City Council Presentation
May 2025
INTRO & BACKGROUND
“Richmond Promise made my journey
much easier. Their welcoming and
supportive environment always made me
feel like I had a place to turn to for
guidance and assistance. Whether it was
help with scholarship applications, career
advice, or simply a listening ear, Richmond
Promise was there for me every step of the
way. ”
- Nora, UC Berkeley graduate (pictured
middle)
Caption: Then-Dallas Mavericks CEO and Richmond
Native Cynt Marshall (right) posing with RP Scholar
Nora and Executive Director Chris Whitmore at UC
Berkeley’s Commencement in 2024.
Making a promise for Richmond
● Launched in 2016
● City of Richmond founder and anchor funder
○ $35 million in ECIA funding allocated to Richmond
Promise over 9 years (funding ended in 2024)
Mission: Richmond Promise aims to ensure all students in Richmond excel to and through higher education, reach their career goals, and become leaders in the Richmond community.
INTRO & BACKGROUND
PILLARS OF SUPPORT & IMPACT
COLLEGE AWARENESS AND ACCESS | SCHOLARSHIP | SCHOLAR SUCCESS | CAREER SERVICES “I believe a lot of people only know Richmond
Promise for its scholarship but Richmond
Promise does more than provide financial aid.
From Near-Peer Ambassadors and Career Hubs
to internships and mentoring, RP has many
resources to support students. ”
- Esther, Scholar at UC Davis
Since 2016, Richmond Promise staff have hosted or
participated in nearly 130 school site visits or workshops on average per year to help students learn about and prepare for higher education.
COLLEGE AWARENESS AND ACCESS
“Richmond Promise has been an excellent partner for me at Kennedy to promote new pathways for our students to follow once they graduate. ” - Mr. Pollock, Kennedy High School
74% of 10th and 11th grade students in Mr. Kamphefner’s Kennedy High School class found Richmond Promise’s in-class workshops helpful. 70% of students said they learned about resources and people who can help them prepare for life after high school. *
*Exit survey results from 2023 - 2024 academic year
Richmond Promise Scholarship – $1,500 per year for up
to 6 years of their undergraduate education
Eligibility Requirements:
● Be a resident of the City of Richmond or unincorporated North Richmond ● Graduate or have graduated from an eligible high school within the WCCUSD boundary area or received a GED/high school equivalency ● Graduate in an eligible year
● Have attended an eligible high school at least 9th-12th grade consecutively
● Be under the age of 24
● Complete the FAFSA/Dream Act Application
● Submit a Richmond Promise Scholarship application by the application deadline
THE SCHOLARSHIP
SCHOLAR SNAPSHOT
“I grew up feeling like I shouldn’t be attending a well respected university, but I am, and I have Richmond
Promise to thank for their aid and belief in me. ”
- Olinda (pictured left)
● 4,200+ Scholars awarded since 2016
● 1,300 Scholars served on average per year
● 91% of Scholars identify as people of color
○ 65% of Scholars identify as Latino/a/x
○ 14% of Scholars identify as Black/African American
○ 12% of Scholars identify as Asian
● 70% of Scholars come from low income households
● 64% of Scholars are first-generation college students
Richmond Promise Scholars have attended more than 220
colleges and universities around the country. 70% of Scholars attend four-year institutions.
T op Colleges by Concentration of Scholars:
1. Contra Costa College - 19%
2. San Francisco State - 12%
3. UC Berkeley - 11%
4. UC Davis - 8%
5. Sacramento State - 4%
TOP COLLEGES & UNIVERSITIES
● Summer workshops for 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th year Scholars ● MOU partnerships with colleges and universities
● Personalized, one-on-one coaching
● Scholar Advisory Board
● Emergency basic needs fund
● Laptop and printer distribution
● Mentor Program
● Student employment opportunities
○ More than 240 student employees hired since 2016
SCHOLAR SUCCESS
Caption: Professional baseball player and former Richmond Promise Scholar Rodney Green during a Cal baseball game in February 2024. ● RP Leads career accelerator
○ New program to better prepare Scholars for
career track employment
● Career Services office hours
● Richmond YouthWorks partnership
● Health Career Connection Partnership
CAREER SERVICES
● Richmond Promise
● City of Richmond
● Contra Costa College
● UC Berkeley
● UCSF Medical Center
● San Jose State University
● Rivet School
● Oakland Promise
WHERE OUR ALUMNI WORK
Caption: Richmond Promise alumna Cali Luke poses while at work at Protiviti, a global consulting firm based in San Francisco. ● Google
● GAP Inc.
● Goldman Sachs
● Morgan Stanley
● Protiviti Global Consulting Firm
● BAL Immigration Law Firm
Since 2016, the City of Richmond and Richmond
Promise have become key college promise leaders
● Recognized at the White House by then-Vice President Joe Biden and Second Lady Jill Biden (2016)
● Hosted PromiseNet – largest promise conference (2019) ● Co-founder of the Northern California College Promise Coalition (2019)
● National League of Cities Postsecondary Community of
Practice designee (2019)
● College Promise National Leadership Council (2023)
RICHMOND AS A COLLEGE PROMISE LEADER
Caption: Former Richmond Promise Executive Director Jessie Stewart posing with then-Vice President Joe Biden and Second Lady Jill Biden at the White House in 2016.
