Our Purpose
Learning after high school — whether through a college degree or workforce training program — provides the surest path to a well-paying job and stable, fulfilling career. We want learners from low-income backgrounds to have a range of paths open to them so that economic circumstances don’t hinder upward mobility. To that end, we partner with postsecondary education and workforce training providers, intermediaries, researchers, and media organizations to ensure learners from low-income backgrounds have the opportunity for success in whatever path they choose.
Our Priorities
We award grants in four specific areas. Through this approach, we explore innovative ideas, validate promising practices, and scale successful solutions.
News and Insights
Working to Build Strong, Culturally Responsive Pathways for Rural Native Learners
Both the College Fund and Ascendium believe that TCUs are vital hubs for social and economic development in rural and tribal areas. The College Fund will coordinate experts, including faculty and staff from TCUs and employers, who will work to develop intentional road maps to employment that connect to the rural and tribal communities they serve. Insights from this grant will help TCUs implement stronger career development plans at their institution and demonstrate how using learner outcome and labor market data can strengthen the road maps to employment that they create at their institution.
