The Posse Foundation
identifies, recruits, and selects student leaders from public high
schools to form multicultural teams called "Posses." Posses are groups
of 10 to 12 students from diverse cultural and economic backgrounds who
support each other and ensure that each member succeeds and graduates
from college. Posses also work to increase interaction among diverse
campus groups. The Posse teams undergo an intensive eight-month
training program to prepare for college-level academics, to learn to
work as a team, to develop leadership skills, and to help promote
cross-cultural communication.
The concept of a Posse works for
both students and college campuses, and is rooted in the belief that a
small, diverse group of talented students—a Posse—carefully selected
and trained, can serve as a catalyst for increased individual and
community development. Each college campus has a Posse Liaison who works closely with the Posse Foundation, along with mentors to help the students be successful.
As the United States becomes an increasingly
multicultural society, Posse believes that the leaders of this new
century should reflect the country’s rich demographic mix, and that the
key to a promising future for our nation rests on the ability of strong
leaders from diverse backgrounds to develop consensus solutions to
complex social problems. One of the primary aims of the Posse Program
is to train these leaders of tomorrow.