Student Sponsor Partners (SSP), founded in 1986 by NYC investment banker Peter Flanigan,
provides at-risk NYC high school students a quality, non-public high school education, through the financial support and one-to-one guidance of a four-year Sponsor/mentor.
In addition to paying a significant portion of students’ tuition, Sponsors provide their students with academic guidance throughout their four years of high school. Sponsors and students are expected to see each other between four and six times each year, and communicate by phone or email at least once a month.
When Flanigan began the program in 1986, he recruited friends and colleagues to fund the education of 45 students at Cardinal Hayes and Cathedral High School. In addition, those sponsors provided the initial 45 students with one-on-one mentorship and academic support. Since then, 1350 students, 1600 Sponsors, and 26 Partner Schools across NYC are part of SSP.
SSP has continued successfully over the years because our model works. The graduation rate among the Class of 2009 was 90%, and 95% of graduates went on to college. And the SSP experience has an impact on many students’ lives long after they graduate from high school: independent research indicates that SSP alumni earn college degrees at a rate of five to six times that of their low-income peers nationwide.
The application deadline is December 15, 2009. Applications postmarked after this date will not be considered.
As of 11/15/09, here are the participating partner schools:
High Schools for Girls
- Academy of Mount St. Ursula, Bronx
- Aquinas High School, Bronx
- Bishop Kearney High School, Brooklyn
- Cathedral High School, Manhattan
- Mother Cabrini High School, Manhattan
- Preston High School, Bronx
- St. Catharine Academy, Bronx
- St. Jean Baptiste High School, Manhattan
- St. Joseph High School, Brooklyn
- St. Pius V High School, Bronx
- St. Raymond Academy, Bronx
- The Mary Louis Academy, Queens
High Schools for Boys
- All Hallows High School, Bronx
- Cardinal Hayes High School, Bronx
- Holy Cross High School, Queens
- La Salle Academy, Manhattan
- Mount St. Michael Academy, Bronx
- Rice High School, Manhattan
- St. Agnes Boys High School, Manhattan
- St. Raymond High School for Boys, Bronx
Co-ed High Schools
- Bishop Ford Central Catholic High School, Brooklyn
- Bishop Loughlin Memorial High School, Brooklyn
- Martin Luther High School, Queens
- Monsignor Scanlan High School, Bronx
Among the frequently asked questions about this organization, particularly given the list of partner schools, “Is SSP a Catholic organization?”
No. Each of our Partner Schools has a long history of successfully educating vulnerable inner-city youths in a disciplined and nurturing school community. Although most of them are Catholic schools, SSP is not a religious organization, and students are not asked about their religious affiliations. Our Partner Schools simply provide the best education available to our students at the most affordable cost.
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