Say Yes Buffalo Scholarship Inc

Say Yes Buffalo is a landmark partnership that brings together the Buffalo Public School District, parents, the Buffalo Teachers Federation, the Buffalo Association of Administrators and Supervisors, higher education, the City of Buffalo, Erie County, and a diverse group of Buffalo area corporate, non-profit, and philanthropic organizations to organize people, time, money and resources to provide holistic, year-round support to Buffalo Public School District students throughout their K-12 years and beyond.

Since 2013, over 8,000 students have received tuition assistance (over $21 million has been paid toward tuition scholarships to-date). This has resulted in leveraged funds totaling $150 million to date—a 10-to-1 return on private investment.

Understanding that scholarship assistance is only one component that affects graduation, postsecondary matriculation, and student retention/completion, the core work of SYB lies in the creation and coordination of services for students along the cradle-to-career pipeline, which are sustained by a combination of private and public funding. 

Resulting educational outcomes are real and impressive, including: 30 percentage-point increase in graduation rates for public school students since implementation (49% in 2012 to 79% in 2021); 23% increase in post-secondary matriculation rate (from 899 students in 2012 to 1,109 in 2019).

The mission of the Say Yes Buffalo partnership is to remove barriers to educational attainment, workforce participation and economic mobility for students in public and charter schools in Buffalo, NY. Our collective impact partnership, centered on racial equity and inclusion, provides a postsecondary tuition promise and cradle to career comprehensive supports to increase the rates of high school and postsecondary completion and the achievement of fulfilling professional employment.