Thrive In Joy The Nick Fagnano Foundation

What Thrive In Joy The Nick Fagnano Foundation does

Thrive In Joy The Nick Fagnano Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization (Tax ID 47-2931858) founded in 2015 by Mary and Jay Fagnano in memory of their son Nick, who died in 2014. The foundation operates from 849 S. Broadway #810, Los Angeles, and runs two interconnected programs: the C11 Strength of Character Program and Dominican Republic Service Trips. C11 is a character education curriculum rooted in 11 of Nick Fagnano's character traits (humility, honesty, humor, perseverance, perspective, spirituality, teamwork, zest, love, kindness, and gratitude), using a diamond-from-carbon metaphor to reframe adolescent pressure as growth. The program is delivered directly inside partner high schools, with current reach across five LA-area high schools including USC Hybrid High School and University Prep Value High School, and globally through the Global Leadership Academy in Jeffreys Bay, South Africa.

The foundation's secondary offering is Dominican Republic service trips, in which volunteer teams serve alongside local young adult volunteers to support children and families in need; 20 teams have participated cumulatively since inception. A YPC11 sub-brand extends engagement to young professionals, and the foundation runs an annual events calendar including the Esperanza Entrepreneurial Fair, Thrive Your Mind, and a Summer Leadership Summit.

The organization is donor-funded, relying on individual contributions, corporate giving, and foundation grants processed through DonorPerfect, with email outreach via Constant Contact. It is governed by a board including Board Chair Elizabeth Rojas, CFO/Treasurer Hugo Sanchez, Secretary Kristine Charlotte Williams, Board Chair Emeritus Dr. Joseph LaBrie, and program and operational staff. Third-party validation includes a 2025 Charity Navigator Three-Star Rating and a Candid/GuideStar Platinum Transparency Seal. Strategic partnerships include Multiplying Good Students in Action (2019 pilot) and active school partnerships; there is no external investment, parent entity, or acquisition activity.

Name

Thrive In Joy The Nick Fagnano Foundation

Legal name

Thrive In Joy Nick Fagnano Foundation

Website

https://thriveinjoy.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Thrive In Joy is a Los Angeles-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit running the C11 Strength of Character Program in partner high schools and organizing Dominican Republic service trips, serving students from low-income communities.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Youth Character Education & Service-Learning Programs

NAICS

Educational Support Services (6117), Educational Services (611), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321)

SIC

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

akta.pro primary industry

Leadership, Character Education & Values Development (EDAMAIAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Volunteerism, Service-Learning & Community Service (EDALAHAG), Student Mentoring & Peer Support Programs (EDAJALAL), Community Foundations (BPAGAKAB)

Keywords

• Character education
• Youth development
• Service learning
• Nonprofit foundation
• Volunteer service trips

Headquarters

HQ city

Los Angeles

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. Donations and Charitable Contributions: The foundation operates as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization relying on donations from individuals, corporations, and foundations to fund its C11 character education program and Dominican Republic service trips.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

The foundation delivers character education and service-learning experiences to young people. Its primary offering, the C11 Strength of Character Program, is a school-based curriculum rooted in 11 character traits (humility, honesty, humor, perseverance, perspective, spirituality, teamwork, zest, love, kindness, gratitude), delivered in partnership with high schools that serve low-income communities in the Los Angeles area. Complementing C11, the foundation organizes volunteer service trips to the Dominican Republic and runs YPC11 engagement for young professionals.

Product overview

Thrive In Joy The Nick Fagnano Foundation operates as a character development nonprofit offering two interconnected programs: the C11 Strength of Character Program (the primary offering) and Dominican Republic Service Trips. The C11 program is a character education initiative for high schools rooted in 11 of Nick Fagnano's character traits, active in multiple LA-area high schools and globally. Dominican Republic trips allow volunteer teams to serve vulnerable children and families in partnership with local young adult volunteers. The organization also runs YPC11 as a young professionals engagement extension of the C11 program.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• C11 Strength of Character Program: Character education program for high school students based on 11 of Nick Fagnano's character traits: humility, honesty, humor, perseverance, perspective, spirituality, teamwork, zest, love, kindness, and gratitude

Products and services

• C11 Strength of Character Program Character education program for high school students built on 11 of Nick Fagnano's character traits (humility, honesty, humor, perseverance, perspective, spirituality, teamwork, zest, love, kindness, and gratitude). Delivered directly inside partner high schools serving students from low-income communities in the Los Angeles area and globally; uses the "C" represents Carbon metaphor to frame the pressures of high school as growth.
• Dominican Republic Service Trips Volunteer service trips to the Dominican Republic where teams of volunteers serve in partnership with local young adult volunteers to improve the quality of life for children and families in need. Open to high school, college, and adult volunteer teams.
• YPC11 (Young Professionals C11) Youth and young-professionals engagement initiative under the C11 umbrella that provides opportunities for young people to get involved with the foundation's mission and character-development programs.

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Multiplying Good Students in ActioncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Strategic partnership through which C11 was launched as a pilot program in 2019. Multiplying Good Students in Action provided the foundation for developing the character education curriculum that became C11 Strength of Character Program.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves3 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Multiplying Good: Youth service and leadership organization whose Students in Action division was the launch partner for C11 in 2019. Closely comparable mission, target audience (high school students), and program format.
• Random Acts of Kindness Foundation: Nonprofit providing free K-12 kindness and character curricula and resources to schools. Comparable character-education delivery model targeting similar student populations.
• Character.org: National nonprofit focused on character education in schools, including State Schools of Character recognition. Directly comparable mission of advancing character strengths in K-12 settings, with a broader national footprint than Thrive in Joy's C11 program.
• DoSomething.org: Large youth-volunteer nonprofit activating young people in service campaigns nationally. Comparable focus on engaging teens in meaningful service and character-building experiences.
• Youth Service America (YSA): National nonprofit promoting youth voice and service-learning through grants, programs, and events like Global Youth Service Day. Closely aligned with Thrive in Joy's combination of character development and service-trip programming.

Broad incumbents

• Big Brothers Big Sisters of America: Established national youth-mentoring nonprofit with significantly larger scale and infrastructure. Overlaps with Thrive in Joy's mentoring, peer-support, and character-strengthening goals for youth from underserved communities.
• Habitat for Humanity Youth Programs: Large nonprofit with established youth service-trip and build programs in the U.S. and Dominican Republic. Comparable international service-trip infrastructure in the same Dominican Republic geography Thrive in Joy operates in.
• CASEL (Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning): Leading SEL framework organization whose evidence-based competencies overlap with C11's character-strengths curriculum. Represents the dominant incumbent standard against which niche character programs are typically evaluated.

Emerging players

• WE Charity: International charity combining character/leadership education with global service-learning trips for youth. Closely comparable model to Thrive in Joy's pairing of school-based character curriculum with international service trips.
• Global Citizen Year: Nonprofit running service/leadership immersion programs for high school graduates. Comparable focus on bridging character development, leadership, and immersive service experiences for young people.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/thrive-in-joy-nick-fagnano-foundation

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

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 Thrive In Joy The Nick Fagnano Foundation