Partnership for Education Advancement

What Partnership for Education Advancement does

Partnership for Education Advancement (Ed Advancement) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2018 and headquartered in New York, with an additional office in Washington, D.C. The organization provides free operational and technology solutions to Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in the United States, having launched 335 projects and reached approximately 147,000 students across its partner base. As of the most recent reporting, 31 HBCUs are committed partners, with specific initiatives extending program-level support to 40–60+ institutions. The organization operates with a small team of 11–50 employees, roughly one-quarter of whom are HBCU graduates.

The organization's core product is the Front Porch Portal, a customized student-facing platform built on the Slate CRM (Technolutions) backbone and tailored for HBCU enrollment, financial aid, and student-success workflows. Adjacent offerings include a Mainstay-powered AI chatbot deployed across partner campuses and the Raftr digital engagement platform, used to drive student connection and retention. Underlying technology is largely a stack of best-in-class third-party platforms (Slate for CRM, Mainstay for chatbot, Raftr for engagement) configured with HBCU-specific business logic and Federal Student Aid policy expertise.

Ed Advancement's business model is philanthropic: services are delivered at zero direct cost to partner HBCUs, funded primarily by Blue Meridian Partners (cumulative $184M committed across 2022–2023, including $60M in 2022 and $124M in September 2023), with supplementary support from the Capital One Foundation and other funders. The organization was co-founded by James Runcie (former COO of Federal Student Aid) and Tony James (former EVP Chairman of Blackstone); its board includes former U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan. Distribution is anchored by partnerships with UNCF, the Thurgood Marshall College Fund (TMCF), and the U.S. Department of Education, the last via a June 2024 FAFSA simplification collaboration.

Name

Partnership for Education Advancement

Legal name

Partnership for Education Advancement

Website

https://edadvancement.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Partnership for Education Advancement is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides free operational and technology solutions to Historically Black Colleges and Universities, including a customized Slate CRM-based student portal, AI chatbot, and digital engagement tools.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Higher Education Support Services

NAICS

Educational Services (611), Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Management Consulting Services (8742), Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design (7373)

akta.pro primary industry

College Access, Scholarships & Student Success Nonprofits (BPAGADAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Education Partnerships for Equity, Inclusion & Gender (EDADALAF), STEM, Digital Skills & Innovation Partnerships (EDADALAJ)

Keywords

• Higher education technology
• HBCU institutional support
• Student success services
• Enrollment management solutions
• Educational consulting services

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Philanthropic Support / Charitable Donations: Ed Advancement is supported entirely by philanthropic foundations and individuals. Services are provided to partner institutions free of charge. Start-up costs associated with implementing new procedures—including software implementation costs—are also covered by the organization. This is made possible through generous philanthropic support.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Partnership for Education Advancement (Ed Advancement) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides operations- and technology-focused solutions to Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) at no cost. Core offerings include the Front Porch Portal unified data platform, a HBCU-tailored customization of the Slate CRM, AI chatbot/SMS messaging via Mainstay, the Raftr digital engagement platform, and consulting/staffing support for financial aid packaging and enrollment management. All services are funded by philanthropic foundations and provided free of charge to partner institutions, with start-up and implementation costs covered by the organization.

Product overview

Ed Advancement is a nonprofit organization that provides technology solutions to HBCUs rather than a commercial product company. The organization's main technology offering is the Front Porch Portal, a web-based unified data platform built on Slate CRM that provides students with consolidated access to college-related resources including schedules, grades, financial aid, housing, and campus events. Ed Advancement also developed customized CRM solutions for HBCUs, offers AI-powered chatbot and SMS messaging services through Mainstay for 24/7 student support, and provides the Raftr digital engagement platform for campus communities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Front Porch Portal: A web-based unified data platform that provides students with flexible, convenient access to college-related resources. Built on top of Ed Advancement's customized Slate CRM, it allows students to access schedules, grades, housing information, financial aid, and more through a single-sign-on interface.

Products and services

• Front Porch Portal A web-based unified data platform that provides students at partner HBCUs with consolidated, single-sign-on access to college-related resources including schedules, grades, financial aid, housing, and campus events in a mobile-friendly interface. Built on top of Ed Advancement's customized Slate CRM, it consolidates information from multiple campus systems into one dashboard and can be deployed in as little as a few days for core functionality with full implementation in approximately three months.
• HBCU-Tailored CRM (Slate) A customized Customer Relationship Management platform built on the Slate (Technolutions) CRM, specifically tailored for HBCUs to address gaps in operations, technology, and processes from recruitment through alumni giving. Implemented at multiple partner HBCUs through philanthropic funding to improve enrollment, student success, fundraising, and general operations.
• AI Chatbot and SMS Messaging Service (Mainstay) A managed-service AI chatbot and SMS messaging solution provided through Mainstay that delivers 24/7 automated student support to HBCU campuses. Pilot institutions saved over 300 staff hours on average in the first quarter and handled over 50,000 messages.
• Raftr Digital Engagement Platform A campus-branded mobile engagement platform provided through Raftr that helps HBCU students discover and access campus resources, fostering community and a sense of belonging. Pilot deployment at seven schools produced over 1,000 student users and over 3,000 chat messages exchanged.
• FAFSA Consulting and Staffing Support (Better FAFSA) Consulting and staffing services provided to HBCU partner institutions to help them assemble and deliver financial aid packages through the Better FAFSA rollout. As of June 2024, Ed Advancement worked with more than 60 colleges across the country on FAFSA support.

