Strive

What Strive does

STRIVE International Inc. is a New York-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1984 in East Harlem by H. Thompson Rodman Jr. that delivers tuition-free workforce development programs to adults facing systemic barriers to employment, with an explicit focus on justice-impacted populations. Its service model is structured around five pillars — career readiness training (delivered through a three-week prerequisite workshop called STRIVE START), occupational skills training, job placement, career coaching, and lifetime alumni support — and operates three core program lines: Career Path (adults 18+), Future Leaders (justice-impacted young adults 18-24), and Fresh Start (returning citizens 25+ within 180 days of release or under supervision).

The organization runs training pathways in healthcare support (non-clinical roles, EHR certifications), construction and maintenance (OSHA 30, scaffold, electrical, carpentry, plumbing, masonry), and logistics, with curriculum co-developed alongside employer and community-college partners including Jefferson State Community College, the Technical College System of Georgia, Northwell Health, Building Skills NY, Americold, and DHL. STRIVE claims an 80% graduation rate, 76% employment rate, 70% long-term retention, and less than 1% recidivism across re-entry cohorts — outcomes that have been formalized through a multi-year data partnership with MDRC's Center for Data Insights producing predictive student-success analytics and an Employer Quality Index dashboard.

Funding is a mix of federal, state, and local government grants (notably 11 U.S. Department of Labor grants since 2012, including a $5 million Future Leaders award in October 2025 and a $2 million New York State construction grant in March 2025), institutional philanthropy (Truist Foundation, Blue Meridian Partners, Ballmer Group, Goldman Sachs Gives, Robin Hood Foundation, JPMorgan Chase Foundation, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Annie E. Casey Foundation, Gotham Gives), corporate partnerships (Assured Guaranty has contributed nearly $800,000 since 2018), individual giving, and special-event fundraising (2024 40th Anniversary Gala raised $1.1M; 2025 Gala raised $1M+). Revenue in fiscal year 2019 totaled $10,186,749, of which $6,506,484 was government grants. STRIVE operates 14 sites nationally including five directly owned locations in New York, Atlanta, Birmingham, New Orleans, and North Jersey, and has stated a national scaling plan to grow from 2,000 students per year to 10,000 annually by 2033, with up to 50% of students being justice-impacted.

Name

Strive

Legal name

STRIVE International Inc.

Website

https://strive.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

STRIVE International Inc. is a nonprofit founded in 1984 that delivers tuition-free workforce development programs, including career-readiness training, occupational skills, and lifetime coaching, to adults facing systemic employment barriers across five U.S. sites.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Workforce Development Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (6117), Vocational Rehabilitation Services (6243), Technical and Trade Schools (6115), Professional and Management Development Training (61143)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Employment Agencies (7361), Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPAGADAF

Workforce Readiness, Career Pathways & Youth Employment Nonprofits

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Education & Youth Development Nonprofits

SECONDARYBPAGAEAJ

Employment & Job Readiness Support Services

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Social Services & Community Support (Food, Housing, Family)

SECONDARYEDAAAKAO

Career Coaching, Mentoring & Placement Support Services

Education/Adult & Continuing Education/Career Readiness & Employability Skills (Resume, Interview, Workplace Skills)

SECONDARYEDAKANAD

Job Readiness Training & Soft Skills Development

Education/Special Education & Learning Support Services/Transition Services (Post-Secondary, Employment & Independent Living)

SECONDARYBPAGADAM

Youth Justice, At-Risk Youth & Violence Prevention Nonprofits

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Education & Youth Development Nonprofits

Keywords

• Workforce development training
• Job readiness programs
• Career coaching services
• Reentry employment support
• Vocational skills training

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Government Grants: STRIVE receives significant federal, state, and local government grants. Key grants include the U.S. Department of Labor's $5 million Future Leaders grant (2025), New York State Office of Strategic Workforce Development's $2 million construction grant, and multiple prior DOL grants totaling 11 federal grants since 2012. Government grants represented approximately $6.5 million of total revenue in 2019.
2. Individual and Corporate Donations: STRIVE raises funds through online one-time and recurring donations, checks, wire transfers, stock transfers, and bequests. Major corporate donors include Goldman Sachs Gives, JPMorgan Chase Foundation, Robin Hood Foundation, and others across various giving tiers.
3. Special Events: Annual gala events generate major fundraising revenue. The 2024 40th Anniversary Gala raised over $1.1 million and the 2025 Gala raised over $1 million.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

