ASPIRA, Inc. of New Jersey is a private, nonprofit community-based organization founded in 1968 to serve the educational needs of Latino youth. The organization’s mission is to counsel, educate and develop the leadership potential of youth, so that they will become empowered individuals who make significant contributions to society in general and to the community in particular. Although our emphasis is on serving the Latino community, our programs are open to any student who wishes to join the organization. Our present diverse enrollment includes students who are Puerto Rican, African American, Caribbean, South American, Middle Eastern, Asian and Caucasian.
ASPIRA, Inc. of New Jersey is an Associate of the ASPIRA Association. The ASPIRA Association is the largest national Hispanic organization in the United States. The ASPIRA Association is a confederation of independent state-wide ASPIRA community-based organizations that currently have centers in urban areas in Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, New York, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico and New Jersey, providing services to over 5,000 communities. Each associate operates a variety of programs that grow out of the specific conditions and needs of their own communities. We are dedicated to empowering primarily the Latino community and other minorities through the development of its youth. Our basic belief is that the path out of poverty must be through education. ASPIRA offers guidance and assistance with educational goals and works closely with school administrators, teachers, guidance counselors and parents, which effectively serve student needs and goals.
Since its inception as a small storefront in Newark, ASPIRA, Inc. of New Jersey has grown into a statewide organization, now operating in Camden, Elizabeth, Jersey City, Long Branch, Newark, Paterson, Pleasantville/Atlantic City and Vineland. ASPIRA’s goal is to provide students with an array of services that will help them acquire the necessary critical thinking skills, problem-solving techniques and motivation that will help them function effectively in school, on the job, and in life. Serving approximately 2,800 youth annually, the organization has for the past 41 years assisted more than 60,000 at-risk minority students in urban middle schools and high schools. Of this number, 90% remained in school and obtained their high school diplomas; and 80% continued their studies at a college or other post-secondary institution. The services have produced many leaders, who are now actively involved in the improvement of their communities. Had it not been for the support of ASPIRA, many of the youth might have dropped out of school, held low level jobs or been unemployed, perhaps resorting to crime as a means of survival and becoming a burden to society.
