Bridging the Gap: How CUNY’s Peer Mentorship Model is Transforming Postsecondary Success
For many high school seniors, the summer between graduation and the first day of college is a period of quiet, mounting anxiety. It is a time when the structured support of a K–12 environment—where teachers, counselors, and individualized education programs (IEPs) provide a roadmap—suddenly dissolves into the ambiguity of adult independence. For Angelina Sambuco, a student with a history of needing academic accommodations, this transition felt like staring into an abyss.
Three years ago, as she prepared to enter Brooklyn College, Sambuco’s primary concern was not just the rigor of coursework, but the logistics of maintaining her disability support services. Her anxieties were quelled not by a distant administrator, but by a "Bridge Coach"—a college student tasked with guiding her through the bureaucratic thicket of higher education. Today, that experience has come full circle: Sambuco is now a senior speech pathology major and a veteran mentor herself, helping the next generation of students navigate the very hurdles she once feared.
The Evolution of the "Bridge": A New Model for Success
Launched in 2020, the "College Bridge for All" program, a strategic partnership between the City University of New York (CUNY) and the New York City Public Schools (NYCPS), has emerged as the largest near-peer postsecondary advising initiative in the United States. In 2025 alone, the program provided guidance to over 50,000 graduating seniors.
The program operates on a simple yet profound premise: "near-peer" mentoring. By enlisting college students to act as advisors to those just a few steps behind them, the initiative bridges the cultural and generational gap that often hinders traditional counseling. These mentors—Bridge Coaches—use an integrated data system that tracks student contact information, financial aid progress, and enrollment milestones. By offering support via text, email, and one-on-one virtual sessions, they provide a lifeline during the critical "summer melt" period.
Chronology of a Transition: From Student to Mentor
The trajectory of the College Bridge for All program is best understood through the lived experiences of those who participate in it.
The Student Perspective (2022)
When Angelina Sambuco was a senior in high school, her uncertainty about college was palpable. Having spent her entire K–12 career supported by an IEP, the prospect of managing her own accommodations felt overwhelming. Her assigned Bridge Coach, Morgan Wong—herself a graduate of James Madison High School—provided the necessary roadmap. Wong helped Sambuco connect with the college’s disability services office, demystified the transition, and normalized the stress of the process.
The Institutional Shift (2023–2024)
As the program matured, its focus shifted from simple enrollment assistance to high-touch, holistic support. The data began to show that students required more than just reminders to fill out forms; they needed mental health support, career guidance, and a sense of belonging. The program expanded its capacity, increasing the percentage of students participating in these intensive interactions from 24% in 2023 to 42% by 2025.
The Cycle Continues (2025)
In a striking turn of events, Sambuco joined the ranks of the coaches, eventually working alongside her former mentor, Morgan Wong. This "near-peer" model has created a self-sustaining ecosystem where mentors are not just staff, but former participants who possess an intimate understanding of the systemic barriers students face.
Data-Driven Impact: Combating "Summer Melt"
"Summer melt" is one of the most pervasive challenges in higher education. Research from the American Educational Research Association (AERA) indicates that 10% to 20% of college-bound students across the U.S. abandon their plans between high school graduation and the first day of classes. For low-income and first-generation students, that figure can climb as high as 40%.
The College Bridge for All program has demonstrated remarkable efficacy in reversing this trend. In 2025, the program reported that of the nearly 40,000 NYCPS students served who expressed an intent to enroll in college, 92.3% successfully matriculated. This resulted in a summer melt rate of only 7.7%—a significant improvement from the 14.4% rate recorded in 2024.
This success is largely attributed to the robust data-sharing agreement between CUNY and the NYCPS. By identifying which students are at risk of "melting" due to specific barriers—such as language needs or financial aid documentation errors—coaches can intervene with surgical precision.
Official Responses: The Power of the "Warm Handoff"
Daitwan David, the director of the College Bridge for All program, emphasizes that the program’s success relies on a concept he calls the "warm handoff."
"We are thinking about what counselors have been able to do, and then taking that information and passing it on to Bridge Coaches to carry on the work," David explains. "They speak the language, they understand the norms, and they understand what’s happening in the students’ lives. They’re able to present the information in a way that’s palatable."
David’s philosophy is echoed by the coaches themselves. Morgan Wong, now a graduate student in industrial and organizational psychology at the CUNY School of Professional Studies, notes that the challenges remain consistent year over year. "I always go back to the concept of intention versus execution," Wong says. "Many students know where they want to go, but the actual matriculation—the paperwork, the financial aid, the enrollment—is where they get stuck. We are trained to be the bridge for that gap."
Implications for Higher Education
The success of the College Bridge for All program offers several key implications for the future of higher education policy and student success initiatives:
1. The Value of Shared Identity
The program proves that trust is the primary currency of student success. Because every Bridge Coach is an NYCPS alumnus, they share a common geography and cultural history with their mentees. As Wong noted, the simple act of bonding over a high school principal’s name can lower a student’s defenses, making them more receptive to serious conversations about financial aid and academic planning.
2. Scaling High-Touch Mentorship
The program demonstrates that "high-touch" does not necessarily require a massive increase in professional administrative staff. By utilizing near-peer mentors, institutions can scale personalized support to tens of thousands of students simultaneously. This model is more cost-effective and arguably more impactful, as it creates a sense of communal growth that professional counselors—who are often stretched too thin—may struggle to replicate.
3. Data Integration as a Prerequisite
Without the data-sharing agreement between the school district and the university system, the program would be unable to function at scale. This suggests that future initiatives in other states must prioritize legislative and administrative frameworks that allow for the seamless transition of student data from K–12 to higher education entities.
4. Redefining the "One-Size-Fits-All" Model
Finally, the program’s emphasis on individualized pathways challenges the traditional, rigid model of higher education. By acknowledging that college looks different for every student, mentors like Wong and Sambuco provide a framework that accommodates non-traditional learners, first-generation students, and those with disabilities.
Conclusion: A Legacy of Mentorship
The story of the College Bridge for All program is ultimately one of resilience and reciprocity. Angelina Sambuco, who once worried she would be lost in the transition to college, is now the person guiding others through that same threshold. By fostering a culture where current students reach back to lift up those who follow, CUNY has created a model that not only combats the statistical phenomenon of summer melt but also cultivates a sense of belonging.
As the program moves forward, its success serves as a blueprint for the rest of the nation. It proves that with the right data, the right mentors, and a commitment to meeting students exactly where they are, the daunting gap between high school and college can be successfully crossed. In the words of Sambuco, the program is a "nice bridge," one that does more than just move students from point A to point B—it helps them find their footing in a new, often intimidating world.
