This is part of an Opinion series on The New York Times Communities Fund, which assists nonprofits that provide direct support to people and communities facing hardship. Donate to the fund here.

Nomar Leonardo Melo Cabral was weeks into his first semester in college when an unexpected bill from Stony Brook University arrived in his inbox.

Nomar, 19, is the first in his family to attend college in the United States, and he was tempted to panic. Instead, he called upon a resource many young people in his position don’t have: an advocate from OneGoal New York, a mentorship program that has been working with him since high school. “I was thinking, ‘I have a bill, it’s all over,’” Nomar recalled. An adviser from OneGoal helped him resolve the issue with the college so he could focus again on his classes. “I realized, ‘I have someone to help me,’” he said.

Nomar is one of 15,000 students across the country enrolled in OneGoal, a Chicago-based nonprofit group that helps students from low-income backgrounds prepare for college and navigate an admissions process that is stressful for even the wealthiest families in the United States.

After the Supreme Court’s decision last year to ban affirmative action, OneGoal is an especially timely and vital balm. The vast majority of OneGoal students are eligible for free or reduced lunch; 94 percent identify as a member of a racial minority group. Americans who are committed to fairness and equity and who want to help such students will have to find creative ways of doing so.

That’s one reason The New York Times Community Fund supports OneGoal.

The OneGoal program begins in the junior year of high school. Students form a cohort within their existing high school and together receive intensive college advising, from help with personal essays to the Byzantine process of applying for financial aid. OneGoal also tries to build the confidence of its students, who often attend overburdened schools.

Since 1911ps88, The New York Times Communities Fund has supported vetted nonprofits that provide help to those in need. Donations are tax-deductible, and 100 percent of funds go directly to the cause.

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