Our Mission
Fueled by Lee alumni, staff, and community members, Legacy Foundation’s mission is guiding and supporting students as they build their path towards higher education and the work force. We aim to equip students with the necessary tools and insights to navigate their high school experience through long-term mentorship. Not only do we equip students with the necessary tools to navigate complex systems, but we help build strategic plans that engage students with school and community resources, encourage involvement, and help them recognize how to make the best of their time at Lee towards their end goals. Succeeding into and through higher education.
Fueled my Alumni wisdosm and community love, we recognize and empathize with the various barriers, disadvantages, and simultaneous power and potential that Lee students carry, particularly as first-generation students. By mobilizing our stories, experiences, and trials in navigating higher education institutions, the organization serves as a collective discourse; a space aimed at fostering the necessary insights, initiatives, and support at Lee.
This is done through two functions: a personalized mentorship program and college information panels & events.We organize panels, peer-mentoring programs, and discussion groups, all intended to share our stories and various experiences, aiding students in effectively navigating and utilizing their education with trusted, supportive, inspiring, and, most importantly, firsthand experienced alumni.We believe the people who have lived the same challenges are best positioned to support our students. Grounded in the capabilities approach, our focus is simple: opportunity only matters when students have the tools to act on it.
Legacy strengthens those tools. We offer preparation, guidance, and real insight from alumni who have navigated the same systems. The goal is to make higher education and the workforce workable, familiar, and within reach.
Beyond Access
How we do it
Alongside Mentorship, students are invited to join a variety of panels and events; centered in story-sharing, community building, and increasing opportunity awareness. By showcasing alumni and local leaders, students gain relatable role models, motivation, and a clearer understanding of the paths available to them. towards strengthen students’ sense of belonging, expand their networks, and demystify academia & success.
Legacy community-centered approach allows for us to access and strengthen our connection; nothing support ours students more than an active, and engaged community.
Mentorship
Panels & Events
Starting sophomore year, students are paired with a mentor who helps shape a strategic path toward their post-graduation goals. That plan is built through real preparation. Students learn how to craft competitive resumes, access community resources, join volunteer and advocacy groups, gain field experience, and receive direct, tailored guidance. One to one support for resumes, essays, and applications is part of that same process, not separate from it.
Everything is centered on the student’s lived experience. We focus on building self-advocacy, confidence, and the practical tools needed to navigate academic and post-secondary systems. It is support shaped by first-generation students and grounded in first-generation wisdom.