Arrupe Jesuit High School

A nonprofit organization

Arrupe Jesuit High School is a Jesuit Catholic college preparatory school that offers students with limited economic resources a premier educational experience through rigorous academics, formation in faith and discernment, and a unique work study program, all of which foster community, opportunity, leadership and personal growth.

The school’s vision is to strengthen the competence, confidence, and aspirations of our students by igniting their spiritual growth and empowering them to achieve their dreams. In turn, this formation leads to greater job security and economic mobility as adults, breaking the cycle of poverty present in our students’ lives.

 Low-income and minority students in the Denver metropolitan area seeking pathways to higher education encounter few options and outlooks are often bleak. According to federal data, just 13% of the low-income population completes a Bachelor’s degree.  Overall, students from the lowest-income families (11%) are seven times less likely to earn a bachelor’s degree by the age of 24 than their peers from the highest-income families (79%) and Latinos 2.5 times less likely than white young adults to have a bachelor’s degree. (Education Trust) According to the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce (CEW), adults with a bachelor’s degree earn an average of $2.8 million during their careers, $1.2 million more than the median for workers with a high school diploma. The Colorado Talent Pipeline Report shows 90.7% of jobs with a living hourly wage that can support a family of three require a credential past high school, while 73% of those require a four-year degree. Colorado’s existing labor force has a credential attainment rate of only 55% while Hispanic Coloradans only have a rate of 25%. 

Addressing barriers to equal opportunity is essential to the health of individuals and communities across the metropolitan area and to building a sustainable economy. Philanthropic investment in Arrupe Jesuit helps to reverse these patterns by providing an affordable college preparatory education to hundreds of students, uncompromising on its founding vision of creating access and opportunity for students living in poverty who are otherwise underserved and often overlooked. 

Mission

Arrupe Jesuit High School is a Catholic, college preparatory school offering students with limited economic resources a premier educational experience through rigorous academics, formation in faith and discernment, and a unique work study program – fostering community, opportunity, leadership, and personal growth.

Background Statement

An effort to advance racial equity and social justice is at the heart of Arrupe Jesuit’s mission. For over twenty years, holistic programming aimed at serving the whole student and reversing historic patterns of marginalization by removing barriers for those experiencing persistent poverty fosters self-sufficient and compassionate young adults who see their own value to our world. At AJHS, students farthest from opportunity graduate high school in four years not only with a diploma and professional work experience, but prepared to think critically to identify and solve problems, grounding their pursuits of higher education and career in their ability to impact change and serve as role models in their communities.

Critical to the school’s commitment to serving historically marginalized students, financial support is granted to every family, ensuring no student is ever turned away based on ability to pay tuition. Delivering on its promise of opening the doors of opportunity, 70% of all graduates have been the first-generation of their families to graduate from high school, and 90% of graduates became first-generation college-bound.

Organization Data

Summary

Organization name

Arrupe Jesuit High School

other names

AJHS

Year Established

2002

Tax id (EIN)

02-0628872

Category

Education, Youth Development, Employment

Organization Size

Large Organization

Address

4343 Utica St
Denver, CO 80212

Service areas

Denver County, CO, US

Other

720-726-3413

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