Who We Serve

Commitment to Hartford 

Horizons at Westminster is dedicated to expanding opportunities for underserved students and their families in the Hartford area. With a high school graduation rate under 70% and a college matriculation rate of 60%, Hartford Public Schools are performing well below state and national averages. While these statistics may be discouraging, Horizons students inspire optimism with their boundless curiosity, their love of learning and their incredible potential.

Growing Community of Learners

Horizons at Westminster opened its doors in 2018 to its inaugural class of 15 first graders, who will return every summer until they start high school. A new first grade class will be added each summer through 2025 when the program will be fully established with students in Grades 1 through 8. At full enrollment, Horizons at Westminster will deliver nearly 200 hours of academic instruction and enrichment each summer to approximately 130 students from Hartford.

All Horizons at Westminster students come from underserved Hartford families. To create a diverse learning environment, each class is gender-balanced with two-thirds of students performing below grade level at enrollment, including some who lag behind one year or more. In addition, all Horizons students demonstrate excellent attendance at their home school.

“The Horizons students grow to become leaders among their peers, and that has a tremendous ripple effect at our school.”

Christine McCarthy, Moylan School Principal

Public-Private Partnership

Horizons at Westminster has joined with the Moylan School, a public elementary school in Hartford, to create a public-private education partnership that benefits low-income students from Hartford who are at the greatest risk of falling behind. Horizons at Westminster works closely with teachers and administrators at Moylan to recruit and support students and families throughout the year, sharing key assessment data and progress for each child. The goals of this partnership are to:

• Prevent or reduce summer learning loss
• Serve students from under-resourced communities in Hartford
• Foster a life-long love of learning
• Ensure children learn how to swim
• Provide cultural experiences and opportunities for social growth

Horizons at Westminster operates under the 501(c)(3) status of Westminster School, with the school acting as the fiduciary agent. Horizons does not receive any direct financial support from Westminster School, but does receive substantial in-kind operational support, including administrative support, facility and equipment use, and supplies. Horizons at Westminster relies on raising funds independent of the school to cover staffing, programming, transportation, field trips and other costs.