Bottom Line was founded in 1997 to improve our community by helping disadvantaged youth get in to college, graduate from college, and go far in life. Since then, we have helped thousands of students improve their lives and build stronger communities as role models, leaders, parents, and friends.

Learn more about Bottom Line in this short video:

Bottom Line’s Growth
Year	High School Seniors	College Students
1997-1998	25	-
1998-1999	50	25
1999-2000	75	75
2000-2001	100	150
2001-2002	200	248
2002-2003	200	330
2003-2004	200	358
2004-2005	383	381
2005-2006	360	376
2006-2007	360	460
2007-2008	360	520
2008-2009	475	610
2009-2010	625	750
2010-2011	650	950

Additional background about Bottom Line:

Bottom Line was started by Dave Borgal, a former high
school guidance counselor. As a counselor for primarily
low-income youth, Dave met students who wanted
to go to college, but didn't know where to start. They
came from families that knew very little about college
or saw it as something they could never afford. They
went to high schools where teachers and guidance counselors
were overwhelmed. And they lived in communities where
college was the exception, not the rule. He helped students
get in to college, but even those who made it to campus
dropped out and did not graduate. Dave realized that getting
in to college was important, but graduating was the Bottom Line.

With an idea to create a community-based organization that could
help students from the beginning of the college application process and then continue to support them until they earned a degree, he came to Boston. In 1997, he worked with his first class of 25 high school seniors. In a time when very few urban students were going to college and 1 in 7 low-income students who started college would finish, he helped all 25 students get accepted to college and 80% graduate in six years or less. Bottom Line has maintained that level of success ever since.

By giving personalized attention and support to low-income and first-generation-to-college students who are motivated to earn a degree, our students are graduating from college at nearly the same rate as the wealthiest, most supported students in the country.

Every young person needs support, guidance, and mentoring. Once we give that to our students, we tell them that "Success depends on you." Any student who understands that message and is willing to work hard can and will succeed. We have had the privilege to see the results of that success in the lives of our students, their families, and the communities where we live and work.

In 2007, Bottom Line's Board of Directors approved an expansion plan that called for the organization to grow to serve more than 500 high school seniors per year in Boston and up to 1,000 college students. In July 2008, Bottom Line opened an office in Worcester and successfully served 74 high school students from the class of 2009. In the coming school year, we will serve 150 high school seniors and nearly 100 college students from Worcester, in addition to 500 high school seniors and 850 college students from Boston. Continuing our successful growth, we plan to launch a third office in New York City in July 2011. We look forward to supporting more students who need one-on-one guidance and support to earn a college degree.