Oasis Center
Oasis Center is a Nashville-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1969, operating 20+ integrated youth programs — including 24/7 crisis services, housing, college access, and LGBTQ+ support — serving more than 3,500 youth and families annually across Middle Tennessee.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1969
- HeadquartersNashville, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Oasis Center does
Oasis Center is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1969 and headquartered at 1704 Charlotte Avenue, Suite 200, Nashville, Tennessee. The organization delivers integrated youth services across Middle Tennessee, operating 20+ programs that span 24/7 crisis intervention (hotline 615-327-4455), emergency shelter, street outreach, transitional and permanent supportive housing (including 19 units at Fisk Court Apartments operated with Urban Housing Solutions), the Oasis College Connection college access program (Nashville's largest, serving ~1,500 students annually), workforce development via Oasis Transitions, mental health counseling, LGBTQ+ programming (Just Us, Becoming Us, Students of Stonewall), arts (Underground Art Studio), and youth civic leadership (Mayor's Youth Council, founded 1999). In 2025 the organization reported 2,819 youth supported and more than 3,500 youth and families engaged annually, with a relationship-centered philosophy that positions youth as stakeholders rather than passive recipients.
The underlying technology is modest and primarily communications-oriented: a WordPress-based website, Vimeo-hosted storytelling videos, email newsletter, and Instagram presence. There is no proprietary platform, no public API, no disclosed AI/ML components, and no software product. Service delivery runs through three primary physical nodes — the Youth Opportunity Center headquarters, the VOICE Center (opened 2024) co-located with the Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency, and Fisk Court Apartments — supplemented by embedded presence in Metro Nashville Public Schools and Nashville State Community College campuses, street outreach, and the crisis hotline.
The revenue model is a diversified nonprofit funding stack with no fees charged to end users. Income derives from federal grants (HHS/FYSB, HUD, DOL — including the $1.7M/year Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program), Tennessee state agency grants (DCS, DMHAS, OCJP), Metro Nashville government, foundation/corporate/civic/faith-based giving (including Cummins, Nissan Foundation, UBS, State Farm, Together Credit Union, United Way), individual donations, and event-based fundraising (annual "Only in Nashville" fundraiser, virtual campaigns). GTM is community-led and event-driven, not sales-driven: youth are reached via direct service, school partnerships, civic events, and word-of-mouth, with marketing primarily through the website, email, social media, and earned media.
Oasis Center firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Oasis Center
- Legal name
- Oasis Center Inc.
- Website
- https://oasiscenter.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1969
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- Oasis Center is a Nashville-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1969, operating 20+ integrated youth programs — including 24/7 crisis services, housing, college access, and LGBTQ+ support — serving more than 3,500 youth and families annually across Middle Tennessee.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Oasis Center industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Youth Social Services
- NAICS
- Child and Youth Services (62411)
- SIC
- Services-Social Services (8300)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Community Centers & Neighborhood Support Services (BPAGAEAL)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Youth Housing, Foster Care & Wraparound Support (Education-Linked) Nonprofits (BPAGADAO)
Keywords
Where Oasis Center is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Nashville
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices3 records
Markets served
Oasis Center business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain
Revenue model
- Government grants: Major public funding from federal agencies (US Department of Labor-Employment and Training Administration; US Department of Health and Human Services-Family and Youth Services Bureau; US Department of Housing and Urban Development), state agencies (Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services; Tennessee Department of Children's Services; Tennessee Office of Criminal Justice Programs), and local government (Metropolitan Government of Nashville/Davidson County). Active federal grants include 90YO2482-01-00 (Outreach), 90CY7420-01-00 (Emergency Shelter), and 90CY7607-01-00 (Prevention) from FYSB/ACF/HHS.
- Individual donations: Donations from community members used to support general operations and specific programs. Donor names may be publicly recognized unless anonymity is requested. Donor personal information is kept confidential and never sold or traded.
- Foundation, corporate, civic, and faith-based giving: Funding from foundations, churches, corporate and civic groups, and United Way. Includes corporate partners (e.g., Cummins provided a grant for Rapid Rehousing holiday party gifts; Predators sponsored mountain bike team uniforms).
