders are carefully selected and rigorously trained high school and college students who work within their own schools and communities. They work along various points in the post-secondary access and persistence process, providing one-on-one counseling and group support to help their peers matriculate into and persist through higher education. CARA’s Peer-to-Peer model offers: 70+ hours of peer training; professional development to Peer Leader supervisors; and model development support to leadership.
CARA’s Peer-to-Peer programs include:
- Right to College: Trains and positions high school students to support their peers through the post-secondary planning process.
- College Bridge: Trains and positions college students to work in their alumni high schools assisting seniors’ application and matriculation process.
- College Allies: Trains and positions college students to support their peers in college through the obstacles to persistence.
CARA conducts research on issues of college access and success and disseminates its findings in a range of formats to inform practitioners, policy makers and the research community.
Learn MoreThrough collaborations with school districts, university systems, policy groups, and community-based organizations across NYC, CARA leverages its best practices and scales its program models across a range of cities and states.
CARA’s Peer Leaders and interns are at the heart of our work—they reflect the experiences of the students we serve in public high schools and colleges across NYC, including CUNY, as well as in partner institutions beyond the city. Their experiences show the power of peer support—how it shapes their leadership, career paths, and communities.
What We Are Committed to
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Strive for Equity & Justice
We approach both programming and research as tools to achieve greater equity and social justice.
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Research < — > Action
We undertake research to inform our practice, and leverage practice to inform research and policy, in all of our work.
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Build Institutional Capacity
We recognize the complex culture of schools and organizations and tailor our work accordingly in order to create lasting institutional change.
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Empower Youth
We train and position young people to be a powerful force in their schools and communities, and in the wider world.
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Serve All Students, Explore All Pathways
We help schools to support all students in making informed post-secondary plans and to understand the entire range of options for life after high school.