WESTFIELD and PASSAIC, NEW JERSEY – October 14, 2025

More Than Bootstraps (MTB), a New Jersey non-profit organization, has been awarded a grant from the Johnson Scholarship Foundation (JSF) that will provide $157,500 over three years to support its college access and success work in New Jersey. MTB was selected because its mission aligns with JSF’s mission to help people prepare for and obtain a college degree. The Foundation provides grants for scholarships and other support to nonprofit organizations that serve students with disabilities, students Indigenous to Canada and the United States, and students from low-income families. 

MTB President Audrey Fisch and Former Program Resource Fellow and College Student Leader Melissa Reyes traveled to Alaska to present to the JSF Grant Program Committee

Now in its sixth year of programming, MTB employs a near-peer mentoring approach to address the challenges first-generation, low-income students face in accessing and succeeding in higher education. Working with underrepresented students in Passaic, NJ, the organization matches high school students with near-peer mentors – graduates of the Passaic Public Schools currently enrolled in institutions from Princeton University to Passaic County Community College. Led by their college student mentors, MTB High School Fellows follow a curriculum that focuses on education about higher education and financial aid, communication with families, holistic student development, and the promotion of student well-being and agency.

“The Johnson Scholarship Foundation is grateful to support students through our partnership with More than Bootstraps,” said Bobby Krause, CEO. “MTB’s near-peer model and wraparound student services are equipping today’s students to be tomorrow’s leaders.”

Grants and donations to More Than Bootstraps fund the monthly stipends that allow the high school and college students in the program some time and space to devote to their professional development and college-going activities while still meeting their financial responsibilities.

“We are thrilled to be recognized by and entering into a new partnership with the Johnson Scholarship Foundation,” said Audrey Fisch, president of More Than Bootstraps. “Our college students empower their younger peers while solidifying their own college-going success. Support for underrepresented students has never been more important, and this award from JSF enables us to sustain and grow our innovative approach.”

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Grants and donations to More Than Bootstraps fund the monthly stipends that allow the high school and college students in the program some time and space to devote to their professional development and college-going activities while still meeting their financial responsibilities. Interested donors are invited to visit the MTB website: www.morethanbootstraps.org/donate.

More Than Bootstraps is a nonprofit created by educators seeking to level the playing field and remove some of the substantial barriers that first-generation college students encounter in accessing and succeeding in higher education. More Than Bootstraps employs a near-peer mentoring model to create a community of success. College students from the community return to guide their younger peers in the community through the college search, application, and assimilation process. These leaders, working as a mentoring cohort, in turn strengthen their own college-going identities and improve their own chances of success in higher education.

Students are selected based on their desire to attend college and their commitment to the program rather than grade point average or test scores. All students in the MTB program receive stipends, laptop computers, and access to emergency resources to help them with the many non-tuition expenses of higher education. 

About the JOHNSON SCHOLARSHIP FOUNDATION

The Johnson Scholarship Foundation (JSF) is an independent nonprofit foundation based in West Palm Beach, Florida. With a mission to help people prepare for and obtain a college degree, the Foundation serves three key communities: students with disabilities, students Indigenous to Canada and the United States, and economically disadvantaged students.

Former UPS Vice President of Human Resources Theodore R. Johnson and his wife, Vivian Chesley Macleod Johnson, placed great faith in education as a means to help people improve their lives. Since 1991, the Foundation has partnered with higher education institutions, nonprofits, and other organizations to create scholarship programs or other initiatives that support deserving students. To learn more, visit jsf.bz.

More Than Bootstraps is a 501(c)3 organization, Tax ID 83-2245008.

Media Contact:

Audrey Fisch, Ph.D.

President, More Than Bootstraps

(908) 397-0893

audrey@morethanbootstraps.org