Our Story

Big Brothers Big Sisters of NYC enhances its mentoring experience for Littles through its Education Initiative. One of the agency’s primary goals include infusing learning into the lives of our Littles. To boost the Education Initiative’s efforts, in the winter of 2014, the Bigs Education Council was created. The Education Council is composed of a diverse group of current and alumni volunteer Bigs. 

What We Do

The Bigs Education Council supports BBBS of NYC’s Education Initiative and other agency education-related efforts through various activities, including recruiting Littles and Bigs for education programming, developing education-related partnerships, supporting with Education Initiative programming and fundraising for scholarships for our Littles.   

Why We Do It

Consider a few stats cited by the BBBS Education Initiative

• 95% of all NYC high school students have college aspirations, yet the four-year college readiness rate for NYC high school students is only 31.4%.

Sounds kind of discouraging, doesn’t it? We all care very much about our Littles. We know they face some socio-economic hurdles when accessing education, but make no mistake—Bigs and BBBS NYC have been major forces in facilitating each Little’s ability to meet those challenges. Consider these far more encouraging stats:

• 97% of eligible Littles graduate from high school.
• 96% of Littles who graduate from high school are accepted into college or vocational school.

That’s pretty remarkable! Results like these highlight why it’s so important for Bigs and the Education Council to help Littles attain scholarships and to continue supporting them on their educational paths.

 

How to Get Involved

The group meets monthly, typically on the 3rd Monday of the month and new members are always welcome. To join the Bigs Education Council or to get more information about upcoming meetings, please email us at bigsed@bigsnyc.org.