Extending Howard’s Reach

Through the partnership, Howard has served 8,589 scholars attending 253 high schools in 91 cities. Participating communities include Washington, D.C.; Nashville, Tennessee; New York City; Phoenix, Arizona; and Jackson, Mississippi.

The university has offered eight courses through the initiative, spanning criminal justice, environmental studies, college algebra, leadership, psychology, data analytics, and technology ethics. Courses have been led by Howard faculty members including Bahiyyah Muhammad, Ph.D.; Janelle Burke, Ph.D.; Lifoma Salaam, Ph.D.; Moussa Doumbia, Ph.D.; Meenakshi Nerolu, Ph.D.; Mohammed Saliou Camara, Ph.D.; Oritsegbubemi Ayu, Ph.D.; Amy Yeboah Quarkume, Ph.D.; and environmental justice advocate Kari Fulton.

The model pairs university faculty with high school educators and Howard undergraduate and graduate students who serve as teaching fellows. These fellows provide academic guidance, mentorship, and a tangible connection to the Howard student experience.

To date, 150 Howard students have served as teaching fellows. Among those surveyed, 95% reported that they grew professionally through the experience, while 94% described the fellowship as one of their most valuable experiences of the year. The structure creates benefits on both sides of the virtual classroom: high school scholars receive support from near-peer mentors, while Howard students gain experience in teaching, leadership, communication, and community engagement.

The results also extend beyond individual courses. At least 51 NEON scholars have matriculated at Howard, transforming an initial online encounter with the university into a full undergraduate experience on campus.

Howard and NEON celebrated the partnership’s continued growth during a June 11 gathering on the university’s campus. The event convened NEON leadership, Howard faculty members and teaching fellows, educators, and former NEON scholars who have since become Howard students and graduates.

The discussion centered on the role historically Black colleges and universities can play earlier in the educational pipeline, particularly for students who may live hundreds of miles from the nearest HBCU or have had little exposure to the institutions. Participants also examined how early access to Howard courses can strengthen students’ academic confidence, clarify the expectations of college-level work, and help young people recognize that they belong in higher education.

Turning Exposure into Confidence

For Howard alumna Naysa Harraway (B.A. ’25), the pathway began while she was a student at the Young Women’s Leadership School of Queens in New York.

Harraway enrolled in Howard’s “Principles of Criminal Justice” course through NEON. Although she initially questioned whether she was prepared for college-level work, she earned an A and had her final paper published by Howard at age 17. The course introduced her not only to the demands of a university classroom, but also to an institution and educational tradition that had received little attention in her previous schooling.

“Where I’m from in NYC, they don’t teach us about HBCUs,” Harraway said. “The reason I went to Howard is because of this (NEON) class.”

Harraway subsequently enrolled at Howard, where she studied political science and criminology, graduated in May 2025 with a 3.7 GPA, and completed an internship with the U.S. House of Representatives. She is now preparing for the next stage of her journey toward a legal career.

“I wouldn’t be where I’m at if I didn’t take this class and fall in love with Howard,” she said.

Current Howard chemistry major Maya Cherubin had a similar opportunity while attending Sewanhaka High School in New York. Cherubin completed Howard’s environmental studies course before enrolling at the university, giving her early access to Howard faculty, academic expectations, and teaching methods.

The experience showed her how a Howard education could combine scientific concepts with history, social justice, and the experiences of marginalized communities. It also helped her picture herself as a Howard student before she arrived on campus. Cherubin, who is expected to graduate from Howard in 2028, hopes to become a cosmetic chemist.

“You really get a chance to prepare yourself for what college looks like,” Cherubin said. “You get that experience taking a college course for the first time and really being able to put yourself in the shoes of a college student.”

You really get a chance to prepare yourself for what college looks like. You get that experience taking a college course for the first time and really being able to put yourself in the shoes of a college student.

Measuring Academic and Postsecondary Impact

The stories of Harraway and Cherubin illustrate the broader outcomes reflected in the partnership’s data.

During the 2024-2025 academic year, 83% of NEON scholars who completed a Howard course passed it. Among Howard course participants responding to surveys, 84% said the experience increased their understanding of college work and expectations. 92% of participating high school co-teachers said they would recommend the experience to other educators like them.

NEON scholars also attend four-year colleges at twice the rate of similarly situated students and persist in college at rates exceeding the national average. Across NEON’s broader network, scholars who passed at least one course attended four-year institutions at a rate of 63 percent, compared with 31 percent among comparable students. Their college persistence rate was 91 percent, compared with 78 percent.

Founded in 2019 and formerly known as the National Education Equity Lab, NEON partners with colleges and universities to place credit-bearing courses in Title I and Title I-eligible high schools. The organization has served nearly 60,000 scholars from almost 600 schools in 34 states. During the 2025-2026 academic year, it partnered with 358 high schools across 86 districts and offered 60 courses from 17 colleges and universities.

The scale of the network demonstrates how institutions can use technology and cross-sector partnerships not as substitutes for the college experience, but as bridges to it.

For Howard, that bridge carries the university’s mission beyond geography. It allows students to engage with Howard’s scholarship and culture before completing a college application; creates opportunities for Howard students to develop as educators and mentors; and positions HBCUs not only as destinations for talented students but also as active partners in preparing them for higher education.

The Howard-NEON June celebration marked measurable progress, but it also underscored the partnership’s larger promise. Many students still live in communities where HBCUs are geographically distant, unfamiliar, or absent from the conversation. By reaching them while they are still in high school, Howard and NEON are providing more young people with the evidence, experience, and confidence to recognize that higher education belongs to them.