Six kids, one borrowed classroom, 2018
Brighter Path didn't start with a strategic plan. It started with a teacher who couldn't stop thinking about what her students did between 3pm and dinner.
It started with homework help and a box of granola bars
In the fall of 2018, Danielle Broussard was teaching fourth grade in the Ninth Ward and kept noticing the same thing: the kids who struggled most weren't short on ability — they were short on adults with time. So she stayed late on Tuesdays with six students, a borrowed classroom, and snacks she paid for herself.
Word spread the way it does in New Orleans — through grandmothers, church bulletins, and the line at the corner store. By spring there were thirty kids and a waiting list. Danielle quit her job, filed the nonprofit paperwork, and Brighter Path Foundation was born.
Today we run year-round mentorship across fourteen partner schools, an after-school program in Tremé, and Camp Cypress each summer in City Park. The granola bars are still in the budget.
Eight years, one Tuesday at a time
The Tuesday group
Six students, one borrowed classroom on Alvar Street, and homework help that kept growing.
Pathfinders launches
Our first twelve mentor matches. Ten of those pairs still keep in touch today.
The Compass Club opens in Tremé
A partnership with the Tremé Recreation Community Center gives us a permanent after-school home — and a gym.
First summer of Camp Cypress
Forty-eight campers, two weeks, one very memorable canoe capsize. Everyone came back the next year.
340 kids and counting
Three camp sessions, 85 active mentors, and a waiting list we're determined to clear. That's where you come in.
Four things we won't compromise on
Consistency over charisma
Kids don't need a hero who shows up once. They need the same face every Tuesday. We train mentors to be boringly reliable — and proud of it.
Rooted in the neighborhood
Our staff and most of our mentors live in the neighborhoods we serve. Decisions get made on porches and in school pick-up lines, not in boardrooms.
Free means free
No registration fees, no supply lists, no "suggested donations" at pick-up. If a program has a cost, we find the money — not the families.
Open books
Our full budget goes on this website every January. Donors deserve to know that 87 cents of every dollar lands directly in programs.
Small staff, big village
Four full-time staff, two AmeriCorps members, and 85 volunteer mentors. These are the four you'll meet first.
Danielle Broussard
Former fourth-grade teacher, lifelong Ninth Ward resident, and the reason the snack budget is untouchable.
Marcus Lewis
Runs Pathfinders matching and mentor training. Was a Big Brother for nine years before joining staff in 2020.
Keisha Thibodeaux
Twelve summers of camp experience and a lifeguard certification she makes every counselor earn too.
Sam Nguyen
Onboards every mentor personally. If you sign up to volunteer, Sam is the first call you'll get — usually within a day.
We show up for the neighborhood, too
Brighter Path kids don't just receive — they give. Every Compass Club semester includes a service project the kids choose themselves: a Bayou St. John cleanup, a supply drive for hurricane season, care packages for the seniors at the Annunciation Inn.
It's our favorite data point that nobody asks for: last year our kids logged over 600 service hours of their own.
None of this happens alone
Like what we're building? Build it with us.
Mentor a kid, sponsor a camper, or just come see a Friday showcase at Camp Cypress. The door's open.