Razia's Ray of Hope Foundation

What Razia's Ray of Hope Foundation does

Razia's Ray of Hope Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization founded in 2007 by Razia Jan and Patti Quigley to improve the lives of Afghan girls, women, and their families through community-based education. The organization is headquartered in Wellesley, Massachusetts (P.O. Box 81052) and operates its two core educational programs - the Zabuli Education Center (a free K-6 girls' school in the rural village of Deh'Subz, approximately 30 miles northeast of Kabul) and the Razia Jan Institute (post-secondary programs in midwifery certification, teacher training, English, and computer literacy) - plus a portfolio of community support programs including Mobile Library (serving 600+ out-of-school adolescent girls), Nutrition Program, Menstrual Health & Hygiene (reaching 2,000+ girls and women), Clothing Distribution, and a Widows' Program delivered through partner Beyond the 11th. Cumulative impact since 2008 includes education for 1,000+ K-6 students. The technology stack is minimal: a Wix-hosted website, Donorbox donation processing, Stripe payment gateway, and GoFundMe integration - the operational differentiator is in-country execution in a politically constrained environment, not technology.

The organization's revenue model combines individual recurring sponsorships ($35/month or $420/year per matched student, generating annual student photos and letter exchange), general donations (one-time and recurring), and corporate/foundation grants from partners including the World Food Programme, Girls Opportunity Alliance (Obama Foundation), Tailored for Education, the Khaled Hosseini Foundation, and Beyond the 11th. Donations are processed globally through Donorbox (Apple Pay, Google Pay, PayPal, Venmo, credit card) and GoFundMe. The US team consists of approximately 9 staff members (Executive Director, Finance Manager, Development & Communications Manager, Development Associate); in-country operations are led by 41 women teachers and an Afghan administrative team headed by Principal Razia Musawir and Executive Director ZEC Zia Haidary. Leadership transitioned to Andrea Alberto (Executive Director since 2020) following founder Razia Jan's death in August 2025, with continuation of all core programs and the establishment of a Razia Jan Legacy Fund.

Name

Razia's Ray of Hope Foundation

Legal name

Razia's Ray of Hope Foundation Inc.

Website

https://raziasrayofhope.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Razia's Ray of Hope Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit founded in 2007 that provides free K-6 education, post-secondary training, nutrition, menstrual health products, and humanitarian services to Afghan girls, women, and families through the Zabuli Education Center and Razia Jan Institute in Deh'Subz, Afghanistan.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Non-Profit Education Services

NAICS

Elementary and Secondary Schools (6111), Elementary and Secondary Schools (611110), Educational Support Services (611710), Child and Youth Services (62411)

SIC

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

akta.pro primary industry

Newcomer & Refugee Student Support Programs (EDAJAGAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Lifelong Learning Institutes (Osher/OLLI-style) & Senior Academies (EDAAAMAA), Student Welfare, Pastoral Care & Safeguarding Services (EDAIAHAI)

Keywords

• Girls education nonprofit
• Humanitarian aid services
• Community education programs
• Student sponsorship programs
• Women empowerment programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Wellesley

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Monthly Sponsorship: Individual donors sponsor Afghan girls for $35/month, providing one year of education, school supplies, meals, snacks, and safe transportation. Sponsors receive annual school photos and exchange letters with their sponsored student.
2. Annual Sponsorship: Individual donors sponsor Afghan girls for $420/year, providing one year of education, school supplies, meals, snacks, and safe transportation.
3. General Donations: One-time or recurring donations from individual supporters to support the foundation's educational and humanitarian programs including nutrition, menstrual health, clothing distribution, and mobile library services.
4. Corporate and Foundation Grants: Partnership funding from organizations including World Food Programme, Girls Opportunity Alliance, Tailored for Education, and others supporting specific programs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Razia's Ray of Hope Foundation provides free K-6 education to Afghan girls through the Zabuli Education Center in the rural Deh'Subz district, approximately 30 miles northeast of Kabul. The foundation also operates the Razia Jan Institute for post-secondary education (midwifery certification, teacher training, English, and computer literacy). Supporting programs include nutrition services, menstrual health and hygiene distribution, mobile library services for out-of-school adolescent girls, clothing distribution, and economic support for Afghan widows.

