Minds Matter

What Minds Matter does

Minds Matter National, Inc. is a U.S. private nonprofit founded in 1991 in New York City that runs an intensive three-year academic mentoring program for accomplished high school students from low-income families. The organization is incorporated in New York, headquartered at 1120 Avenue of the Americas in Manhattan, and operates through a chapter-based delivery model across 14 U.S. cities (NYC, Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Portland, San Francisco, Seattle, Twin Cities, Washington D.C.), each delivering the program in person via weekly sessions, two-volunteer mentor pairings, SAT/ACT preparation, college counseling, and two fully-funded summer programs at partner colleges. Minds Matter does not develop proprietary technology products; service delivery is volunteer-powered and human-led, with 2,200+ volunteers supporting 800+ students annually across all chapters.

The program is provided free of charge to students and families. Reported outcomes include a 100% four-year college acceptance rate for program graduates, over 70% attendance at U.S. News top 100 colleges, over 90% four-year college completion among alumni, and a 17-to-1 social return on investment per a Columbia University study. The organization is governed by a National Board of Directors with semi-autonomous chapter leadership councils and local executive directors; two co-founders remain active (Leanne Huebner, Board Co-Chair and Co-Founder).

Revenue is sourced entirely from charitable contributions: individual donations (suggested $50/month), foundation grants (notably $1.2 million from 100 Women in Finance in 2016 and a $375,000 matching grant from The Pershing Square Foundation beginning 2012), corporate sponsorships, and chapter-level annual fundraising galas (recent galas have raised between $85,000 in Chicago and more than $200,000 in Denver and NYC). The organization has received media recognition from The New York Times, The Dr. Oz Show, the L'Oréal Paris Women of Worth program, the Points of Light Foundation, and the Los Angeles Business Journal, and holds a Candid Gold Seal of Transparency (renewed 2026).

Name

Minds Matter

Legal name

Minds Matter National, Inc.

Website

https://mindsmatter.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1991

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Minds Matter is a U.S. nonprofit founded in 1991 that runs an intensive three-year academic mentoring and college-prep program for accomplished low-income high school students, delivered free of charge through 14 chapters nationwide and powered by 2,200+ volunteers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Youth Education Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (6117), Child and Youth Services (62411)

SIC

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

akta.pro primary industry

Behavioral Support & Intervention Services (PBIS/Behavior Coaching) (EDAJALAH)

Keywords

• College access programs
• Youth mentoring services
• Nonprofit education programs
• Test preparation services
• College readiness support

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices14 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: Individual donors contribute to support students. Suggested donation of $50/month for supporters.
2. Foundation Grants: Major grants from foundations including $1.2 million from 100 Women in Finance, $375,000 matching grant from The Pershing Square Foundation, and seed funding from The Taubman Foundation for Detroit chapter.
3. Corporate Sponsorships and Galas: Annual fundraising galas across chapters (Chicago raised $85,000, Denver raised $200,000+, NYC raised $200,000+, San Francisco raised $136,000). Corporate partners sponsor events and programs.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Minds Matter delivers an intensive three-year academic mentoring program for accomplished high school students from low-income families. The program pairs each student with two volunteer mentors and provides SAT/ACT preparation, college application counseling, writing instruction, and two fully-funded summer academic programs at colleges and universities. All services are provided free of charge to students and families.

Product overview

Minds Matter offers a single, unified three-year academic mentoring program as its core product. The program provides comprehensive college access support including SAT/ACT test preparation, one-on-one mentor matching (two mentors per student), college admission counseling, and two fully-funded summer academic programs at colleges nationwide. All services are provided at no cost to students from low-income families.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Three-Year Academic Mentoring Program An intensive three-year college access program for accomplished high school students from low-income families. The program pairs each student with two volunteer mentors, delivers SAT/ACT preparation, college application and scholarship counseling, writing instruction, and sends students to two fully-funded summer academic programs at colleges and universities, all at no cost to participants.

Quantifiable outcome

• 100% of Minds Matter program graduates are accepted to 4-year colleges
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers8 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

Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor, core and major.

• Portland Community CollegeminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 September 2024Provided classroom space at Hillsboro campus (about 20 miles from Portland) for Minds Matter Portland's second program site, enabling 8 students as inaugural class.
• SAY DetroitcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 26 March 2024Essential community center in Detroit that houses and supports the expansion of Minds Matter Detroit chapter.
• Los Angeles Dodgers FoundationmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2018Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation partnered with Minds Matter Los Angeles for College Signing Day celebration and 2018 College and Career Accelerator program.
• University of Colorado Denver (CU Denver)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 May 2017Historic partnership with Minds Matter Colorado guaranteeing college admission and scholarships to all Minds Matter students who satisfy graduation requirements. Students receive conditional admission to CU Denver along with commitment to assist in applying for scholarships and financial aid.
• Perkins CoieminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 6 April 2016Generously donated space for Minds Matter Seattle chapter meetings for three years, supporting initial chapter operations.
• Hogan LovellsminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 30 March 2016Provided space for Minds Matter Washington, D.C. chapter sessions, supporting the chapter's launch.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• QuestBridge: National nonprofit connecting high-achieving, low-income high school students to top colleges and universities through scholarships and a college-match program. Directly comparable to Minds Matter in mission, target population, and selective-college outcome focus.
• College Possible: National nonprofit providing near-peer coaching to low-income high school students on college access, ACT/SAT prep, and college persistence. Comparable service model and beneficiary population to Minds Matter's three-year mentoring program.
• College Track: College-access and persistence organization serving first-generation students from high school through college graduation across multiple U.S. regions. Comparable multi-year, multi-city college access model to Minds Matter.
• iMentor: National nonprofit pairing low-income high school students with adult volunteer mentors for one-on-one college access support. Highly comparable mentoring-driven service model to Minds Matter.
• Bottom Line: Nonprofit providing one-on-one college access and persistence advising to first-generation students from low-income backgrounds. Comparable target population and direct-service advising model to Minds Matter.
• The Posse Foundation: National college-access and leadership program that recruits cohorts of high-achieving students from urban high schools and places them at selective colleges. Comparable selective-college mission and outcome focus to Minds Matter.
• Let's Get Ready: Nonprofit offering SAT prep, college advising, and mentoring to low-income high school students. Closely comparable tutoring, mentoring, and college-counseling offering to Minds Matter's core program.
• uAspire: National nonprofit focused on college affordability advising and persistence support for low-income students. Comparable college-access mission and direct-service advising model to Minds Matter.

Emerging players

• Matriculate: Nonprofit providing remote college-access advising and mentoring to high-achieving low-income high school students. Comparable targeted mission with a tech-enabled advising twist that contrasts Minds Matter's in-person model.

Broad incumbents

• Big Brothers Big Sisters of America: Largest U.S. youth mentoring nonprofit, broadly serving youth outcomes including education. Overlaps with Minds Matter in volunteer mentor recruitment and youth-development mission, though broader in scope.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/mindsmatternational
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/minds-matter
• Instagraminstagram.com/mindsmatternatl
• Xx.com/mindsmatternatl

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 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 Minds Matter