What First Gen Empower does

First Gen Empower (FGE) is a U.S. 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, founded around 2019–2020 and headquartered in California, that partners with K-12 schools, colleges, graduate and professional schools, and other student-serving organizations to strengthen their institutional capacity to support first-generation, low-income, and undocumented students. Its portfolio is anchored by the Undocu-Ally Trainings (a three-part training series for staff and faculty), the BRIDGE Certification Program (a 9-week virtual course co-developed with Presidents' Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration and CUNY that certifies institutional allies), and student-facing workshops covering Know Your Rights, financial aid, college applications, career planning, and entrepreneurship. Adjacent services include personalized consulting, bi-weekly Policy Alerts, website accessibility support, and downloadable Resource Guides for California, U.S., and Best Practices advising.

The organization distributes services primarily through direct institutional engagement and a virtual cohort model, supplemented by content marketing via its First Gen Voices blog, an email newsletter (MailerLite), and organic social channels on Instagram and LinkedIn. There is no proprietary technology platform — service delivery is human-led, and the competitive advantage derives from domain expertise at the intersection of immigration law and higher education, a curated content library kept current with shifting policy, and a growing nationwide network of certified institutional allies.

FGE's revenue model is donation-driven as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization, augmented by low-cost trainings to educators, students, and parents, with one disclosed $100,000 grant from Harvard Innovation Labs in February 2023. Customer concentration sits within the Education vertical across multiple named partners (including USC, KIPP Schools, and Napa Valley Unified School District), and operations are described as nationwide across the United States.

Name

First Gen Empower

Legal name

First Gen Empower

Website

https://firstgenempower.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

First Gen Empower is a U.S. 501(c)(3) nonprofit that delivers trainings, a certification program, and student workshops to help K-12 schools, colleges, and student-serving organizations support first-generation, low-income, and undocumented students nationwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Education Support Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), Professional and Management Development Training (611430), Human Rights Organizations (813311)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

DEI, Culture & Employee Engagement Training (BPACANAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

DEI, Equity & Inclusion Training (EDABAIAF), After-School, Tutoring & Academic Enrichment Nonprofits (BPAGADAC), DEI, Equity & Inclusion Advisory (BPACAJAJ)

Keywords

• Education equity services
• Undocumented student support
• Educator training programs
• Nonprofit certification programs
• Immigration policy advising

Headquarters

HQ city

California

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and charitable contributions: As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, First Gen Empower relies on donations from individuals and organizations to fund its programs. The donation page explicitly states that contributions support low-cost trainings to educators, students, and parents.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

First Gen Empower is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that delivers training, certification, workshops, and consulting services to help K-12 schools, colleges, graduate/professional schools, and student-serving organizations support first-generation, low-income, and undocumented students. Its core offerings include the Undocu-Ally Trainings series, the BRIDGE Certification Program (9-week virtual course co-developed with Presidents' Alliance and CUNY), Student-Facing Workshops (Know Your Rights, financial aid, career pathways), Personalized Consulting, Policy Alerts, Website Support, and downloadable Resource Guides. The organization operates nationally across the United States and is funded primarily through donations.

Product overview

First Gen Empower operates as a nonprofit ecosystem of support services for first-generation, low-income, and undocumented students. The organization offers a portfolio of interconnected services centered around its core training and certification programs. The primary offerings include the Undocu-Ally Trainings (three-part comprehensive training series), the BRIDGE Certification Program (9-week virtual certification in partnership with Presidents' Alliance and CUNY), and Student-Facing Workshops covering topics from Know Your Rights to Financial Aid. These core programs are complemented by additional services including Personalized Consulting, Policy Alerts (bi-weekly updates), and Website Support. Resource Guides provide supplementary written materials for advising undocumented students. The services are designed for high schools, colleges, graduate/professional schools, and student-serving organizations nationwide.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Undocu-Ally Trainings

Quantifiable outcome

• FGE's Undocu-Ally training series includes pre-training and post-training surveys to measure knowledge gains and identify areas of knowledge gaps for each organization served.

Named customers3 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Presidents' Alliance on Higher Education and ImmigrationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFGE partnered with Presidents' Alliance and CUNY to co-develop and launch the 9-week BRIDGE Certification Program (Building Resources for Immigrant Dreams, Growth, & Empowerment). Presidents' Alliance is a national association of college and university presidents dedicated to supporting immigrant and undocumented students, making this a core strategic partnership for curriculum co-development and institutional credibility.
• CUNY (City University of New York)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFGE partnered with Presidents' Alliance and CUNY to co-develop the BRIDGE Certification Program. CUNY brings deep institutional expertise in serving immigrant and undocumented students through its CUNY Immigrant Student Success office, contributing curriculum design and pilot delivery experience to the program.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Presidents' Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration: National association of college and university presidents advancing immigrant and undocumented student support in higher education. Direct partner and co-developer of FGE's BRIDGE Certification Program, serving the same institutional buyers with overlapping mission focus on policy and training.
• Immigrants Rising: Nonprofit supporting undocumented young adults with educational, career, and entrepreneurship resources. Directly comparable in serving first-generation and undocumented students with training, resource guides, and policy expertise at the intersection of immigration and education.
• TheDream.US: National scholarship and college access organization for undocumented immigrant students. Directly comparable in mission and target beneficiary population, with a parallel focus on helping undocumented students access and succeed in higher education.
• College Possible: Nonprofit that coaches low-income and first-generation students through the college application and success journey. Directly comparable in serving first-generation and low-income students with structured support, though focused more on direct coaching than institutional training.
• uAspire: Nonprofit focused on college affordability and financial aid advising for low-income and first-generation students. Comparable in providing advising resources and institutional support to help first-generation students access and afford higher education.
• I'm First / Center for First-Generation Student Success: NASPA-affiliated initiative dedicated to advancing first-generation college student success through resources, research, and a national community. Comparable in building a national network and resource library for first-generation student success, with overlap on training and institutional capacity-building.

Emerging players

• United We Dream: Largest U.S. immigrant youth-led advocacy network, focused on policy and rights awareness for undocumented youth. Comparable in Know-Your-Rights training and policy-alert content, though UWD emphasizes advocacy and organizing rather than institutional training programs.

Broad incumbents

• National Immigration Law Center: Established national advocacy organization dedicated to defending and advancing the rights of low-income immigrants. Comparable in policy expertise and Know-Your-Rights content for the undocumented community, though NILC is broader in scope and primarily legal-policy focused.
• MALDEF (Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund): National Latino civil rights organization with a long-standing focus on educational equity and immigrant rights. Comparable in serving first-generation and Latino students with policy and educational access support, though MALDEF's scope is much broader across civil rights litigation.

Regional players

• ASPIRA Association: National nonprofit focused on Hispanic youth education and leadership development, with programs supporting first-generation college access. Comparable in serving first-generation and Latino students with educational support, with a stronger youth-development and leadership orientation.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/first-gen-empower
• Instagraminstagram.com/firstgenempower
• Facebookfacebook.com/firstgenempower

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about First Gen Empower