Access and Success For All
The University of Toronto Enrichment Academy is an ambitious new initiative to directly engage historically underrepresented students with pathways to accessing — and succeeding in — post-secondary education. The Enrichment Academy comes out of the need to address access to the University’s direct-entry undergraduate programs through a strategic enrolment management lens.
The Enrichment Academy is designed for first-generation university-bound students and those with a low socio-economic status, with a focus on Black and Indigenous students. The Academy will target students in as early as grade 9, who are in good academic standing, but are in need of further encouragement and enrichment to remain on a university-bound trajectory. Partnerships are being developed with community organizations and school boards in the Greater Toronto Area to identify students who would benefit from the Enrichment Academy.
Information Nights
The Enrichment Academy is launching its second cohort this July! If you think the program may be a good fit for your student, join us at an upcoming Virtual Parent/Guardian Information Night to learn more about what the Academy has to offer. There are spaces in the program for current Grade 8 and Grade 9 students. Our April 2024 Parent Information Nights have now concluded. Registration links for additional May 2024 sessions will be posted here as more dates are announced.
Why We Need an Enrichment Academy
Research supports the need for earlier academic and co-curricular interventions, engagement and exposure to post-secondary planning for historically underrepresented students.
Programs of study (or “streams”), absenteeism, special education needs status, and suspension rates can all influence whether a student is accepted and graduates from the University. Not only this, but how well a student does in the first year of secondary school, such as the amount of credits they accumulate and their achievement in compulsory subjects, also has an impact on their entry to the University of Toronto.
How the Enrichment Academy Will Work
The University of Toronto Enrichment Academy will be a flagship multi-year scholars enrolment program that will serve historically underrepresented students in the Greater Toronto Area with accessing the University of Toronto’s direct entry undergraduate programs. Through the Academy, high school students will engage with Program Fellows, take part in learning workshops, access tutoring and academic tracking, and participate in inclusive programming and group mentorships. These opportunities are strategically designed to increase the likelihood that a student will access, and succeed, in post-secondary education.
Contact Us
If you are interested in participating in the Enrichment Academy, or have questions about the programming, please connect with Jeff Scholl at future.access@utoronto.ca.
