Building a Generation of College Graduates and

Transforming Our Community

Happy Holidays!

VIEW EVENT PHOTOS ON FLICKR!

Warmest wishes for a happy and healthy holiday season

and a joyous New Year!

MAKE YOUR SPECIAL YEAR-END GIFT BY DONATING TODAY!

In 2024, Waterbury Promise celebrated key moments—special firsts for the program!

Scholar Ambassadors Showcase the

Power in Our Promise!

With the help of WORX, our branding, digital and marketing partner, our scholar ambassadors are sharing their stories about the program’s extraordinary—and very personal—impact. Hear from Jocelin Quituizaca and Victor Figueroa, a.k.a. Mr. Figgy, about how Waterbury Promise has supported their higher education journeys and is opening doors for career success.

Jocelin Quituizaca

Major, Accounting

CCSU, Class of 2026

CT State Naugatuck Valley Graduate 2024

Victor Figueroa

Major, Elementary Education-Mathematics

CCSU, Class of 2026

Welcome Aboard, Luisa!

Our small but mighty team is even stronger now thanks to the addition of Luisa Florez, our fabulous new College Success Coach! Luisa hit the ground running in August and has done a great job connecting with our freshmen scholars. Through in-person and virtual one-on-one sessions as well as group meetings, she has already proven to be an incredible resource to help our newbies navigate campus, answer important questions, locate support services and ensure scholars remain on track to persist and graduate. Luisa and Noelia Alicea work hard every day to support our scholars' success as part of our Reaching Forward team. We couldn't do this important work without them!

Partnership News

Expanded Community Invests in a Brighter Future for Waterbury Promise Scholars

We are thrilled to announce that EIGHT new partners have joined the Waterbury Promise family in recent months, expanding our village of support to ensure the program’s sustainability as we grow to more than 800 scholars and phase up our scholarship awards to $5,000 per scholar/year by this summer. The Promise Team and our Board of Directors are immensely grateful to CarMax, the CLA Foundation, the Liberty Bank Foundation, the Petit Family Foundation, Shangri-La CT, Synagro Technologies, Inc., United Way of Greater Waterbury and Western Connecticut State University (WCSU) for believing deeply and passionately in our mission and committing to support the many facets of our comprehensive college success program. WCSU joins UConn, ECSU, Post University, SCSU and the University of New Haven as an educational partner (read the press release here) and WP staff is working with Quinnipiac University leadership to finalize an MOU for the 2025-2026 year.

Here's to working together to make 2025 another spectacular year of impact and community!

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PARTNER WITH US

Contact Hedy Ayers, Director of Development and Community Engagement for more information at hedy.ayers@waterburypromise.org.

Thank You to Our Founding Champions, Community Partners, Partnering Colleges & Universities and Donors!

Founding Champions

Community Partners

Partner Colleges and Universities

Thank you to our major and individual donors! Your generosity is changing the lives of Waterbury students every day!

THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR SUPPORT!

Established in late 2021 in collaboration with the City of Waterbury and Waterbury Public Schools, Waterbury Promise is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization dedicated to building a generation of college graduates in Waterbury. Our mission is to increase college aspirations, reduce financial barriers and inspire every student toward post-secondary education and completion. The program’s comprehensive college success model provides a generous last-dollar scholarship as well as critical support services to help talented Waterbury students get to college, thrive there, persist through graduation and be career ready to help create a robust and diverse talent pipeline for the local economy.

Visit us at www.waterburypromise.org