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Welcome to Gateway to Higher Education at CCNY!

Here you can learn about our program’s history, our mission, our teachers, and meet the talented individuals who make this program possible.

Our History

The Gateway to Higher Education Program began in Fall 1986 with 100 ninth graders enrolling at four New York City public high schools. Today we serve over 1,700 students across five boroughs, and both Gateway and our alumni have received local and national recognition. Although we have grown over the past three decades, we have chosen to limit that growth and focus instead on a cohesive cohort with defined objectives.

Over the years, this approach has allowed us to build strong relationships for our schools by collaborating and partnering with organizations and institutions across the city and state. In turn, we have been able to introduce our students to exclusive medical rotations, pipelines, internships, and volunteer positions. The impact of Gateway on student achievement has been measured and is incontrovertible.

Gateway functions as part of the larger high school, offering enriched instruction in science subjects (living environment, chemistry, AP biology, and physics), mathematics, English, and social studies. Gateway provides a broad spectrum of students—drawn evenly from the 50th to the 99th percentile—with a carefully planned and coordinated program that combines rigorous academic standards with support and enrichment.

A team of teachers selected from the high school faculty teaches the Gateway classes, and each high school has a Gateway coordinator, assisted by a counselor, who works closely with the teacher team. The coordinator and counselor are responsible for administering the Gateway program under the guidance and supervision of the high school principal and the Gateway central staff.

We believe strongly that the program can be adapted to other settings where there is concern about equalizing opportunities for higher education, particularly at the graduate and professional school level. Through Gateway-type organizations, inner-city students from underrepresented minority groups are given a demanding curriculum with extensive support. As a result, students raise their educational aspirations and acquire the skills and experiences needed to compete successfully for places at competitive colleges such as the California Institute of Technology, Spelman College, Harvard University, Johns Hopkins University, Cooper Union, Columbia University, Yale University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University, Clark Atlanta University, Bard College, Vassar College, and many more.

The Gateway to Higher Education Program is a joint effort of CUNY, the New York City Board of Education, and the individual schools involved (principals, counselors, and teachers), as well as a number of funders and all others who have contributed time, energy, and resources to our endeavor.

Our Mission and Vision

The mission of Gateway to Higher Education, located at the City College of New York, is to prepare economically disadvantaged and underrepresented minority high-school students for college. Gateway is an honors program that focuses on developing a strong pre-collegiate educational foundation and ensuring that students from across the five boroughs are equipped with the skills and access they need to achieve high-level professional careers, especially in medicine, engineering, and science. Gateway’s long-term goal is to increase access to and representation of minority students in STEM careers.

The program was established in 1986 to test the hypothesis that if you recruit a group of underrepresented minority students who perform at an average level on standard reading and mathematics tests and provide them with the following supports, then these students can achieve outstanding results in high school and develop the academic records, standardized test scores, and confidence necessary to become attractive candidates for competitive internships, pipelines, programs, and colleges.

A rigorous and research-based academic curriculum
Well-trained and invested teachers
Access to challenging books, supplies, and scientific equipment
Academic support during the school year
Opportunities for competitive summer internships and placements
Exposure to the world beyond their immediate neighborhoods

Gateway’s methodology is to provide schools with additional funding for pedagogical and supplemental materials that focus on developing advanced study techniques, critical thinking, and enhanced laboratory exercises. In addition, opportunities for teacher training, student tutoring, and extracurricular programs are identified and cultivated by the Gateway staff to support both students and faculty.

This methodology and focused attention have ensured the program’s success over the past three decades.