When Shanita Nichols was a senior in High School, Bottom Line guided her to an affordable college for her undergraduate study. Founded in 1997, Bottom Line addressed the low college graduation rates of first generation students. What started supporting 25 students back then, Bottom Line today, has robust programs for College Access and Success that supports over 7000 students. Today, Shanita Nichols is the Managing Director of Development at Bottom Line. Shanita joins us on our podcast to tell us What Bottom Line is, Its origins, Programs it offers, College Advisors, Partners, Success Stories and What’s Next. In particular, we discuss the following with her: Shanita Nichols Background Origins of Bottom Line Ecosystems & Partners How Bottom Line Benefits Students Topics discussed in this episode: Introducing Shanita Nichols, Bottom Line [0:44] Hi Fives - Podcast Highlights [2:11] Professional Background [4:51] Origins of Bottom Line [6:51] Ecosystems and Partners [9:28] College Advisors [12:32] Student Being Helped [15:23] College Access Process [16:38] Family Participation [18:29] Process Challenges [19:57] Help with Costs [22:36] Success Stories [24:17] More on Bluprint [27:22] Shanita’s BL Story [30:04] What Next? [32:55] Our Guest: Shanita Nichols is the Managing Director of Development, National at Bottom Line.  Shanita graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Economics/African American Studies from Smith College. Shanita received her MBA from Simmons University. Memorable Quote: “And one of the most impressive things that the research has found was that our impact was consistent across time, advisors, human characteristics. So I think the key is to all of this, the secret sauce is our curriculum,...” Shanita Nichols. Episode Transcript: Please visit Episode’s Transcript. Suggested Episodes: College Experiences (Alumni) Calls-to-action: Subscribe to our Weekly Podcast Newsletter. Follow us on Instagram. To Ask the Guest a question, or to comment on this episode, email podcast@almamatters.io. Subscribe or Follow our podcasts at any of these locations: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify.