Rainier Scholars - where hope and hard work meet access and opportunity

Our Mission

Rainier Scholars cultivates students’ academic and leadership potential through rigorous, transformative opportunities that increase college graduation rates and empower new generations of leaders.

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Vision

We envision a just and inclusive society with equitable representation at all levels of leadership and influence.

Who We Serve

We support students most underrepresented on college campuses who have the greatest number of barriers to achieving a college degree.

The majority of our program participants are from families who qualify as low-income and are from households without a four-year college degree.

View our latest annual report.

View our Annual Report

Where we serve scholars.

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History

Inspired by A Hope in the Unseen and modeled after the Prep for Prep program in New York City, Rainier Scholars was founded by Bob Hurlbut in 2000 on the belief that all students deserve an equal opportunity to excel academically and become thriving community and workplace leaders.

Philosophy

We select students who demonstrate curiosity, motivation, and strong family support
We cultivate a growth-mindset.
We celebrate achievement.
We reinforce cultural identity, empower resilience, and encourage personal development.

The Impact of Rainier Scholars

We have seen over 950 lives transformed to date, with approximately 100 new scholars added to our program each year (includes Seattle and Tacoma program sites).

of scholars are on college prep pathways

Includes independent, parochial and boarding schools, as well as public school highly capable/advanced learning opportunities

of High School seniors have been accepted to 4-year colleges and universities

Compared to the national four-year college acceptance rate of 67%

Note: This reflects the average school selectivity rate.rnSource: 2019 State of College Admissions, National Association for College Admissions Counseling

of eligible scholars have graduated or are on track to graduate from 4-year colleges or universities

Compared to the national graduation rate of 65%.

Source: 2020 National Center for Education Statistics