WESTFIELD and PASSAIC, NEW JERSEY – May 6, 2025

The New Jersey non-profit organization, More Than Bootstraps (MTB), celebrates the achievement of Guadalupe Mariano Jimenez on being named a QuestBridge College Prep Scholar. Guadalupe is currently a high school junior at Passaic Academy for Science and Engineering (PASE).

The College Prep Scholars Program is a highly competitive program that equips high-achieving high school juniors from low-income backgrounds with the knowledge, confidence, and resources to apply to top colleges. Guadalupe will also have a significant advantage in her application for a scholarship through the QuestBridge National College Match.

Guadalupe offered this advice to her peers: “Never stop yourself from taking a chance. Having people around you who can provide support and believing in yourself to take a chance is the best way to open new possibilities.”

Audrey Fisch, founder and president of More Than Bootstraps, applauded Guadalupe’s success as well as her recognition of the importance of surrounding yourself with people who can provide support. “Guadalupe’s success in this endeavor is due to her hard work and academic accomplishments. Kudos go as well to Guadalupe’s MTB College Student Leader, Nelsie Abreu, who mentored Guadalupe through the application process.

Guadalupe is MTB’s second QuestBridge College Prep Scholar. Last year’s MTB QuestBridge finalists, Jailene Cabrera and Ashley Arriaga, are now completing their first year at Seton Hall University and Cornell University, respectively. High school senior Kelmys Gil-Alvarez, named a QuestBridge Finalist in 2024, will attend Duke University in the fall.

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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. 

Questbridge is a nonprofit organization based in Palo Alto, California, that connects talented low-income students with educational opportunities at leading colleges and universities across the United States. Through its various programs and initiatives, Questbridge aims to break down barriers to higher education and empower students from low-income backgrounds to achieve their academic and professional goals.

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