The Riverside Hawks have been a staple program in the Harlem community since our founding in 1961. Our mission is to provide an opportunity for youth to use sports as a vehicle to improve academic outcomes, and in turn, improve career prospects. The strength of our basketball program is legendary. Notable alums include Donovan Mitchell, Ty Jerome, Eric Paschal, Chris Mullin, Tiny Archibald, Kenny Smith, Kenny Anderson, Ed Pinckney, Metta World Peace, Elton Brand, and Malik Sealy.

The Riverside Hawks continues to provide comprehensive basketball instruction, and additionally, a key focus of our programming today is providing hands-on academic support to the students in our program. We have over 700 girls and boys beginning in kindergarten through high school in our academic and basketball programs. Almost 70% of our students come from the Washington Heights, Harlem, and Bronx neighborhoods. Almost 80% of them come from family households categorized as low to moderate-income. Our elite-level girls and boys basketball teams play in nationally recognized showcase tournaments and rank among the top teams in the nation. And, most importantly, our students’ academic achievements speak for themselves, since 2018:

• 100% high school graduation rate in 2024
• 100% of graduates went on to college or post-graduate prep schools
• Over $5 million in college scholarships and grants since 2021
• Over $550,000 in prep school scholarships since 2021