When exceedingly high drop-out rates peaked as educational achievements were at an all-time low among Puerto Rican and Latino youth, a group formed with the mission of offering the community opportunities that would promote development, encourage empowerment, educational advancement, and deliverance from poverty. ASPIRA, which means "aspire" in Spanish, is the name of the organization, founded by Dr. Antonia Pantoja and a group of Puerto Rican educators and professionals in 1961.

More than 50 years ago, the national organization launched its noble campaign, and it now services Latino youth in Connecticut, Illinois, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Florida, Puerto Rico, and it is headquartered in Washington DC. ASPIRA has reached over 85,000 students each year in over 400 schools through its ASPIRA clubs. The clubs act as vehicles for developing democratic principles, fostering a climate for caring for others, providing an opportunity for youth to understand self-responsibility, and growing a sense of self-esteem and autonomy.

Leadership training, college counseling, cultural activities, financial aid, scholarship opportunities, career counseling and training, truancy prevention, gang prevention, conflict resolution, parental engagement, academic advisement, exam preparation, HIV prevention, financial education, and educational advocacy, are all made available, to help people improve their lives, so that those individuals will one day give back to their community,

The full-service organization has big aspirations and a big heart, constantly working to make success attainable for those committed to changing the status of Puerto Ricans, Mexicans, Dominicans, Central Americans, South Americans, and Cubans, as well as African Americans, Native Americans, non-Hispanic whites, Haitians, and many others. The population that is serviced by ASPIRA varies, though a majority of the individuals assisted are women; and, on average, the adult population that's assisted are 25 to 55 years old.

ASPIRA's programs and resources are used domestically, though available internationally. Resources are used by over 10,000 organizations and individuals in Canada, Mexico, Spain, the UK, Central America and the Caribbean.

If you are interested in becoming an affiliate of ASPIRA, you can click here or here, or if you want access to the programs and services that are available, you can click here.

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