The Thriving Initiative

What The Thriving Initiative does

The Thriving Initiative is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2019 by UC Santa Barbara students, headquartered in Goleta, California. It delivers free, in-person holistic healing workshops for college students who have experienced sexual assault, dating or domestic violence, or stalking, with a core methodology that does not require participants to disclose their trauma. The keystone product is Thriving, Not Just Surviving (TNJS), a seven-week workshop series featuring yoga, art therapy, reiki, boundary work, sound healing, and journaling, run in small cohorts of 4-8 students co-facilitated by peer volunteers and credentialed community clinicians. Supporting programs include Community Cultivations (horticulture), The Painting Collective (virtual art workshops), and the Community Mural Project (an eight-week art-as-healing program culminating in a public mural in Isla Vista).

The organization operates at three California State University campuses (UCSB, SDSU, SFSU) under a student-led, peer-to-peer engagement model, with on-the-ground Program Managers in each region. It is governed by a five-person Board of Directors (chaired by Eva Casey-Velasquez) and an executive team led by co-founder and Executive Director Lauren Roberts. There is no technology platform; the offering is a human-delivered service. Revenue is composed entirely of individual donations (one-time and subscription via a DonorPerfect portal) and foundation grants, with the Straus Foundation providing the named original seed funding. Marketing relies on organic social media, a quarterly newsletter, campus partnerships, and word-of-mouth referrals; the customer base is the survivor community and, more recently, allies participating in broader community art programs.

Name

The Thriving Initiative

Legal name

The Thriving Initiative

Website

https://thethrivinginitiative.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Thriving Initiative is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that runs free, in-person holistic healing workshop series for college student survivors of interpersonal violence, with programs delivered at UCSB, SDSU, and SFSU under a student-led, peer-facilitated model.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Survivor Support and Community Healing Services

NAICS

Individual and Family Services (6241), Child and Youth Services (62411)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Youth Mental Health, Counseling & Wellbeing (Education-Linked) Nonprofits (BPAGADAK)

akta.pro secondary industry

Recreation Therapy, Stress Management & Mindfulness Programs (EDALAFAO)

Keywords

• Survivor support programs
• Holistic healing workshops
• Interpersonal violence recovery
• Trauma-informed community services
• Peer-led campus wellness

Headquarters

HQ city

Goleta

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations: The organization accepts donations from individuals through an online secure portal with options for one-time or subscription-based contributions.
2. Foundation Grants: Initial funding received from the Straus Foundation to launch the organization. Likely pursues additional grant funding for operations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Thriving Initiative delivers free, multi-week holistic healing workshop series for college student survivors of interpersonal violence. Its cornerstone program, "Thriving, Not Just Surviving" (TNJS), runs for seven weeks in small groups of 4-8 participants led by peer co-facilitators and community clinicians, integrating modalities such as yoga, art therapy, reiki, sound healing, boundary work, and journaling without requiring disclosure of trauma. Supporting programs include horticulture-based Community Cultivations, the Painting Collective, and the Community Mural Project.

Product overview

The Thriving Initiative is a nonprofit organization offering a portfolio of holistic healing programs for survivors of interpersonal violence. Its cornerstone offering is the 'Thriving, Not Just Surviving' (TNJS) seven-week workshop series, which has expanded from UCSB to additional campuses including SDSU and SFSU. Supporting programs include Community Cultivations (horticulture-based healing), The Painting Collective (art-based workshops), and the Community Mural Project. All programs are free to participants and feature peer-to-peer engagement alongside community clinicians and specialists.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Thriving, Not Just Surviving (TNJS): A free seven-week workshop series for college student survivors of interpersonal violence featuring specialist-led workshops and self-care activities.
• Community Cultivations
• The Painting Collective
• Community Mural Project

Products and services

• Thriving, Not Just Surviving (TNJS) A free seven-week workshop series for college student survivors of interpersonal violence (sexual assault, dating/domestic violence, stalking), featuring specialist-led workshops paired with self-care activities including yoga, art therapy, reiki, sound healing, journaling, and boundary work. No disclosure of trauma is required. Small groups of 4-8 students are led by peer co-facilitators and community clinicians. Offered at UCSB, SDSU, and SFSU.
• Community Cultivations A two-month-long workshop series exploring horticulture as a form of healing, offering seeds and guidance on gardening as self-care and community connection for survivors and allies.
• The Painting Collective A virtual program for survivors and allies to collaborate on community art pieces, including an eight-week art as healing program.
• Community Mural Project An eight-week art workshop series for survivors of interpersonal violence that culminated in a public mural installed at the Isla Vista Community Center, exploring themes of magic realism and non-linear time in the healing journey.

Quantifiable outcome

• Past participants reported +69% increase in sense of safety and +39% increase in belonging after the seven-week series.
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Acacia Counseling and WellnessminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvider Dr. Jean Stultz works part-time at Acacia Counseling and Wellness in Isla Vista, conducting individual and group work. The organization provides a platform for somatic-based therapy and education, potentially collaborating with the Thriving Initiative.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• National Sexual Violence Resource Center (NSVRC): Central resource center providing information, research, and technical assistance to sexual-violence prevention and response organizations. Related as an ecosystem enabler rather than direct service competitor; useful comparable for grant-funded capacity-building infrastructure in the same survivor-support space.
• End Violence Against Women International (EVAWI): Training and resource organization dedicated to strengthening institutional response to sexual assault and domestic violence. Adjacent comparable for the broader survivor-support ecosystem and training-the-trainer capacity that complements peer-led healing models like The Thriving Initiative's.

Direct peers

• RAINN: Largest U.S. anti-sexual-violence organization operating a national hotline, public-education campaigns, and campus prevention programming. Directly comparable as a survivor-support organization with national reach, though RAINN's scope is much broader than The Thriving Initiative's campus-based healing workshop model.
• Joyful Heart Foundation: National nonprofit founded to heal, educate, and empower survivors of sexual assault, domestic violence, and child abuse. Comparable for survivor-centered healing and education programming, though Joyful Heart operates a broader national portfolio versus Thriving Initiative's student-led campus model.
• SafeBAE: Student-led nonprofit focused on ending sexual violence in K-12 and college communities through peer education and survivor advocacy. Highly comparable in student-led peer-driven model and target audience of adolescent/young-adult survivors, though SafeBAE's orientation is more prevention-focused than holistic healing.
• It's On Us: Campus-focused sexual-assault prevention movement launched in 2014 with an extensive college-chapter network and student-led engagement model. Closest peer in terms of college-survivor target market and student volunteer-led GTM motion, though It's On Us focuses on prevention/bystander intervention rather than post-violence healing.
• Day One (formerly NYSCASA): New York-based nonprofit serving survivors of sexual violence through counseling, advocacy, and prevention education. Comparable on survivor-centered service model; differs by operating as a licensed clinical and advocacy provider rather than a peer-led workshop model.

Broad incumbents

• National Domestic Violence Hotline: 24/7 national hotline and resource hub serving survivors of domestic violence with crisis intervention, safety planning, and referrals. Comparable as a major established survivor-support organization; differs in operating a national crisis hotline rather than in-person healing workshops.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses6 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/ThrivingInitiative
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-thriving-initiative
• Instagraminstagram.com/thrivinginitiative/?igshid=1o29p0nm07mx1

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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 The Thriving Initiative