Ullas Trust

What Ullas Trust does

Ullas Trust is a Chennai-headquartered non-profit CSR initiative operating under the Polaris Foundation, founded in 1997 to deliver scholarship and enrichment programs to high-school students from economically challenged backgrounds attending municipal, corporation, and government schools across India. The program is targeted at students in Classes 9 through 12 and is delivered through four metropolitan chapters in Chennai, Hyderabad, Mumbai, and Delhi, with a cumulative reach of 18,47,125 students across 1,502 schools in 115 districts, supported by 1,711 volunteers and a 9-member executive team.

Its core offerings comprise a portfolio of programs designed to address academic, life-skills, and post-school transition gaps: Touch The Soil (experiential learning), SUMMIT (leadership development), Can Do Workshop (self-efficacy and life skills), Young Leader Mentoring, Conversational English Mentoring, Career Guidance Sessions, and a Higher Education Scholarship. In 2018, the trust extended its beneficiary journey beyond Class 12 via the College Connect program, which partners with NSS units at colleges to support alumni transitioning into higher education. Program delivery is human-mediated and volunteer-led; the trust pivoted to virtual delivery during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and has retained digital channels thereafter.

The business model is grant-funded rather than commercial. Ullas Trust is sustained by CSR contributions channeled through the Polaris Foundation, with chapter leadership drawn from senior executives of Intellect Design Arena Ltd. The trust has begun to layer external NGO partnerships (Talk To Me, India Literacy Project, Mission Samriddhi) and has tested rural geographies (Rajauri in Jammu & Kashmir; Wardha and Osmanabad in Maharashtra), indicating a gradual broadening of its funding and delivery ecosystem beyond its single anchor corporate parent.

Name

Ullas Trust

Legal name

Ullas Trust

Website

https://ullastrust.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1997

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Ullas Trust is a Chennai-based non-profit CSR initiative, founded 1997, that delivers scholarships, mentoring, and enrichment programs to economically disadvantaged Class 9-12 students in government schools across four Indian metro chapters.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Youth Education Programs

NAICS

Educational Support Services (61171), Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

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

akta.pro primary industry

College Access, Scholarships & Student Success Nonprofits (BPAGADAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Scholarship & Fellowship Foundations and Trusts (EDADAHAC), After-School, Tutoring & Academic Enrichment Nonprofits (BPAGADAC)

Keywords

• Youth education programs
• Scholarship programs
• Student mentoring services
• Vocational training programs
• Higher education scholarships

Headquarters

HQ city

Chennai

HQ country

India

HQ region

Asia

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. CSR Funding: Ullas Trust is a CSR initiative under Polaris Foundation, funded by corporate social responsibility programs. The organization provides free educational services to students and does not charge beneficiaries.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Ullas Trust delivers scholarship and enrichment programs for high school students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds. Operated as a CSR initiative under Polaris Foundation since 1997, it runs programs including mentoring, vocational training, and college scholarships through a network of 1,711 volunteers across Chennai, Hyderabad, Mumbai, and Delhi, having reached over 18.47 lakh students in 1,502 schools across 115 districts.

Product overview

Ullas Trust is an educational foundation operating as a single unified program with multiple initiatives that form a complete student development lifecycle. The core programs include Touch The Soil (foundational district-level program), SUMMIT (weekend enrichment), and the annual Can Do Workshop (large-scale enrollment celebration), supplemented by Young Leader Mentoring (corporate mentorship), College Connect (NSS college partnerships), Conversational English Mentoring, Career Guidance Sessions, and Higher Education Scholarships. These interconnected programs work together to select, nurture, and support economically-challenged students from Class 9th to 12th throughout their educational journey.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Touch The Soil
• SUMMIT
• Can Do Workshop
• Young Leader Mentoring
• College Connect
• Conversational English Mentoring
• Career Guidance Sessions
• Higher Education Scholarship

Quantifiable outcome

• 18,47,125 students impacted since inception across 1,502 schools in 115 districts
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• NSS Units (SSN College, Sairam Engineering College, Narasaraopet Engineering College)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018Initiated 'College Connect' initiative partnering directly with NSS units for delivering Can Do workshops on college campuses with NSS volunteers leading delivery for students from surrounding schools.
• Polaris FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerParent organization and primary funder of Ullas Trust. Polaris Foundation established Ullas Trust as a social initiative focused on shaping young minds through education and personality development programs.
• Vidyarambam TrustminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-term partner in delivering Ullas enrichment programs (SUMMIT). Engaged with 6,000+ young minds in 10+ districts in early years, expanding to 10,000+ students from 20+ districts by 2017.
• Talent Quest for India TrustminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in delivering Ullas enrichment programs (SUMMIT), engaging with thousands of young minds across districts through the Ullas enrichment program.
• India Literacy ProjectminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to deliver virtual Career Guidance sessions for students from 10th, 11th and 12th grade during the pandemic period.
• Talk To Me NGOminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for 1-1 mentoring on 'Conversational English' for Young Leaders, launching in 2021 with approximately 30+ young leaders.
• Allegis Global Talent Management CompanyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerVirtual Young Leader Mentoring program through 1-1 and group mentoring sessions, including participation from TEKsystems group company.
• GramonnatiminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to reach students in Rajauri, J&K including 2 Army Schools and 1 Panchayat School, igniting dreams of 200+ young minds in 3 schools.
• IIT Tirupati and IIT PalakkadminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThird generation IITs trained NSS volunteers to deliver 'Can Do' workshop and Summit to young minds in 4 schools near their campus.
• Mission SamriddhicoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCluster Development program in Wardha and Lohara, Osmanabad where Ullas continued to ignite young minds from 26+ schools through NSS volunteers from 3 colleges, including 1000+ students from 26 schools.
• Intellect Design Arena LtdcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCorporate partner whose employees serve as chapter heads (Madhubhashini Avula - Head Hyderabad Chapter, Ramkumar P - Head Mumbai Chapter, Vikas Mishra - Head Delhi Chapter, Govindarajan K - Partner & Head Special Projects, Padmini Sharathkumar - Partner and Chief Talent Officer).

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Market position

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ullas-trust

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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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 Ullas Trust