STUDENTS TO SCHOLARS

What STUDENTS TO SCHOLARS does

Students to Scholars is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2014 by Jeanne Langley and headquartered in Durham, North Carolina. The organization identifies academically promising 3rd-5th grade students from historically underserved communities in Durham and Orange Counties and supports their placement and success at six local independent middle schools: Carolina Friends School, Duke School, Durham Academy, Durham Nativity School, Triangle Day School, and Trinity School. Its core program provides free academic tutoring starting in 3rd grade, application and enrollment assistance, cultural support for students and families, and ongoing academic coaching through middle school and into high school and college preparation.

The organization operates with a small staff (1-10 employees) supplemented by volunteer academic coaches drawn from Duke University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and North Carolina Central University. Supplemental programming includes a five-week summer camp at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Durham and Orange Counties featuring the Be Me Leadership Program, summer pre-college experiences at Hill Learning Center, Duke Pre-College, and the NC School of Science and Mathematics, and graduate support services including Rosetta Stone foreign language licenses and tutoring through high school. There is no proprietary technology platform; program delivery is relationship-driven and conducted through direct community engagement.

Students to Scholars is funded entirely through donations from individuals, corporations, and foundations. Donor tiers range from $50 (Friendship Circle) to $7,000 (Sponsor a Scholar), with named corporate and foundation supporters including DuPont, United Therapeutics, Red Hat, Coca-Cola of Durham, the Virkler Fund, and the Thomas Hutton fund. Services are provided free to families, with parents paying a portion of tuition directly to associate schools and committing to eight volunteer hours per year. The program has served students from its first cohort of four in 2017 to sixteen by 2020-21, with seven graduates on college-preparatory high school tracks by 2021.

Name

STUDENTS TO SCHOLARS

Legal name

Students to Scholars

Website

https://students2scholars.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Students to Scholars is a Durham, NC 501(c)(3) nonprofit that identifies promising 3rd-5th grade students from underserved communities and supports their placement and success at six local independent middle schools through free tutoring, cultural support, and coaching, funded entirely by individual, corporate, and foundation donations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Educational Support Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Academic Support & Learning Assistance (Tutoring Centers) (EDALABAF)

Keywords

• Educational support services
• Academic tutoring programs
• Independent school placement
• College preparatory pathway
• Nonprofit education equity

Headquarters

HQ city

Durham

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: Donations from individuals at various giving levels ranging from $50 (Friendship Circle) to $7,000 (Sponsor a Scholar). Contributions support program operations, tutoring, and scholar support.
2. Corporate Donations: Contributions from corporations including DuPont (laptop donations), United Therapeutics, Red Hat, Coca-Cola of Durham, and others. Major giving levels at $1,000+ to $7,000.
3. Foundation Grants: Support from foundations including Virkler Fund, Thomas Hutton, and others to sustain programs and operations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Students to Scholars provides a free, volunteer-supported program that identifies promising elementary school students from historically underserved communities in Durham and Orange Counties, NC, and prepares them to enroll in and succeed at six local independent middle schools. The offering includes academic tutoring starting in 3rd grade, application assistance, cultural support during transition, and continued academic coaching through high school and college preparation, including summer programs at Hill Learning, Duke Pre-College, and NCSSM.

Product overview

Students to Scholars operates as a single integrated nonprofit program rather than a software platform. The core S2S Program provides comprehensive educational support services including tutoring starting in 3rd grade, application assistance to six local independent middle schools, cultural support, and academic coaching. The program is supplemented by the Summer Camp Program (featuring the Be Me Leadership Program), Summer Pre-College Programs at partner institutions (Hill Learning, Duke Pre-College, NCSSM), and ongoing Graduate Support Services including Rosetta Stone access and tutoring. All services are provided completely free to families.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Core S2S Program Free program identifying promising elementary school students in Durham and Orange Counties and helping them apply to and succeed in local independent middle schools; provides tutoring starting in 3rd grade, application assistance, cultural support, and academic coaching for the college-preparatory path.
• Academic Coaching Individual academic tutoring provided by community members and university students from NCCU, Duke, and UNC to help scholars catch up to their independent school peers and thrive academically.
• Success and Support Program Comprehensive support program including individual academic coaching, cultural support for student adjustment, parental support for new school expectations, and after-school transportation to Boys & Girls Clubs.
• Summer Camp Program Five-week half-day summer program hosted at Boys & Girls Clubs in Durham where scholars practice ELA and math skills, take field trips to sponsor companies, and develop leadership skills through the Be Me Leadership Program.
• Summer Pre-College Programs Summer programs at Hill Learning for reading, math, and study skills preparation; Duke Pre-College program; and North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics Summer Accelerator to help scholars prepare for middle school.
• Graduate Support Services Ongoing academic support from individual tutors for graduates in high school, foreign language support with Rosetta Stone licenses, scholarship programs for Duke Pre-College and NCSSM, and mentoring opportunities for younger scholars.
• Be Me Leadership Program Leadership program integrated into summer camp that teaches scholars leadership skills and prepares them for future success.