STRIVE is a nonprofit workforce development organization that delivers tuition-free, in-person skills training, job-readiness coaching, and lifetime career support to adults facing systemic barriers to employment. Its core services are organized around a five-pillar model: a three-week STRIVE START readiness workshop, occupational skills training in healthcare support, construction & maintenance, and logistics, job placement assistance with employer partners, ongoing career coaching, and lifetime alumni services. Programs are delivered at directly operated sites in New York, Atlanta, Birmingham, New Orleans, and North Jersey, with special focus on justice-impacted populations through the Fresh Start and Future Leaders programs.

Product overview

STRIVE offers a portfolio of tuition-free workforce development programs centered on its five-pillar model: career readiness training (STRIVE START), occupational skills training, job placement assistance, career coaching, and lifetime support. The core programs include Career Path for adults seeking job skills training, Fresh Start for justice-impacted adults aged 25+, and Future Leaders for justice-impacted young adults aged 18-24. Programs are offered through multiple U.S. sites (New York, Atlanta, Birmingham, New Orleans, North Jersey) with pathways focused on healthcare support, construction & maintenance, and logistics. The organization also operates the Powering Progress thought leadership platform and Young Professionals Network community program.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Career Path Main job skills and training program for adults facing systemic employment barriers, including the STRIVE START prerequisite workshop plus occupational skills training, career coaching, job placement, and lifelong alumni services. Offers pathways in healthcare support, office operations, and construction & maintenance. Delivered tuition-free at STRIVE sites nationwide.
• Fresh Start Comprehensive re-entry program for returning citizens aged 25+ offering case management, job training, moral reconation therapy, motivational interviewing, occupational skills training, transitional jobs, and lifetime support services. Delivered tuition-free.
• Future Leaders Multi-component workforce training program for justice-impacted young adults aged 18-24 focusing on career exploration, educational enrichment, work experience, case management, mentoring, and job placement assistance. Funded by a $5 million U.S. Department of Labor grant awarded in 2025.
• Healthcare Support & Office Operations Pathway Career pathway preparing students for healthcare non-clinical roles including dietary aide, housekeeper, patient transporter, receptionist, and unit clerk positions, with Microsoft and EHR certifications included.
• Construction & Maintenance Pathway Career pathway preparing students for construction trades with OSHA 30 certification, scaffold training, flagging, electrical, carpentry, plumbing, masonry, and green construction credentials.
• Young Professionals Network Engaged community of professionals supporting STRIVE's mission through monthly giving ($25+), volunteerism, event participation, and fundraising initiatives.

Quantifiable outcome

• 80% graduation rate; 76% employment rate; 70% long-term job retention
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core, key and minor.

