Frequently Asked Questions

Hope Chicago is a scholarship-focused non-profit designed to provide students and their parents/guardians with the support they need to graduate from college debt-free. Hope Chicago is differentiated by the following program offerings:

Gap-closing scholarships - Hope Chicago covers tuition, room and board, books, fees and surcharges. Hope Scholars will also receive a laptop and a small annual stipend to cover any other necessities. In case of an emergency or unexpected barriers, scholars can apply for additional funds to help them stay on track.

Two-generation model - Hope provides scholarship assistance and other resources to one parent/guardian of graduating seniors at our Hope partner schools to pursue a postsecondary education pathway.

Open to all students regardless of GPA - Unlike most other scholarship programs, Hope Scholars do not have to have a certain GPA or test score to participate in the program.

Inclusive of more post-secondary paths- Hope Chicago broadly defines postsecondary pathways and these include 4-year colleges and universities, 2-year colleges, vocational programs, and professional certifications.

Wraparound support to get scholars to the finish line - As a part of the Hope Chicago scholarship, students will receive wraparound support, including, but not limited, to academic and financial advising, career exploration assistance, mentoring, tutoring, workshops, and a consistent number of touchpoints from designated support staff associated with the Hope Chicago program at each campus of our in-network institutions.

Research-based program model - Hope Chicago’s program design was informed by the success of many promise programs across the country and decades of research on improving college access and persistence. Hope will work with third-party researchers to evaluate the efficacy of its model and the long-term outcomes of sending families to college debt-free.

Hope Chicago focuses our work on communities in Chicago where increased post-secondary success would have significant positive impacts. After determining which areas would benefit most from our program, we target high schools that serve students from those communities.

Any student that meets the following criteria is guaranteed to be a Hope Scholar:

Participants are only required to have the desire to pursue their post-secondary goals. Eligibility is not dependent on GPA or test scores.

Hope Chicago is open to all students who graduate from one of our partner high schools after having attended 11th and 12th grade at the school.

Admitted to and enrolling full-time in a 2-year and 4-year nonprofit college or university during the first fall after high school graduation where Hope Chicago has an established Memorandum of Understanding. Students may also be eligible to pursue technical degrees/ certifications as their post-secondary option, based on evidence-based program quality.

All students will be eligible for post-secondary counseling and support services. One parent/guardian from a student’s family qualifies to participate in the Hope Chicago program. Parents can enroll in a 2-year or 4-year nonprofit college or an industry training or certification program. Students will be encouraged to attend quality programs and in-network institutions where Hope Chicago has established a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU).

Yes. Currently, Hope Chicago is only open to Chicago Public School students in one of our five Hope Chicago partner high schools.

Students and their families at Hope Chicago’s partner high schools can learn more by visiting www.hopechicago.org and by talking to their school counselor. While we anticipate further growth of our program, currently, students at other CPS schools are not yet eligible to participate.

Students who meet the Hope Chicago eligibility requirements listed above, including current 9th-12th grade enrolled at a partner high school, will receive information about the process to enroll in the program in Spring 2022. Otherwise, Hope Chicago’s scholarship is not open to applications.

Hope Chicago will partner with five Chicago public high schools to launch its first high school cohort.

Those schools include:

Benito Juárez Community Academy (Pilsen)

Farragut Career Academy (Little Village)

Noble - Johnson College Prep (Englewood)

Al Raby School for Community and Environment (Garfield Park)

Morgan Park High School (Morgan Park)

To reach our ambitious goals, Hope Chicago plans to add more partner high schools to the program each year, prioritizing communities where postsecondary success can make the most impact. While the scale of Hope Chicago’s program will be dependent on the amount of funds raised, our vision is for every student across Chicago to have access to the postsecondary opportunity and support that is right for them.

Hope Chicago covers the full cost of attending college after any grants or scholarships a student receives. This is called a “gap-closing” scholarship and covers tuition, room and board, books, fees and surcharges. Hope Scholars will also receive a laptop and a small annual stipend to cover any other necessities. In case of an emergency or unexpected barriers, scholars can apply for additional funds to help them stay on track.

Students are eligible to receive a “gap-closing” scholarship to pay for the cost of tuition, room and board, books and fees at any of our in-network higher education options, including Illinois public 4-year colleges and the 2-year City Colleges of Chicago, some private colleges, as well as vocational/professional schools. Each partner institution will provide a designated campus support person who will share responsibility for ensuring all Hope Scholars are accessing on-campus services and making satisfactory progress towards degree completion. In the future, Hope will continue to expand the number of university partners across the country.

Scholars will receive support for up to 4 years, with any additional support dependent on circumstances.

You can make an online donation at hopechicago.org/donate. To make a gift of stock or an ACH or wire transfer, please email givehope@hopechicago.org

All donations are tax-deductible and will go to provide direct scholarships and wraparound support for Hope Scholars.