Quantifiable outcome

• Front Porch Portal: 100% of participating students in design sessions said they would regularly use a single, centralized platform to access critical information.
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers24 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

• UNCF (United Negro College Fund)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUNCF is the nation's largest and most effective minority education organization. Together with TMCF and Ed Advancement, UNCF co-leads the HBCU Transformation Project to increase HBCU health and sustainability, improve student outcomes in retention and graduation rates, expand enrollment, and increase capacity building with faculty and staff.
• Thurgood Marshall College Fund (TMCF)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTMCF is the nation's largest organization exclusively representing the Black College Community, representing publicly supported HBCUs and Predominantly Black Institutions. Together with UNCF and Ed Advancement, TMCF co-leads the HBCU Transformation Project.
• The Bridgespan GroupsupportingOthersThe Bridgespan Group is a global nonprofit that advises nonprofits and philanthropists. Their logo appears in Ed Advancement's network of partners supporting HBCU advancement.
• MDRCsupportingOthersMDRC is a nonprofit, nonpartisan education and social policy research organization. Their logo appears in Ed Advancement's network of partners supporting HBCUs.
• Mayer BrownsupportingOthersMayer Brown is a global law firm. Their logo appears in Ed Advancement's network of partners supporting HBCU advancement.
• U.S. Department of EducationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Department of Education identified Ed Advancement as a core partner for their FAFSA College Support Strategy to provide additional capacity to HBCUs to process financial aid awards as quickly as possible amid the delayed rollout of Better FAFSA. Ed Advancement joined the Department's formal effort and investment to support institutions serving high proportions of federal aid recipients.
• Slate (by Technolutions)coreTechnology or IntegrationSlate is a highly customizable CRM platform specifically tailored for higher education. Ed Advancement developed a customized version of Slate for HBCUs following extensive discovery processes with HBCU leaders. The Front Porch Portal connects to an institution's existing Slate CRM, adding functionality without additional costs.
• Mainstay (AI Chatbot)supportingTechnology or IntegrationMainstay provides a managed service AI chatbot and SMS messaging service that Ed Advancement piloted with three partner HBCUs, providing 24/7 student support and saving hundreds of staff hours. The solution was extended to ten additional institutions.
• RaftrsupportingTechnology or IntegrationRaftr is a digital engagement platform offered to partner institutions to increase awareness of campus resources and foster a sense of belonging. The campus-branded mobile platform was piloted among seven schools with high adoption rates.
• Complete College AmericasupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerComplete College America is a national nonprofit focused on college completion. They co-hosted the AI & Education convening with Ed Advancement and Axim Collaborative in October 2024 at Harvard and MIT.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• InsideTrack: InsideTrack provides student coaching and success services to colleges and universities, with a focus on supporting underrepresented and non-traditional student populations. Like Ed Advancement, it aims to improve enrollment, persistence, and graduation outcomes through technology-enabled, individualized support, and serves a similar institutional customer profile.
• United Negro College Fund (UNCF): UNCF is the nation's largest minority education organization supporting HBCUs through scholarships, capacity-building, and advocacy, and is Ed Advancement's coalition partner in the HBCU Transformation Project. Both organizations serve the same HBCU institutional base and pursue shared goals of HBCU sustainability and student success, although UNCF focuses on scholarships and member services rather than operations/technology.
• Ruffalo Noel Levitz: RNL is the leading commercial provider of enrollment management, student success, and fundraising solutions for colleges and universities. Like Ed Advancement, it delivers consulting, software, and managed services focused on enrollment, retention, and student outcomes, though RNL operates on a paid commercial model across a broader institutional base.
• Thurgood Marshall College Fund (TMCF): TMCF is the largest organization representing the Black college community, including publicly supported HBCUs and Predominantly Black Institutions. It co-leads the HBCU Transformation Project with Ed Advancement and UNCF, serving the same institutional base with overlapping goals of HBCU sustainability and student outcomes, though TMCF focuses on scholarships, advocacy, and member programs rather than operational technology.
• Civitas Learning: Civitas Learning offers predictive analytics and student-success software to higher education institutions, helping colleges identify at-risk students and target interventions. It is comparable to Ed Advancement as a student-success technology provider serving similar institutional customers, though operating commercially rather than as a nonprofit.

Broad incumbents

• EAB: EAB is a large, established higher education advisory and technology firm offering enrollment, student success, and advancement services to colleges. It overlaps directly with Ed Advancement's enrollment and retention focus but serves a much broader institutional base with commercial SaaS products rather than a free, philanthropy-funded model.

Others

• Ascendium Education Group: Ascendium is a philanthropy dedicated to helping low-income students access and complete postsecondary education, and is a listed partner supporting Ed Advancement's work with HBCUs. It is comparable as a co-funder in the same higher-education access-and-success philanthropic ecosystem rather than as a direct operational competitor.
• MDRC: MDRC is a nonprofit education and social-policy research organization that designs and evaluates programs to improve education and economic outcomes. It appears as a research/evaluation partner in Ed Advancement's network and is comparable as a fellow nonprofit working on postsecondary education evidence, but does not deliver operational or technology services directly.
• Axim Collaborative: Axim Collaborative is a philanthropy supporting educational equity and student success, and is both a co-host of Ed Advancement's AI & Education convening and a funder of the Front Porch Portal at Virginia State University. It operates in the same philanthropic and student-success space as Ed Advancement but as an adjacent funder rather than a service provider.

Emerging players

• Complete College America: Complete College America is a national nonprofit focused on improving college completion rates, particularly through structural reforms and student-success strategies. It co-hosts the AI & Education convening with Ed Advancement and shares a similar student-success mission, though its work is policy- and practice-focused rather than operational/technology implementation.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/edadvancement

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 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 Partnership for Education Advancement