• MDRC — Center for Data InsightscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023STRIVE's two-year partnership with MDRC focuses on evidence-building, replicating the WorkAdvance sector training model, developing predictive analytics toolsets, and creating an Employer Quality Index dashboard. The partnership is developing falsifiable logic models and improving STRIVE's data systems.
• Jefferson State Community CollegekeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerSTRIVE Birmingham partners with Jefferson State Community College to develop occupational skills training (OST) curriculum in logistics, construction, and telecommunications to meet real-world local employer demand.
• Urban League of Essex CountyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDonnell Hill Jr., STRIVE North Jersey's founding Executive Director, previously led workforce reentry programming at the Urban League of Essex County before returning to lead STRIVE's North Jersey expansion.
• LISC New JerseykeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) New Jersey supports STRIVE North Jersey's launch, with Executive Director Jorge Sam Cruz expressing enthusiasm for partnering to lift New Jersey residents through career opportunities.
• Newark Regional Business PartnershipkeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerFerlanda Fox Nixon of the Newark Regional Business Partnership views STRIVE's arrival as vital for creating meaningful employment opportunities for individuals facing societal barriers in the northern New Jersey community.
• Northwell HealthkeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerNorthwell Health is a key workforce partner and panel participant at STRIVE's Powering Progress event. Brian Aquart, VP of Workforce & Community Education at Northwell Health, spoke at STRIVE's launch event. STRIVE graduate Braulio was placed at Northwell.
• Building Skills NYkeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerBuilding Skills NY is a construction employer partner that has had positive experiences with STRIVE-referred candidates. Director Tatanisia Lumley reports that STRIVE fully vets and prepares candidates for their workforce needs.
• Technical College System of GeorgiakeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerSTRIVE Atlanta partners with Atlanta Technical College and Chattahoochee Technical College through the Technical College System of Georgia to provide occupational skills training, particularly in logistics and supply chain.
• Atlanta BeltLineminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSTRIVE Atlanta partners with Atlanta BeltLine to connect residents along the BeltLine's 22-mile corridor to workforce programs. Atlanta BeltLine housed STRIVE Atlanta's operations and career path training.
• JustLeadershipUSAkeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerJustLeadershipUSA's Leading with Conviction Fellowship trained Indy Easley, STRIVE Birmingham's Fresh Start Program Manager, who then led advocacy resulting in Alabama's Second Chance Month proclamation by Governor Kay Ivey in 2026.
• Birmingham Reentry AlliancekeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerSTRIVE Birmingham is a proud member of the Birmingham Reentry Alliance, which advocated for formal recognition of Second Chance Month in the City of Birmingham, resulting in a city council proclamation.
• JPMorganChasekeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerNichol King, Executive Director of Community Banking at JPMorganChase, serves as a panelist at STRIVE's Powering Progress launch event. JPMorganChase has hired STRIVE graduates and provided financial capability programming for alumni.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• America Works: National workforce development and staffing provider offering employment services to public agencies and disadvantaged job seekers. Comparable to STRIVE's Career Path and job placement operations, with shared public-sector contracting orientation and focus on welfare-to-work populations.
• The Doe Fund: New York-based nonprofit providing workforce development, transitional employment, and supportive housing primarily for individuals with criminal histories and histories of homelessness. Directly comparable to STRIVE Fresh Start on the reentry and workforce-development axis, with overlap in NYC employer network.
• Year Up: National workforce development nonprofit providing tuition-free training, corporate internships, and career placement for young adults facing opportunity gaps. Highly comparable to STRIVE's Future Leaders and Career Path programs in target population, tuition-free model, and employer-driven curriculum, with similar outcome metrics.
• Safer Foundation: Illinois-based nonprofit providing workforce development, education, and supportive services for people with criminal convictions. Directly comparable to STRIVE Fresh Start in reentry employment services model, with similar employer partnership-driven placement approach.
• Per Scholas: National tuition-free workforce development nonprofit focused on technology training for adults from underserved communities. Closely comparable to STRIVE in mission, tuition-free model, employer partnership-driven placements, and reentry/systems-impacted populations, though concentrated in IT versus STRIVE's healthcare/construction/logistics mix.
• Center for Employment Opportunities (CEO): National nonprofit providing immediate employment and workforce services to people returning home from incarceration. Directly comparable to STRIVE's Fresh Start program in reentry mission, intensive case management model, and employer-driven transitional jobs approach.
• NPower: National nonprofit providing tuition-free technology training and job placement for young adults from underserved communities and military veterans. Comparable to STRIVE in tuition-free workforce model, employer-driven curriculum, and wraparound alumni support, with similar outcome reporting to funders.

Broad incumbents

• Goodwill Industries International: Largest U.S. workforce development nonprofit operating mission-driven training and placement across many regions. Comparable to STRIVE in core mission of serving individuals facing employment barriers, but at significantly larger national scale and with a broader retail-funded social enterprise model.
• National Urban League: Large national civil rights and workforce development organization operating workforce centers and employment programs across multiple U.S. cities. Comparable to STRIVE's mission around economic empowerment for underserved communities and overlaps with STRIVE North Jersey via the Urban League of Essex County partnership.
• BrightSpring Health Services (ResCare): Large diversified provider of home and community-based health services and workforce/vocational rehabilitation programs. Comparable to STRIVE in vocational rehabilitation and employment-support services, though operating as a public company with a much broader portfolio.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/striveinternational
• Facebookfacebook.com/striveinternational
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/strive-international
• Instagraminstagram.com/strive.intl
• Xx.com/STRIVEINTL

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

Investors2 records

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Strive