FAQs

No. Reach for Excellence is free. The program relies on the support of individual donors, foundations, and other grants.

Reach for Excellence provides breakfast and lunch during the summer program as well as lunch during the Saturday sessions. Scholars are always welcome to bring their own lunch should they prefer to do so.

If a student does not have access to private transportation, the Reach for Excellence staff will work with each family to ensure that their child is able to get to and from the program. Arrangements may include riding MARTA, carpooling, or meeting one of our buses at a designated pickup location. 

Generally speaking, families are responsible for dropping off and picking up their children on Saturdays. 

During the summer Reach session, with each new cohort, the Reach for Excellence leadership coordinates a custom route of pickup locations for Reach buses to accommodate as many families as possible.

Reach for Excellence expects that The program requires a two a half year commitment from students, as well as their parents or guardians. Students are expected to attend 90% of the sessions and maintain As and Bs in their respective middle schools. 

Parents and guardians are expected to attend family meetings, summer registrations, as well as high school options meetings (8th grade). Reach for Excellence also expects parents to work with its staff to explore and evaluate high school options available to their children.

The Reach for Excellence Attendance policy requires that all students attend 90% of classes during both the summer program and Saturday sessions. Applying students and families must decide if they will be willing to choose Reach for Excellence over other activities.

Not necessarily.  Reach for Excellence partners with several independent schools around Atlanta and the US and has a long history of success in placing its students. However, each student is evaluated based upon their grades, activities, test scores including the SSAT, and teacher recommendations to ensure they have the motivation and ability to be successful in an independent school environment. 

Reach for Excellence does not serve as a pipeline to a specific school but rather works with several schools around Atlanta and the US.

Yes. Reach for Excellence has partnerships with several boarding schools all over the US and several Reach scholars have attended boarding schools. Reach for Excellence staff will work with any family who is interested in applying to a boarding school.

Each family will make the decision about which high school to attend after graduating from Reach for Excellence. The role of Reach’s staff is to educate families about the options and walk alongside them in the application process if they are interested in pursuing a private education. Counseling is provided by staff members to assist families in finding the best match for their student. Reach’s staff recommend that students visit several schools and apply to two to three schools.

The role of Reach is to educate and offer support. Reach for Excellence doesn’t require families to apply to private independent schools nor guarantee that students will be accepted if they do apply. About 60% of Reach for Excellence graduates have gone on to independent schools. In the cases where families decide they want to stay in the public school system, Reach for Excellence suggests charter and magnet schools around the area where families live.

No, Reach for Excellence does not provide assistance for tuition, books, supplies, or other expenses. Each year Reach for Excellence students are awarded hundreds of thousands of dollars in financial aid, however families may be asked to pay some part of independent school costs such as uniforms, books, technology costs and lunch. Families should work directly with independent schools on matters of financial assistance.

No. Reach for Excellence was founded by the Society of Mary, the order of priests and brothers who also own Marist School. Reach for Excellence does not offer religious instruction and students of all faiths are welcome. However, students and their families must be comfortable in a Catholic environment.