Product overview

Razia's Ray of Hope Foundation operates as a non-profit educational organization providing a portfolio of programs focused on Afghan girls' education and community support. The core educational offerings include the Zabuli Education Center (K-6 all-girls school serving rural Deh'Subz since 2008) and the Razia Jan Institute (post-secondary institution offering midwifery certification, teacher training, English, and computer literacy). Supporting programs include the Mobile Library serving out-of-school adolescent girls, the Nutrition Program, Menstrual Health and Hygiene Program, Clothing Distribution, and the Widows' Program. The Student Sponsorship Program enables donors to sponsor individual students. All programs are designed to remove barriers to girls' education and support the broader community in rural Afghanistan.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• 60% enrollment increase in K-6 since Taliban return in 2021
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Tailored for EducationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 March 2024In March 2024, RRH partnered with Tailored for Education to provide all girls at Zabuli Education Center with school uniforms, socks and underwear.
• Beyond the 11thcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Partnership with Beyond the 11th, a humanitarian organization founded by Susan Retik (RRH board member) that partners with international aid groups to provide job training and economic opportunity to Afghan widows.
• Girls Opportunity AlliancecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership supporting girls' education initiatives through the Obama Foundation's Girls Opportunity Alliance program.
• World Food ProgrammecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with WFP USA supporting nutrition and food security programs for students and families.
• ForgirlsakeminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership supporting girls' education and welfare initiatives.
• Go Fund MeminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorGoFundMe platform integration for donation collection and fundraising campaigns.
• Together Women RiseminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership dedicated to global women's empowerment and education initiatives.
• Circle of SisterhoodminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership supporting efforts to end global gender-based violence and promote girls' education.
• In Her HandsminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership supporting women's empowerment initiatives through Instagram-based community.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves12 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Girl Rising: Uses storytelling, media, and partnerships to advance girls' education globally. While primarily advocacy-and-content-driven rather than school-operator, it shares RRH's storytelling-based donor acquisition and Afghan girls' education focus.

Direct peers

• Women for Afghan Women: Provides shelter, legal aid, education, and vocational training for Afghan women and girls inside Afghanistan and in diaspora. Operates comparable humanitarian-plus-education programs to RRH for the same beneficiary population.
• Skateistan: Uses skateboarding-based education to empower youth, especially girls, in Afghanistan and other low-income countries. Comparable to RRH in mission (Afghan girls' education) and in delivering non-traditional programs under Taliban-era restrictions.
• She's the First: US-based nonprofit funding girls' secondary and higher education in low-income countries, including Afghanistan partners. Operates a sponsorship-style model analogous to RRH's $35/month student sponsorship program.
• Afghan Institute of Learning: Founded by Sakena Yacoobi, AIL operates schools, learning centers, and teacher training across Afghanistan serving women and girls. It is the closest direct comparator to RRH in mission, geography, and program design for Afghan girls' education.
• LEARN Afghanistan: Provides accelerated primary education programs for out-of-school Afghan children, with a strong focus on girls. Operates inside Afghanistan under similar Taliban-era constraints, making it a direct programmatic peer to RRH.

Broad incumbents

• Room to Read: Global nonprofit operating literacy and girls' education programs across Asia and Africa. While not Afghanistan-specific, its portfolio of school libraries and girls' education programs is structurally comparable to RRH's K-6 plus Mobile Library approach.
• Malala Fund: Global girls' education advocacy and grantmaking organization founded by Malala Yousafzai. Operates at much larger scale and broader geographic remit, but shares RRH's mission focus on Afghan girls' secondary education access.
• International Rescue Committee: Large humanitarian organization delivering education, health, and protection services in crisis-affected countries including Afghanistan. Operates girls' education programs within a much larger portfolio, comparable in beneficiary scope but vastly larger in scale.

Regional players

• Educate Girls: India-based nonprofit enrolling out-of-school girls and improving learning outcomes in rural government schools. Highly comparable operating model (community mobilization, school enrollment campaigns, girls' scholarships) but in a different geography.

Market position

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/RaziasRayofHope
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/razia's-ray-of-hope
• Instagraminstagram.com/raziasrayofhope

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Subsidiaries2 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 Razia's Ray of Hope Foundation