The Avenue Scholars Foundation, organized in January 2008, provides support for students of talent and need through high school, college and into the workforce. The Foundation is chaired by Omaha philanthropist Walter Scott, and the chief executive officer is Ken Bird, Ph.D.

The Foundation’s college access program, the Avenue Scholars program, selects students at the end of their sophomore year in high school using multiple criteria: financial need, less than a 2.5 grade point average, recommendations from school or a community group and Gallup Hope and Well-being Index score.

Students are served in their respective high schools as juniors and seniors by a full-time talent advisor. These advisors develop an Avenue Scholar Plan for each student, focusing on an academic plan, a career plan and a financial plan. Find out more at the Avenue Scholars Foundation website.

Currently, the program serves approximately 475 students in seven Omaha area high schools, Metropolitan Community College and the University of Nebraska at Omaha.

Contact Deanne Amato, coordinator of student success initiatives, at 402-537-3802 for more information.