The Foundation's assistance to young men and women since 1962 has enabled many of them to make contributions to American society in a variety of fields – engineering, nursing, teaching, architecture – giving substance to Mrs. Harcourt's belief that success is within the grasp of motivated young people, despite financial circumstance.
The concept, which endures to this day, is simply this: help candidates from poor backgrounds and from underserved high schools go to college.
The Alfred Harcourt Foundation prides itself on the close attention we pay to our students.
Every scholar receives an individual interview with our President, who follows their progress throughout his or her tenure in college. The Foundation strives to single out students who, via their Foundation application, show a certain spark or edge. The Foundation student is someone who, given a chance, can make great strides and achieve.
In our view, institutions of higher education shortchange struggling students from underserved backgrounds by allowing them to keep accreting more and more debt, which never really helps him or her get on track to graduation. Our American higher education system is not designed to intervene with students who are at risk. The Harcourt Foundation does intervene, offering help and guidance, additional tutoring and mentoring, with the understanding the funding stops if progress isn't being made.
