History

Since 1989, High Jump has continued to advance its mission to close the education opportunity gap in Chicago and ensure long-term academic success for ambitious middle schoolers.

Take a look at the timeline below to see how High Jump has been inspiring the next generation of leaders for more than 30 years.

  • 1989

    High Jump was established at the Latin School of Chicago in collaboration with Francis W. Parker School and with funding from the Lloyd A. Fry Foundation.

    16 students were enrolled in its first cohort.

  • 1994

    High Jump's cohort size increases to 40 students.

  • 2000

    High Jump's curriculum is enhanced with additional courses.

    High Jump graduates matriculate to more than 40 different public, parochial, independent day and boarding schools.

  • 2002

    High Jump obtains a $75,000 challenge grant from Kenny's Kids to increase cohort size to 65 students.

  • 2006

    Michelle Obama serves as Honorary Chair for High Jump's Thought Leadership Luncheon.

  • 2008

    High Jump becomes a founding member of National Partnership for Educational Access (NPEA)

  • 2012

    Second High Jump campus opens: The Francis W. Parker School

  • 2013

    High Jump increases its reach to serve 280 students annually.

  • 2014

    Third High Jump campus opens: The University of Chicago Laboratory Schools.

  • 2015

    High Jump launches its Alumni Scholars program to support students through high school.

  • 2016

    High Jump serves 360 High Jump students annually in addition to over 360 High Jump alumni in high schools in Chicago and across the country.

  • 2017

    High Jump receives nearly 1,000 sixth grade applications to be part of the program - a record for the organization and double the amount of applications received in previous years.

  • 2020

    High Jump increases its reach by 11% to serve 400 scholars annually across Chicago.

  • 2021

    High Jump expands access to its programming by launching the Community Scholars pilot program.

  • 2022

    High Jump welcomes its largest cohort of 226 seventh grade students.

  • 2023

    High Jump’s continued growth leads to moving its administrative offices to a new space in Chicago’s Greektown neighborhood.

High Jump Annual Report (2021-2022)