- Special fundraising events: Annual fundraiser ("Only in Nashville") and other community events. During COVID-19, a virtual campaign raised $90,000 in 90 hours.
- Federal Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program (YHDP): $1.7M annual federal grant brought to Nashville through YHDP to serve youth and young adults experiencing homelessness, the largest opportunity in Nashville's history to address youth homelessness.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Pay-as-you-go | Free services to youth and families |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels7 records
Oasis Center product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Oasis Center is a Nashville-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit that delivers a portfolio of free youth development programs to young people and families in Middle Tennessee. Its offering includes 24/7 crisis intervention, emergency shelter and housing support, college access mentoring, workforce development, LGBTQ+ affirming programs, arts and cycling programs, and civic engagement, all delivered through a Youth Opportunity Center, partner sites, schools, and a 24/7 crisis hotline.
Product overview
Oasis Center is a Nashville-based nonprofit organization that operates a platform of integrated youth services rather than a single unified product. The offering is organized around core crisis and housing programs (24/7 Crisis Services, Emergency Shelter, Outreach Center, Crisis to Housing, Rapid Rehousing, Oasis Prevention) and a parallel set of educational, workforce, arts, identity-based, and civic engagement programs (Oasis College Connection, Oasis Transitions, Oasis Bike Workshop, Oasis Mountain Bike Team, Underground Art Studio, International Teen Outreach Program (ITOP), Just Us, Becoming Us, Students of Stonewall, Mayor's Youth Council, REAL, Clinical Counseling Services, WeCity/WeCity Week, Building Bridges, Maptivists, Nashville PASSAGE, Wyman's TOP, Action & Advocacy, WeGo Youth Action Team, and GEAR UP Nashville). Together these programs form a comprehensive youth development portfolio serving more than 3,500 youth and families annually across Middle Tennessee, with programs complementing one another across crisis response, college access, workforce readiness, the arts, LGBTQ+ support, and youth voice/leadership initiatives.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Oasis College Connection (OCC): Nashville's largest college access program for low-income, New American, and first-generation college students, serving around 1,500 young people annually.
- Oasis Transitions
- Oasis Bike Workshop
- Just Us
- REAL (Reaching Excellence As Leaders)
- Mayor's Youth Council (MYC)
- Youth Opportunity Center
Products and services
- 24/7 Crisis Services Around-the-clock crisis intervention hotline (615-327-4455) providing immediate assistance for young people in crisis in Middle Tennessee.
- Emergency Shelter Safe shelter for youth experiencing homelessness where they can heal, work toward long-term solutions, and build community.
- Outreach Center Street outreach and drop-in services for young people experiencing homelessness, providing food, snack packs, winter supplies, shelter referrals, and wellness checks.
- Crisis to Housing (C2H) Crisis-to-housing service providing a safe, warm place for young people experiencing homelessness during extreme weather and connecting them with ongoing housing support.
- Rapid Rehousing Program helping families move into new homes through case management, life and employment skills, art activities, and holiday support such as clothing donations through grants from Cummins.
- Oasis Prevention Prevention services for youth and families, including the "Could Be Fun" hands-on hobby exploration workshop focused on self-care and creativity in free time.
- Oasis College Connection (OCC) Nashville's largest college access program serving around 1,500 low-income, New American, and first-generation college students annually, with FAFSA assistance, course registration, mentoring at Nashville State Community College campuses, and TN Promise support.
- Oasis Transitions Workforce readiness and employment program placing youth in paid internships and supporting hospitality training, including oversight of the Mayor's Office Opportunity NOW summer youth employment initiative's South Central Zone.
- Fisk Court Permanent Supportive Housing Permanent supportive housing in partnership with Urban Housing Solutions providing 19 units for youth experiencing homelessness adjacent to Oasis Center, with Oasis delivering case management, life and employment skills, and wraparound services.
- Oasis Bike Workshop Year-round earn-a-bike program founded in 2009 where young people learn to build and maintain their own bike, which they keep at the end of the workshop; includes in-school workshops at Metro schools.