FINANCES & ORGANIZATIONAL MANAGEMENT
“Richmond Promise has been a beacon of
support, alleviating the financial stress that
often accompanies higher education. ”
- Fatoumata, Scholar at USC (pictured right)
FINANCES & ORGANIZATIONAL MGMT.
Expenses since 2016
Total $21,711,479
Scholarships paid out
since 2016
$12,564,097 57.9% of
expenses
Non-scholarship
expenses since 2016
$9,147,382 42% of
expenses
Expenses and revenue overview
Revenue since 2016*
Total $7,740,454**
Fundraising revenue
(in-house) since
2016***
$3,810,197
Investment yield
since 2016
$3,930,257
*Not including ECIA seed funding from the City of Richmond ** T otal revenue covers 84.6% of all non-scholarship expenses *** Does not include in-house fundraising revenue from 2024Source: Richmond Promise audited financial statements
FINANCES & ORGANIZATIONAL MGMT.
Financial and organizational management challenges
● Administering a community-wide scholarship is expensive and difficult to sustain without an anchor funder
○ Scholarship expenses make up approximately half our annual budget ● Foundations and corporations overwhelmingly favor program and general operating funding over scholarship funding
○ The vast majority of revenue through in-house fundraising has supported programs and general operations
ORGANIZATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY
" Access to services like
Richmond Promise is crucial to
parents who are new to the
process of college applications
and higher education
readiness. ” - Martha, parent of a
Scholar
Caption: Then-Dallas Mavericks CEO and Richmond
native Cynt Marshall (right) posing with a Richmond
Promise Scholar and Executive Director Chris Whitmore
at UC Berkeley’s Commencement in 2024.
ORGANIZATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY
Maintaining a thriving promise for Richmond students
● Goal to raise $4 million to $5 million per year to continue operations ○ Seeking support from an anchor funder to continue scholarship funding for students ■ Goal to increase annual scholarship from $1,500 to approximately $2,000 ● Continuing to pursue additional funding sources, including individual, foundation, and local business funding, to sustain non-scholarship expenses
● Further deepen engagement with high school students to better ensure college success ● Richmond Promise Alumni Association
Primary funding sources for college promise programs
Primary Funding
Source
# of College Promise
Programs (U.S.)
% of College Promise
Programs
Public 150 44.6%
Public/Private 55 16.3%
Private 131 38.9%
Total 336* 100%
● Municipalities are among the leading
anchor funders for promise
programs
● 44.6% of college promise programs
with specified funding sources are
almost exclusively funded with
municipal or state dollars
● Of the 92 college promise programs
in California, 64% are publicly
funded
○ This increases to 75% when
including programs that
receive public/private funding
Source: College Promise My Promise T ool (www.collegepromise.org)
ORGANIZATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY
*Only includes college promise programs that have specified their funding sources
ORGANIZATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY
Responding to higher education access barriers at federal level ● Continued municipal investment in college promise programs protects students against ○ Pell Grant funding cuts
○ Federal funding cuts to local institutions like WCCUSD ○ Fear of seeking resources due to individual or family immigration status ○ Federal student loan policies deterring families from higher education College promise programs were created to increase educational equity in local communities. Richmond Promise is proud of the work we’ve done to establish equitable pathways to higher education for Richmond residents and we look forward to continuing and expanding our efforts.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Caption: Richmond Promise alumni Nayeli,
Salwa, and Jasmine pose as new team members
in 2024.
"Being a RP alum now working at
Richmond Promise is truly a full
circle moment. I'm grateful for
the financial support I received
as a scholar, and now I get to give
back by working with Richmond
Promise to support future
college students. "
- Salwa (pictured middle)
STAFF
Christopher Whitmore, Executive
Director
Anjanine Bonet, Chief Operating Officer
Miguel Molina, Director of Programs and
Partnerships
Ben Enos, Director of Communications
Hannah Dworkin, Director of
Development
Dariana Zermeno, Associate Director of
Programs
Leo Visscher, Career Services Manager
Salwa Alkaheli, Executive Assistant
Faith Flores, Operations
Coordinator
Celina Espinoza, College Access
Coordinator
Andrea Ponce Mata, Development
Coordinator
Miriam Bernstein, AmeriCorps
VISTA
Caption: Associate Director of Programs and
Partnerships Dariana Zermeno poses for a photo
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Nicole Barnett, Board Chair, Chief Executive Officer, Planned Parenthood Northern California (Kennedy High School graduate)
Mojdeh Mehdizadeh, Board Treasurer, Chancellor, Contra Costa Community College District
Shasa Curl, City Manager, City of Richmond
Kim Moses, EdD., Interim Superintendent, West Contra Costa Unified School District (Kennedy High School graduate)
Michael Littleton, former Senior Vice President at Gu Energy Labs Ree’shemah Thornton, Dean of Enrollment Services, Merritt College Brian Hubinger, Public Affairs Manager, Richmond Chevron Refinery Jessica Rodriguez, Project Leader, Boston Consulting Group Caption: Richmond native and Richmond Promise Board Chair Nicole Barnett (right) poses with her mother at the 2024 Scholar Celebration.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR LEADERSHIP
“Richmond Promise
means to me that my
community wants me to
succeed, that I can
become somebody with
the help of my town. ”
Caption: Edgar, a Richmond Promise alumnus,
poses for a photo in his SF State graduation cap
and stole in 2024.