Carnegie Foundation Awards Posse $1.5 Million
The Carnegie Foundation has awarded The Posse Foundation a $1.5 million grant to advance its work identifying and supporting exceptional young leaders across the country. The grant, to be distributed over two years, is one of 50 awards totaling $44 million announced in March as part of the Carnegie Foundation’s new initiative to bridge societal divides.
The Carnegie Foundation describes the initiative as aiming to "reduce political polarization through grants spanning program initiatives in education, to promote socioeconomic mobility and civic participation; democracy, to develop policy solutions for legal immigration and uphold voting rights; and international Peace, to advance peace with a focus on movements of people, non-state actors, and managing conflict.”
The award to Posse extends a partnership that spans more than two decades. Since 2004, the Carnegie Foundation has invested more than $550,000 in Posse, fueling the program’s national expansion and deepening its impact.
"We are grateful to the Carnegie Foundation for its generous support over the years," says Posse President and Founder Deborah Bial. “This latest grant will further Posse’s mission to connect brilliant students to great schools and build a powerful network of capable leaders in every field. In this moment when the country feels increasingly divided, Posse Scholars remind us that our diversity is our strength."
Since its founding in 1989, The Posse Foundation has identified, selected and trained more than 15,000 students with extraordinary leadership and academic potential. Its ultimate goal—to develop leaders of great character and ability—aligns closely with the Carnegie Foundation’s commitment to social progress.
"For over three decades, Posse has shown what’s possible when students are given real access and a community that believes in them," says Saskia Levy Thompson, Carnegie’s program director for education. "Carnegie is delighted to support its work expanding access to mobility-engine colleges and improving postsecondary outcomes for first-generation and low-income students."
