Foundation for the Young Womens Leadership Academy

What Foundation for the Young Womens Leadership Academy does

The Foundation for the Young Women's Leadership Academy of Fort Worth (YWLA Foundation, EIN 46-4264052) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit established in 2012 to fund supplemental programming at the Young Women's Leadership Academy, a public all-girls college-preparatory school operated by Fort Worth ISD. The foundation raises money from individual donors, corporate partners, and private-foundation grants to underwrite four program lines: College Readiness (SAT/ACT prep, college advising, college tours and fairs), STEM Curriculum (robotics club "The Dork Side," visual arts and graphic-design pathways, STEM summer programs, teacher professional development), Leadership/Health & Wellness (internships, networking, etiquette, cultural events), and Alumni Support (gap funding up to $1,000 per academic year per qualifying alumna, financial counseling, mentoring, transition events). Its service population is ~468 enrolled middle and high school students (grades 6-12), of whom 68% qualify for free-and-reduced meals and 71% are first-generation college-bound, plus a 374-member alumni network currently enrolled in four-year colleges. The foundation operates as a public-private partnership with Fort Worth ISD, Young Women's Preparatory Network (YWPN), and the school itself; it has supported nine graduating classes with a reported 100% graduation rate, 100% acceptance to four-year colleges, and $85 million in cumulative merit-based awards. The foundation employs 1-10 staff, is led by Executive Director Chris Evans and Director of Programs & Operations Morgan Totten, and is governed by an 18-member Board of Directors chaired by Shoshana Thoma-Isgur (ACA Global) for 2025-2026, with officer representation from Versant Capital Management, Colonial Savings, Texas Health Resources, NBC 5 KXAS, and Bible Study Fellowship. Operations are hyper-local: a single headquarters at 401 E. 8th Street, Fort Worth, Texas 76102, with no disclosed geographic expansion beyond the Fort Worth ISD service area. No proprietary technology platform is operated; digital surface is a Squarespace website plus QGiv donation processing and a separate set of application portals (Alumni Gap Funding, Accepted College Visit, YWLA Funding Request). Revenue mechanics are donations and grants only - no commercial pricing, no earned-income streams, and no disclosed financials.

Name

Foundation for the Young Womens Leadership Academy

Legal name

Foundation for the Young Women's Leadership Academy of Fort Worth

Website

https://ywlafoundation.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The YWLA Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that raises donations and grants to fund college-readiness, STEM, leadership, and alumni-support programs for ~468 middle- and high-school girls and 374 college-enrolled alumni at the Young Women's Leadership Academy in Fort Worth ISD.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nonprofit Educational Support

NAICS

Educational Services (611), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

College Access, Scholarships & Student Success Nonprofits (BPAGADAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

STEM, Digital Literacy & Maker Education Nonprofits (BPAGADAG), After-School, Tutoring & Academic Enrichment Nonprofits (BPAGADAC), Youth Mentoring & Positive Youth Development Nonprofits (BPAGADAD)

Keywords

• Education foundation services
• Stem education programs
• College readiness programs
• Alumni support services
• Girls leadership programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Fort Worth

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: The foundation receives donations from individual donors who support young women's education and leadership development. Donors contribute to programs like college tours, robotics competitions, and STEM pathways.
2. Corporate and Foundation Grants: The foundation receives grants from private foundations and corporate partners to fund specific programs including STEM curriculum, college readiness, and leadership development.
3. Community Partnerships: Local businesses provide resources including internship opportunities, career networking events, and in-kind support for students and alumni.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Foundation for the Young Women's Leadership Academy of Fort Worth is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that raises funds through donations and grants to deliver enhancement programs for students at Young Women's Leadership Academy (YWLA), a public all-girls college-preparatory school in Fort Worth, Texas. Programs span College Readiness, STEM Curriculum, Leadership & Health & Wellness, and Alumni Support (including gap funding up to $1,000 per academic year), delivered through a public-private partnership with Fort Worth ISD and the Young Women's Preparatory Network.

