Saint Peter’s University and Yonkers Partners in Education (YPIE), a nonprofit that prepares students for college and career success, recently celebrated the 1-year anniversary of their partnership in support of Jersey City students pursuing higher education. This has opened significant opportunities for Jersey City high school students, helping guide them through their journey to and through college and into meaningful careers, putting them on the path to economic mobility. To reinforce the commitment of the partnership, Dr. WeiDong Zhu, Interim Vice President for Academic Affairs at Saint Peter’s sits on the YPIE Jersey City Advisory Board.
Through the partnership, YPIE Jersey City students are able to have dedicated enrollment and scholarship opportunities and be part of the Saint Peter’s University community. YPIE’s College Zone is located on the SPU campus and student scholars attend programming on campus after school each day. As part of this mutually beneficial relationship, current Saint Peter’s undergraduates are provided educational leadership opportunities as peer mentors and tutors for YPIE Jersey City students.
“Being at Saint Peter’s has provided tremendous opportunities for our YPIE students,” said Senior Director Catherine Buck. “They’ve gotten to get a real taste of what it’s like to be at a college, including sitting in on classes and staying overnight last summer. We’re excited to continue developing partnerships across the campus community and to become a bridge for JCPS students and their future opportunities.”
In conjunction with the anniversary of this strategic partnership, YPIE Jersey City inducted its third (and largest) group of students into the organization on Wednesday, December 10, with a ceremony in the Roy Irving Theater. As part of this induction, 45 freshmen and sophomores from three Jersey City public high schools formally joined the YPIE Jersey City’s Scholars program, part of a class of 67 new YPIE Scholars joining the program this year. This year marked the first time in which James J. Ferris High School students were represented in addition to Abraham Lincoln and William L. Dickinson High Schools.
Any SPU students, faculty, or alumni who are interested in connecting with YPIE Jersey City should reach out to jerseycity@ypie.org and can also read more at the YPIE website.