Notre Dame High School of Lawrence, Inc.

Established in 2004, Notre Dame High School, Inc. (NDHS) is a nonprofit organization serving economically challenged youth in grades 9-12. Located in Lawrence, Massachusetts, our mission is to provide a family-centered secondary education in the tradition of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur that equips these youth with the knowledge and training needed to pursue a college education and quality employment. NDHS replicates a national work-study model, Hire4Ed, first introduced by the Cristo Rey Network of schools in Chicago. Through this model students participate in a full-time work-study program where local corporations sponsor their employment helping them to both gain real-world job experience as well as earn a portion of their annual tuition. In addition, this educational model focuses on capping enrollment at 300-400 students allowing for a personalized learning environment which has proven critical to helping inner-city youth receive the attention and support they need to succeed in high school and prepare for college. Recent statistics cite that over a 40 year work life, an individual with a bachelor's degree will earn approximately $1.1 million more than a high school dropout. In the city of Lawrence, only 5.8 percent of residents aged 25 years and over have obtained a bachelor's degree and 20 percent of the population has less than a 9th grade education. The highest percentage of dropouts in our community continues to be Latino youth. In 2007, 69 percent of incoming 9th graders to NDHS reported that they would be the first in their family to attend college. NDHS exists to help students and their families break the cycle of poverty by providing them with a college preparatory secondary education coupled with high quality job training and support.