Spanning the course of two decades, educational leaders have invested government finances into the social-emotional needs of adolescents. Government programs provide student questionnaires to survey the scholastic climate from students' perceptions. Previous research discusses the correlation between students' perception and their success in school due to fulfillment of their transescent needs. This research study ventured to distinguish a possible correlation between urban middle school students' perceptions of feeling "cared-for" and their intrinsic motivation. Results suggest that today's urban student benefits from feeling cared-for both personally and academically.