EMERGE empowers and prepares high-performing students from underserved communities to attend and graduate from selective colleges and universities across the nation. EMERGE is creating a pipeline of future leaders in every industry who aspire to change the world.
EMERGE Alumna Receives Prestigious Fulbright Scholarship
Congratulations to EMERGE alumna Isabel Banda for being selected for a prestigious Fulbright award to teach English in Mexico. Isabel is a 2017 graduate of Heights High School and a 2021 graduate of Brandeis University, where she triple-majored in International and Global Studies, Sociology, and Film.

She is a passionate advocate for education equity and has been active throughout college and beyond as a mentor, teacher, and advocate for first-generation college students. She is currently an AmeriCorps member in Boston and is serving as a middle school success community coordinator with the Steppingstone Foundation. Last year, she served as a higher education summer scholar for The Century Foundation and as an after-school program teaching fellow for Breakthrough Greater Boston.
EMERGE Seniors Heading to 100+ Colleges and Universities This Fall
We are thrilled to announce that EMERGE’s 500+ high school seniors will be matriculating to more than 100 colleges and universities this fall, including seven Ivy League institutions! Our students and their dedicated program managers have worked hard all year to make their dreams a reality, and we are so proud of all they have accomplished.

EMERGE students are headed to campuses large and small in 29 different states, many on scholarships that will cover all of their tuition, room and board, and other expenses. In addition to the Ivies, EMERGE students have committed to attend Amherst, Duke, Johns Hopkins, MIT, Notre Dame, Northwestern, Rice, Swarthmore, Stanford, the University of Chicago, and USC, among many others. Hats off to our program managers and the entire program team for supporting our students along this journey.
New CEO Leads EMERGE in Kicking Off Ambitious Growth Plan
It’s an exciting time at EMERGE as we welcome Dr. Anastasia Lindo Anderson, our first chief executive officer, and prepare to kick off our ambitious strategic growth plan this fall. EMERGE will welcome nearly a dozen new employees this summer to support our expansion plans. During the 2022-2023 academic year, we will concentrate on building a robust infrastructure that will allow us to grow with an ultimate goal of doubling the number of students we serve by 2027. To accomplish this, we are prioritizing six core areas:

  • Scale and Replication: We will expand to serve students in four new Houston-area school districts and one new district in a new region by 2027.
  • Talent and Leadership Development: We will attract and retain top talent by enhancing our competitive compensation and benefits packages and our performance management and professional development systems.
  • Program Model Codification:  We will ensure our program model remains outstanding as we grow by standardizing the scope of our model, documenting all our philosophies, strategies, and frameworks, and continually innovating to meet our students’ changing needs.
  • Financial Sustainability: We will diversify our revenue stream, standardize our earned revenue model and launch a campaign to secure local and national funding.
  • Infrastructure Upgrades: We will upgrade the infrastructure we need to support our growth, identifying and investing in the necessary technology systems, hardware, and tools needed to succeed in a hybrid environment.
  • Brand Elevation: We will elevate our brand to reflect the impact, quality, and sophistication of EMERGE today, including investing in a brand refresh to enhance our brand identity, messaging, and website.

“This is a pivotal moment in time for EMERGE,” Dr. Anderson said. “My goal is to seize the opportunities that lie ahead of us and ignite our passion to drive equity and access for our students.”
Build the Village Luncheon Raises Record $560,000+
We are so grateful for the record-breaking success of our largest fundraiser, our 5th Annual Build the Village Luncheon. Thanks to our dynamic co-chairs, Mia Mends and Anne Chao, and our dedicated village of supporters, we exceeded our fundraising goal of $500,000! This luncheon was filled with so many inspiring and heartfelt moments. We said goodbye to our longtime Executive Director, Trisha Cornwell, as she took the stage for the last time, and heard an inspiring message from one of our incredible students, Ashley J., who will be attending Carnegie Mellon University in the fall. We also had the opportunity to hear from four amazing EMERGE students the night before the luncheon at a reception hosted by Houston philanthropists Dina Alsowayel and Tony Chase. We are in awe of the incredible generosity of everyone who made this year’s luncheon a success. Visit these links to see and hear more from this year's luncheon:

EMERGE CEO Dr. Anastasia Lindo Anderson, former Executive Director
Trisha Cornwell, and board members Denise Smith and Maria Zerr
Wellesley College President Dr. Paula Johnson, our keynote speaker, with luncheon co-chairs Anne Chao and
Mia Mends.
Babson College Becomes 17th Official EMERGE College Partner
This spring, EMERGE signed an official partnership agreement with Babson College, making them our 17th formal university partner. We believe that cultivating formal college partnerships will help drive college persistence and on-time graduation (with minimal to no debt) and will enable EMERGE students to thrive during their college experience and after graduation. Through strategic partnership-building with colleges and universities, we can, together, increase access and affordability for all high-performing students from underserved communities. Schools that enter into a formal agreement with EMERGE commit to:
  • Meet 100% of the demonstrated financial need of EMERGE students all the way through graduation.
  • Collaborate with EMERGE on exposure opportunities, recruitment, admissions, and transition support.
  • Provide comprehensive student persistence support through graduation.
Check Out EMERGE's 2021 College Success Report
Our college success team recently published its 2021 report examining the impact we’ve had on the 1,300+ college students and 650+ alumni we’ve served over the past several years.

The report provides insight into our efforts to support students from the summer they graduate high school all the way until they complete their undergraduate degree. We’re grateful to our college success managers and the rest of the college success team and are continually inspired by their commitment to our students. Click here to read the full report.
EMERGE In The News