Product overview

The Foundation for the Young Women's Leadership Academy of Fort Worth is a nonprofit organization that raises funds through grants and individual donations to support enhancement programs at the Young Women's Leadership Academy (YWLA). Rather than a unified software product, the foundation funds a portfolio of educational programs including College Readiness Programs, STEM Curriculum Programs (including Robotics Club 'The Dork Side'), Leadership and Health & Wellness Programs, and Alumni Support Programs (including Gap Funding and Accepted College Visit funding). These programs supplement classroom and extracurricular experiences funded by public investment from Fort Worth ISD, with the goal of achieving 100% college attendance and graduation for students.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• College Readiness Programs
• STEM Curriculum Programs
• Leadership and Health & Wellness Programs
• Alumni Support Programs
• Robotics Club (The Dork Side)

Quantifiable outcome

• 100% high school graduation rate and 100% acceptance to four-year colleges/universities across all 9 graduating classes
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Fort Worth Independent School District (FWISD)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPublic school district operating Young Women's Leadership Academy as part of Fort Worth ISD. Foundation works in public-private partnership with FWISD to enhance the public investment supporting academic and leadership excellence at YWLA.
• Young Women's Preparatory Network (YWPN)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNonprofit organization based in Dallas that works with local ISDs across Texas to open all-girls, college-preparatory leadership academies. YWPN provides network support and best practices to YWLA and partner schools. Foundation operates in same building as YWLA.
• Versant Capital ManagementminorGTM or Marketing PartnerBoard member Brittyn Brender serves as Finance Chair. Represents financial services firm engaged in foundation governance and financial oversight.
• Colonial Savings, F.A.minorGTM or Marketing PartnerBoard member Brandy Stolz serves as Governance Chair. Financial institution engaged in foundation governance.
• Texas Health ResourcesminorGTM or Marketing PartnerBoard member Bianca Randall serves as Programs & Services Chair. Healthcare system engaged in program development.
• NBC 5 KXASminorGTM or Marketing PartnerBoard member Deborah Ferguson serves as Secretary. Media partner providing visibility and community connections.
• ACA GlobalminorGTM or Marketing PartnerBoard member Shoshana Thoma-Isgur serves as Chair. Professional services firm engaged in foundation leadership.
• Gartner Inc.minorGTM or Marketing PartnerBoard member Jon DeLeo provides technology industry expertise and professional network connections.
• Bible Study FellowshipminorGTM or Marketing PartnerBoard member Erma Lee serves as Vice Chair. Faith-based organization providing community support.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• National Math and Science Initiative: NMSI expands access to advanced STEM coursework (AP math, science, computer science) in high-need high schools. Its focus on STEM college-readiness at scale overlaps with the foundation's 100% STEM curriculum and Robotics Club ("The Dork Side") investment.
• Girls Inc. Girls Inc. is a national nonprofit operating hundreds of local affiliates that deliver girl-focused programming in STEM, leadership, and college readiness. It addresses a similar demographic and mission at significantly larger scale and geographic breadth, positioning it as a broader incumbent in the same space.
• Cristo Rey Network: Cristo Rey is a national network of Catholic, college-preparatory high schools serving low-income, primarily minority students through a corporate work-study model. It is comparable in mission (college access for underserved youth) and partner-driven funding approach but operates at network scale.

Direct peers

• College Possible: College Possible deploys near-peer coaches to guide low-income high school students through college admission and persistence. Its college access curriculum, AmeriCorps coaching model, and target population closely overlap with the foundation's mission.
• Bottom Line: Bottom Line provides one-on-one college access and success advising to low-income and first-generation students from high school through degree completion. Its near-identical outcome focus (college graduation rates for first-gen students) and gap-funding-style supports make it a direct functional peer.
• iMentor: iMentor pairs low-income high school students with volunteer mentors who support them through high school graduation and into college success. Its mentoring-driven, first-gen focus aligns directly with the foundation's alumni mentoring and gap-funding model.
• College Track: College Track is a national nonprofit that supports first-generation and low-income students from high school through college graduation with college access, persistence, and career programming. It mirrors the foundation's first-gen, college-completion focus and serves a similar demographic at significantly larger scale.
• Young Women's Preparatory Network: YWPN is the parent network organization that operates and supports all-girls college-preparatory public schools across Texas, including YWLA in Fort Worth. The Foundation operates as a school-level fundraising partner within the YWPN ecosystem, making YWPN the most directly comparable network-level peer.

Regional players

• Educate Texas: Educate Texas is a statewide public-private initiative supporting college and career readiness across Texas K-12 systems. It is a regional/peer ecosystem organization addressing overlapping college-access outcomes in the same state geography.

Emerging players

• Step Up Women's Network: Step Up is a nonprofit that mentors teen girls from under-resourced communities, with a strong mentorship and professional exposure model similar to the foundation's alumni programming. It overlaps on girls' empowerment and pipeline-to-career outcomes but operates at a smaller scale than the foundation's host school.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/FoundationYWLA
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/foundationywla

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

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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 Foundation for the Young Womens Leadership Academy