Unlocking Potential,Unlocking Futures

When Thierno’s eyeglasses broke in college, he faced the sort of decision that never appears in a course catalog. Replace them, or preserve money his family needed for groceries.

“If the choice is between groceries for your family and glasses, you might choose to just sit a little closer in class and grit your teeth,” says April Rosner, YES Scholars executive director. “But if you still can’t see the board, it’s almost impossible to do well in class – it’s not a real recipe for success.”

Young Eisner Scholars (YES) replaced the glasses.

It was a small act within a much larger commitment. The organization had already spent years investing in Thierno, first meeting him as a promising middle school student, then helping him gain admission to boarding school, supporting him through Caltech, preparing him for internships, and eventually celebrating as Microsoft hired him full time. The glasses weren’t charity. They were another step in ensuring an extraordinary student wasn’t forced off course by an ordinary obstacle. 

That philosophy has guided YES for more than 25 years.

Founded by retired entertainment executive Eric Eisner, YES identifies academically talented sixth graders at partner public middle schools and stays with them through middle school, high school, college, and career launch, removing barriers that can often derail bright futures. 

Rather than concentrating solely on admissions, YES focuses on the journey itself. Students receive weekly math and logic instruction, critical thinking and literacy enrichment, STEM opportunities, individualized academic counseling, mentorship, college advising, career readiness training, and financial aid guidance. As Scholars advance, the support evolves alongside them.

“We talk about it as going deep instead of wide,” Rosner says.

 The organization’s long-term approach has produced remarkable results, including a 100 percent high school graduation rate, 100 percent college acceptance rate, and a 97 percent college graduation rate.

One Generation Helps the Next

YES is not just a finite program – alumni are often invested for life. One alumnus, now a Stanford-trained aerospace engineer, returned to design YES’s STEM curriculum. Today, sixth graders explore coding, robotics, rocketry, and 3D printing years before many of their peers. Even better, high school and college Scholars frequently return to mentor younger students, creating a cycle in which each generation helps prepare the next. 

“We’ve realized over the years how much of a difference a long-term program makes,” Rosner says. “Because we’ve built such strong relationships, we actually do know about the successes of our Scholars in their 30s.”

Part of what makes YES distinctive is the continuous feedback loop, as alumni and families share the barriers they encountered, enabling YES to respond with data-driven practical solutions that set the next generation of Scholars up for success. Sometimes that means college application guidance. Sometimes it means helping students navigate confusing financial aid packages, find housing during school breaks, or securing transportation to internships. Other times, it simply means replacing a broken pair of glasses before a temporary setback cascades into a permanent one.