- Oasis Mountain Bike Team
Quantifiable outcome
- 2,819 youth found support at Oasis Center in 2025
- +7 more outcomes
Companies that use Oasis Center
Customer profileSegments7 records
Ideal customer profiles5 records
Oasis Center technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Oasis Center partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
18 partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.
- Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency (MDHA)flagshipCo-developed the VOICE Center (Valuing Opportunities, Inclusion and Connectivity for Everyone), a one-stop service center providing MDHA Resident Services and nonprofit partner resources to residents of Napier Place and Sudekum Apartments. Oasis Center operates a micro drop-in space for youth ages 10-17 with afterschool education assistance, truancy prevention, arts/cultural enrichment, mentoring, and wraparound referrals. Grand opening attended by Mayor Freddie O'Connell and TN Department of Labor Deputy Commissioner Dewayne Scott.
- Urban Housing SolutionscorePartnership to provide 19 units of permanent supportive housing at Fisk Court Apartments for youth experiencing homelessness, adjacent to Oasis Center. Oasis delivers case management, life and employment skills development, and wraparound services to Fisk Court residents, including cooking classes, community dinners, and shared meals.
- Vanderbilt UniversitycorePartnership on Vanderbilt's Longitudinal Study of Youth Safety and Well-Being through Oasis's Maptivist community mapping research and action team. Youth collect community input and develop a comprehensive dataset on youth experience in Nashville.
- CumminsminorProvided a grant that funded gifts of clothing for children of families served by the Rapid Rehousing program at the 2024 holiday party.
- Nashville State Community CollegecoreHosts Oasis College Connection Resource Centers on its Main and Southeast campuses; co-hosted orientation with GEAR UP Nashville for incoming students on FAFSA assistance, course registration, parking pass/school ID issuance.
- GEAR UP NashvillecoreCo-hosts orientation events for incoming Nashville State Community College students alongside Oasis College Connection, serving 41 first-time freshmen between two sessions.
- UBSminorDonated Just Us mobile library on wheels to support LGBTQ+ book collection. Also has board representation (Marek Kwasniewski).
- Nashville Tree FoundationminorDonated trees to ITOP service project at Margaret Allen and JFK Middle Schools and provided planting instruction.
- Root NashvilleminorDonated magnolia and black gum trees for joint service project to beautify the Youth Opportunity Center.
- Cumberland River CompactminorProvided gloves, tools, and tree-planting instruction for Just Us/Becoming Us service project; also hosts WeCity Week youth leadership training camp at its Bridge Building event space.
- The Stonewall Inn Gives Back Initiative (SIGBI)corePartnership with SIGBI and five other LGBTQ+ agencies across the country; Students of Stonewall youth action and advocacy team helps develop a formal LGBTQ+ Safe Space designation for public venues and businesses. Includes virtual roundtable with SIGBI founder and co-owner of the Stonewall Inn Stacy Lentz.
- WeGo Public TransitcoreCollaboration with the WeGo Youth Action Team (YAT) addressing barriers impacting youth mobility in Nashville; youth transit research and field visits.
- Education Trust of TennesseeminorCommunity leader participant in WeCity Week youth leadership training camp dialogue on systems and systemic change.
- TN Disability CoalitionminorCommunity leader participant in WeCity Week youth leadership training camp dialogue on systems and systemic change.
- Nashville Predators (NHL)minorSponsored Oasis Mountain Bike Team uniforms (pink and black) for the MTB State Championships season.
- Hume-Fogg Academic High School and School for Science and Math at VanderbiltminorPartner schools supporting Oasis College Connection counseling and college access services.
- Riddim N SpiceminorPartnered with Underground Art Studio at Oasis on Creating Justice program to design and paint a mural for an Art Wall at the restaurant's North Nashville property, with input from community residents.
- Frist Center for the Visual Arts (now Frist Art Museum)minorInvited Oasis staff and youth to participate in community art project creating beaded statement blankets featured in Nick Cave performance on April 6, 2018.
