About
OneGoal is a Chicago-based national nonprofit that partners with schools and districts to integrate college and career planning into the high school experience. Founded in 2007 as an afterschool program serving 32 students at Dunbar High School in Chicago, the organization has grown to reach more than 200,000 students across ten states, working to close the opportunity gap in postsecondary education.
Mission
OneGoal's stated aim is to lead the movement to transform postsecondary advising and support, with a vision that every student will have an equitable opportunity to achieve their greatest postsecondary aspirations. The organization works to empower entire school systems to provide high-quality advising to every high school student, helping them discover their unique purpose, explore their aspirations, and find college and career success.
What they do
- The OneGoal Program — a multi-year college and career readiness model embedded in partner high schools, following students year by year from high school into their first year after graduation
- OneGoal Leadership Network — supporting school and district leaders (330 leaders in the network) to strengthen postsecondary advising systems
- OneGoal Diagnostic — helping districts assess and improve their postsecondary readiness supports
- The Catalyst Innovation Lab — convening educators and innovators around postsecondary access, and DecidEd, a college affordability tool OneGoal acquired in the 2024-2025 period
History
OneGoal was founded in 2007 as Urban Students Empowered (US Empowered), an afterschool program at Dunbar High School in Chicago that began with 32 students and operated out of a downtown Caribou Coffee. The organization rebranded as OneGoal in 2012. President Obama publicly recognized OneGoal's impact in the 2014-2015 period, and the organization celebrated 15 years in 2022-2023. Co-founder Jeff Nelson led the organization for many years; today OneGoal is led by Chief Executive Officer Melissa Connelly with more than 175 employees.
Scale and impact
- 203,000 students impacted to date, with about 11,500 current students
- Operating in ten states: California, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, New York, Texas, and Wisconsin
- 80% of OneGoal high school graduates enroll in a postsecondary institution, and 73% of those persist one year after high school graduation
- Fellows graduate at approximately 1.5x the average graduation rate compared to peers from their communities
- The UChicago Inclusive Economy Lab found OneGoal has a positive and statistically significant effect on postsecondary enrollment, persistence, and graduation
Financials
According to IRS filings compiled by ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer (EIN 56-2369898, legal name Onegoal, sort name US Empowered), the organization reported total revenue of about 33.6 million dollars — including roughly 28.8 million dollars in contributions and grants — and total expenses of about 30.7 million dollars for the fiscal year ending June 2023, with net assets on a base of about 70.8 million dollars in total assets.