The Need
To introduce urban students to positive and caring adults who can ensure they don’t have to navigate life’s toughest challenges alone.
America’s high school dropout crisis is one of the surest routes into poverty and prison. Sagamore identified Elevate as the #1 solution to not only high school competition but poverty alleviation in our nation’s urban public schools. Therefore, Sagamore helped incubate Elevate Indianapolis and continues as an operating partner.
Elevate Indy’s mission is to build long-term, life-changing relationships with Indianapolis urban youth, equipping them to thrive and contribute to their community. Elevate employs full-time, salaried teacher-mentors, year-round programming, cross-age mentoring, and a long-term relational approach in four areas: accredited classes, mentoring, adventure, and Pathways to Purpose, our college & career planning program. Click the boxes below to learn more.
To introduce urban students to positive and caring adults who can ensure they don’t have to navigate life’s toughest challenges alone.
Education Failure
Family Disintegration
Criminal Activity
Job Market
Read about Elevate's Thriving Youth Scorecard, what long term success looks like, and the Elevate Indy student profile.
Elevate measures student growth using the thriving youth scorecard:
The cost of a student to participate in an Elevate program is around $1,200 per year. Our public schools spend an average of $12,608 per student per year. For this additional investment of $1,200 per student, the graduation rate improves to 90% or higher, which is a significant return on investment.
Poverty Rate
56.5% – 75.7% of our students are below the poverty line.
Gender
55% of our students are Female while 45% are Male.
Race/Ethnicity
Asian/Pacific Islander | 1%
African American | 57%
Caucasian | 10%
Hispanic/Latino | 26%
African | 2%
More Than One Race | 3%
These are the stories of Elevate students, who are contributing to the 90% graduation rate and are changing the Indianapolis community.
On July 23, 2020, I had the opportunity to speak with Aaron Story, the CEO of Elevate Indianapolis. Elevate is an intensive mentoring initiative that serves students in the IPS school district. Aaron discussed his background, how COVID-19 has affected Elevate, and how the organization continually innovates to better serve the needs of their students.