Quantifiable outcome

• 60% of students return to public schools for high school, 40% opt for independent high schools
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers13 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

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

• Carolina Friends SchoolcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndependent school partner providing STEM-focused education to S2S students. Quotes from Head of School Karen Cumberbatch highlighting alignment with S2S social justice goals and commitment to educational equity.
• Duke SchoolcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndependent school partner where S2S has helped increase racial and social economic diversity. Former Head of Dave Michelman notes students have helped break down stereotypes.
• Durham AcademycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndependent pre-K-12 school focused on academic excellence and cultivation of virtue. Head of School Michael Ulku-Steiner leads the institution.
• Durham Nativity SchoolcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMiddle school for boys in grades 5-8 dedicated to nurturing students who lack means for independent school education through smaller class sizes and extended hours.
• Triangle Day SchoolcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWarm and welcoming TK-8 community devoted to academic excellence, intellectual curiosity, compassion, integrity, creativity, and confident leadership.
• Trinity SchoolcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTK-12 school within Christian faith framework teaching classical tools of learning and truth, goodness, and beauty. Head of School Chip Denton.
• Boys & Girls Clubs of Durham and Orange CountiescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAfter-school partner providing free transportation for Scholars after school. Also hosts S2S summer camp. Shared laptop donation from DuPont.
• Hill Learning CentercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvides five-week half-day summer program in reading, math, and study skills to help students prepare for new middle schools. Also provides professional tutoring for students severely behind.
• Duke Pre-CollegemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSummer experience opportunity for S2S graduates through Duke University's pre-college program.
• NC School of Science and Mathematics (NCSSM)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNCSSM Summer Accelerator program available as summer experience for S2S Scholars.
• Emily K. CenterminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHelps 8th grade students connect to high school support programs, particularly their 'Scholars to College' program.
• North Carolina Central University (NCCU)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniversity partner providing volunteer academic coaches (tutors) for S2S Scholars and graduates.
• Duke UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniversity partner providing volunteer academic coaches (tutors) for S2S Scholars and graduates. Also provides Pre-College program access.
• University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniversity partner providing volunteer academic coaches (tutors) for S2S Scholars and graduates.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• KIPP Foundation: Large national charter network serving underserved K-12 students on a college-preparatory pathway. Comparable mission and demographic; broader in scale and operates schools directly rather than placing students into existing independent schools.

Direct peers

• Breakthrough Collaborative: National network of pre-college programs that identify promising middle school students from underserved communities and provide academic enrichment, mentoring, and pathways to competitive high schools and colleges.
• A Better Chance: National nonprofit that identifies and places high-achieving students of color into leading independent schools and provides ongoing support through college. Closely comparable mission, target demographic, and school-placement-plus-coaching model to Students to Scholars.
• SEEDS (Scholarship & Education for Economic Development with Success): Nonprofit that places high-achieving, low-income students at competitive independent day and boarding schools and provides year-round academic and personal support. Strongly comparable school-placement-plus-coaching model.
• Steppingstone Foundation: Boston-based nonprofit that runs the Steppingstone Academy and partners with independent schools to recruit and prepare underserved students for placement and success — a directly analogous model in a different geography.
• Prep for Prep: New York-based nonprofit identifying high-achieving students of color and preparing them for placement at competitive independent schools. Mirrors S2S's tutoring-plus-application-support-plus-cultural-support architecture.
• NativityMiguel Network of Schools: National network of Catholic, tuition-free middle schools serving low-income students with extended day/year programming and graduate support. Durham Nativity School, one of S2S's associate schools, sits in this network, making it a closely linked peer.

Emerging players

• Cristo Rey Network: Network of Catholic high schools serving low-income students with an integrated corporate work-study model. Comparable in serving a similar demographic on the college-prep pathway; one S2S graduate (Zion) matriculated into a Cristo Rey high school.
• Horizons National Student Enrichment: Network of summer and out-of-school academic enrichment programs serving low-income K-12 students, with year-round support and a college-prep focus. Comparable summer-program-plus-year-round-coaching model.

Others

• Boys & Girls Clubs of Durham and Orange Counties: Direct service partner of Students to Scholars (provides after-school transportation and summer camp venue). Comparable youth-development mission and shared target demographic, but acts here as an ecosystem enabler rather than a competitor.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/s2sdurhamorange
• Facebookfacebook.com/Students2Scholars
• Instagraminstagram.com/students2scholars
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/students-to-scholars

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 STUDENTS TO SCHOLARS