Vanderbilt Expands Partnership to Recruit Five Cohorts Annually
Vanderbilt University is deepening its historic commitment to college access by expanding its partnership with The Posse Foundation to recruit five cohorts of Posse Scholars each year. Beginning in fall 2026, new cohorts from Miami and Atlanta will join existing groups from New York and Houston, increasing Vanderbilt’s annual incoming Posse class to 50 students and supporting a total of 200 Scholars on campus.
Vanderbilt’s trailblazing support for Posse began in 1989, when it became the Foundation’s very first partner. That inaugural class of five New York City public high school students received full-tuition scholarships—an initial investment that helped spark one of the most effective college success and leadership development programs in the country. Since then, nearly 400 Posse Scholars have graduated from Vanderbilt, benefitting from more than $52 million in full-tuition scholarships.
With the addition of Miami and Atlanta, Vanderbilt becomes the only current Posse partner to recruit five distinct regional cohorts annually, and just the second to do so in the Foundation’s 36-year history.
Vanderbilt Posse Scholars are selected based on their academic achievement and leadership promise. In addition to full-tuition scholarships, they receive intensive pre-college training, ongoing faculty mentorship, and a built-in support network that continues throughout their college experience.
“We look forward to welcoming these exceptional young Scholars to the Vanderbilt community, as we believe their rich variety of talents and perspectives will greatly enrich our campus,” said Douglas Christiansen, Vice Provost for University Enrollment and Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid.
Posse Founder and President Deborah Bial emphasized the university’s foundational role in the program’s origin and growth. “Posse would not exist without Vanderbilt,” she said. “In 1989, Chancellor Wyatt took a chance on a then-untested idea, giving Posse the platform it needed to succeed. Today, by recruiting more cohorts than ever before, Vanderbilt continues to transform lives and expand a powerful network of future leaders.”
As the university and the Foundation mark more than three decades of collaboration, the expansion underscores their shared mission: to identify, train, and support diverse groups of promising young people—and to ensure they have the opportunity to thrive at one of the nation’s top institutions.
