Investing in CodePath's Evidence of Effectiveness
Validation
Codepath Org|$1,000,000|12/2022 - 12/2026
This grant supports CodePath in establishing a body of rigorous evidence about the impacts of its programming at more than 70 colleges and universities, including technical internship placement, completion of degrees in computer science and labor market outcomes for learners from low-income backgrounds.
Evaluations of Strategies to Improve Education and Workforce Success
Validation
The Rector & Visitors of the University of Virginia|$1,276,000|12/2022 - 11/2026
This grant supports Dr. Ben Castleman’s University of Virginia research center in engaging in research-practice partnerships that will evaluate Merit America in Texas and Piedmont Virginia Community College’s gateway course reforms.
Pathways to Success for Adults with Some College but No Degree
Validation
Tennessee Board of Regents-The College System of Tennessee |$1,900,200|6/2022 - 5/2026
This grant supports the Tennessee Board of Regents in using insights from prior Ascendium-funded research to redesign the experience of adults with some college but no degree who reconnect with college. Designed as a randomized control trial, the project will evaluate how the redesign of the reconnecting semester for adults returning to community college impacts persistence, completion and time to degree.
Fueling Growth Through Innovation
Scaling
Per Scholas Inc|$6,000,000|12/2022 - 12/2025
This grant supports Per Scholas in bringing to scale their technology workforce training and professional development model to tens of thousands more learners and hundreds more employer partners throughout the U.S. Ascendium’s investment will support Per Scholas in their efforts to build new partnerships to better reach learners, deepen its bench of highly-qualified instructors and redesign its recruitment and admissions processes to be more learner friendly.
Innovation and Expansion of Accelerated Training and Shared Outcomes Model
Exploration
Year Up Inc|$4,500,000|12/2022 - 12/2025
This grant supports Year Up in launching a new Google Career Certificates training program in two locations — Austin, Texas, and Seattle, Washington — as a complement to its traditional one-year, tuition-free training model. Year Up will pilot the Google Career Certificates training, combined with a shared outcomes financing plan, and assess the potential of the model for scaling to reach more learners.
Advancing Community College Students’ Post-Graduation Success
Exploration
The Aspen Institute Inc|$2,000,000|6/2022 - 11/2025
This grant supports The Aspen Institute College Excellence Program in supporting a cohort of 10 community colleges to implement policy and practice reforms that will increase the postgraduation success of their students, namely students of color and learners from low-income backgrounds.
Aligning Employment and Education Systems for the Success of Low-Income Working Adult Learners: The Achieve Your Degree Program
Validation
The RAND Corporation|$647,100|10/2022 - 9/2025
This grant supports The RAND Corporation in studying the design and outcomes of Ivy Tech Community College's statewide Achieve Your Degree program, which helps working learners earn skills needed to advance in their jobs through employer tuition assistance and dedicated academic and non-academic supports.
Scaling IT Support and Data Analytics Certificate Programming for Learners from Low-Income Backgrounds
Scaling
Merit America|$10,000,000|9/2022 - 8/2025
This grant supports Merit America in its goal to help 20,000 learners move from low-wage jobs to in-demand technology careers over the next three years. This investment will enable Merit America to scale their operations and leverage up to $45 million in funding from the $100 million Google Career Certificates Fund.
Enhancing and Expanding the Transfer Explorer Tool
Scaling
Ithaka Harbors Inc|$1,716,350|9/2022 - 8/2025
This grant supports Ithaka in enhancing and expanding the Transfer Explorer tool so that more transfer students have prior credits applied to a four-year degree, leading to reduced cost, reduced time-to-degree and a greater chance of completion.
Exploring TRIO's Capacity to Provide Career Development to Low-Income Students
Exploration
Council for Opportunity in Education|$748,000|2/2023 - 5/2025
This grant supports the Pell Institute, the research arm of the Council for Opportunity in Education, in exploring the capacity for federally-funded TRIO programs to provide more robust career development and support services to the low-income college students they serve. This study is the first to explore opportunities to leverage TRIO programs in service of post-college career outcomes.