Scale indicators10 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Oasis Center competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Martha O'Bryan Center: Nashville-based anti-poverty nonprofit offering youth education, college access, workforce, and family services — directly comparable to Oasis Center in mission, target population (low-income Nashville youth/families), and program mix.
- Monroe Harding: Nashville nonprofit serving youth experiencing foster care, homelessness, and trafficking with housing, education, and life-skills programs — directly comparable in target population (vulnerable Nashville youth), housing/crisis services, and college/career focus.
- Boys & Girls Clubs of Middle Tennessee: Regional youth-development nonprofit operating club-based after-school, college/career, and character programs across Middle Tennessee — directly comparable in target audience (TN youth), program mix, and reliance on corporate/foundation funding.
- YWCA of Nashville & Middle Tennessee: Nashville-based nonprofit providing crisis services, housing, and youth programming including a Girls Inc. center — directly comparable in serving women, youth, and families through crisis, housing, and education programs in the same region.
- Room In The Inn: Nashville nonprofit providing shelter, meals, and recovery services to people experiencing homelessness — directly comparable on the housing/homelessness service line, including congregate and transitional programs for vulnerable Nashvillians.
- Big Brothers Big Sisters of Middle Tennessee: Youth-mentoring nonprofit serving Middle Tennessee children and teens with one-to-one mentoring and education support — directly comparable in mission (youth development) and reliance on volunteers, individual giving, and corporate partners.
Emerging players
- tnAchieves: Statewide Tennessee college-access and scholarship nonprofit tied to TN Promise — comparable to Oasis College Connection in serving first-generation and low-income TN students with mentoring and college enrollment support.
- GLSEN: National LGBTQ+ youth education and advocacy organization — comparable to Oasis Center's Just Us, Becoming Us, and Students of Stonewall programs in serving LGBTQ+ youth, including safe-space designation and advocacy work.
Broad incumbents
- National Safe Place Alliance: National youth-safety network providing shelter, crisis intervention, and runaway/homeless youth services — broadly comparable to Oasis Center's crisis hotline, Emergency Shelter, and Runaway/Homeless Youth programming as a national umbrella.
Others
- Urban Housing Solutions: Nashville nonprofit housing developer operating Fisk Court (Oasis Center's supportive housing partner) — a close ecosystem partner and adjacent comparable in the youth homelessness housing infrastructure space.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Oasis Center social profiles
Digital presenceOasis Center compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance7 records
Oasis Center financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Oasis Center leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles8 records
Oasis Center subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Oasis Center funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds2 records
Investors2 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Oasis Center M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Oasis Center
What does Oasis Center do?
Oasis Center is a Nashville-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit that delivers a portfolio of free youth development programs to young people and families in Middle Tennessee. Its offering includes 24/7 crisis intervention, emergency shelter and housing support, college access mentoring, workforce development, LGBTQ+ affirming programs, arts and cycling programs, and civic engagement, all delivered through a Youth Opportunity Center, partner sites, schools, and a 24/7 crisis hotline.
Is Oasis Center a public or private company?
Oasis Center is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Oasis Center founded?
Oasis Center was founded in 1969. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Oasis Center based?
Oasis Center is headquartered in Nashville, United States, in the North America region.
How does Oasis Center make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. Government grants are the primary driver. The others are individual donations, foundation, corporate, civic, and faith-based giving, special fundraising events and federal Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program (YHDP).
Who are Oasis Center's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Martha O'Bryan Center, Monroe Harding, Boys & Girls Clubs of Middle Tennessee, YWCA of Nashville & Middle Tennessee, Room In The Inn and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Middle Tennessee. Emerging players are tnAchieves and GLSEN. National Safe Place Alliance is listed as a broad incumbent. Urban Housing Solutions is listed as an others.
Does Oasis Center have an API?
No public API is recorded for Oasis Center.
What industry is Oasis Center in?
Oasis Center's product category is Youth Social Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAGAEAL, Community Centers & Neighborhood Support Services, with a secondary code of BPAGADAO, Youth Housing, Foster Care & Wraparound Support (Education-Linked) Nonprofits. Its NAICS code is 62411 and its SIC code is 8300.