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Mission
The Aspirations Club is a group of students who work to support the post-high school aspirations of youth in the Lewiston Auburn Area. In conjunction with the Harward Center for Community Partnership, Aspirations Program, the Aspirations Club achieves its goal to support the aspirations of LA youth by organizing Bates students to participate in local mentoring programs, such as the Lewiston High School and Auburn Middle School Mentorship Program; the organization of Aspirations Days hosted at Bates College; and a community for students who are eager to deepen their understanding of about college access inequities and post-high school opportunities in the Lewiston Auburn community. The Aspiration Club aims to accomplish these goals because of a recognized need for post-high school programming in the Lewiston Auburn area. In Lewiston High School (LHS), the college attendance rate follows the low statewide rates of attendance, with only 59% of graduates enrolling in a vocational or secondary school (Maine Department of Education, 2021). Additionally, LHS lags behind in the average high school graduation rate in Maine, with only 66.95% of students graduating as compared to the state average of 86% in 2021 (Maine Department of Education, 2021). Research points toward positive, adult mentorship and guidance as a tool for greater educational and general life success of mentees, a role which the Aspiration Clubs will center its efforts around (Bowers et al. 2014; Dubois, Herrera & Rivera 2018). We believe the Aspirations Club does have a stake in this work as being a part of an elite higher education institution, we believe that Bates College has a responsibility to engage with the Lewiston-Auburn youth to reduce access barriers to post-high school opportunities when requested by community members and partners. This practice will ideally allow for resources and institutional higher education knowledge to be distributed beyond the Bates Campus to the benefit of LA youth while also providing Bates students with a deep connection with members of the LA community and an enriching educational opportunity.

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