The main objective of this article is to analyze the process of birth and constitution of the program for granting scholarships, of an affirmative nature, at PUC-Rio. PUC-Rio has been implementing an affirmative action policy for almost three decades, with the objective of favoring access to undergraduate courses for the lower classes, primarily Black and economically disadvantaged students. The Program was born in 1994 and was based on an agreement established between the University and the Pre-Entry Examination for Blacks and Needy People (PVNC). The PVNC student, when approved in the PUC-Rio entrance exam, received a full scholarship called Bolsa de Ação Social, which allowed the student to attend the university. A policy that portrays the paths taken by multiple actors and different institutions, a proposal that is born from a partnership between the university administration, professors, students, social activists, social-racial and popular education movements. At first, the article brings the testimony of four characters who were fundamental to the genesis of the program, Father Jesus Hortal, Frei David, Augusto Sampaio and Luiza Helena Nunes Ermel. Next, it examines the leading role played by the Department of Social Service at PUC-Rio in the implementation of the program.