Future Leaders in Action

What Future Leaders in Action does

Future Leaders in Action (FLIA) is a New York-based nonprofit organization founded in 2015 that operates a 3-month paid fellowship program placing emerging leaders — often first-generation college graduates — with youth-oriented nonprofit organizations for capacity-building projects. The program's "triple win" model is designed to benefit three constituencies simultaneously: fellows receive living-wage salaries, mentorship, and leadership experience; partner nonprofits gain temporary staffing capacity and fresh project support; and the youth served by those nonprofits receive strengthened programming in areas such as academic support, literacy, college access, journalism, advocacy, and recreation. Fellows have been placed with organizations including South Bronx United, The Flossy Organization, Today's Students Tomorrow's Teachers, Camp Fire Heart of Iowa, Start Lighthouse, Press Pass NYC, and the Boys and Girls Club of Central Iowa. Programming is delivered through a hybrid model combining in-person placements with virtual professional development and personal branding support.

FLIA's core product is the FLIA Fellowship Program, a single, unified service rather than a multi-module platform. The organization's underlying technology is minimal — a Squarespace website, an email newsletter, an Instagram presence, and a Givebutter donation portal — indicating that the product is fundamentally a human-mediated matching and program management service rather than a software platform. As a 501(c)(3)-style nonprofit, FLIA generates revenue through grants and donations rather than commercial fees; pricing details are not publicly disclosed, and there are no commercial pricing tiers for external customers. The organization is currently operating across three U.S. regions (NYC metro, Des Moines–Central Iowa, Chicago) with a 1–10 person staff and is undergoing a leadership transition following the June 2025 departure of Executive Director Milly Seraus-Roache, with founder Kirsten Abel continuing as Board Chair.

Name

Future Leaders in Action

Legal name

Future Leaders in Action

Website

https://futureleadersinaction.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Future Leaders in Action is a nonprofit fellowship program that places emerging leaders with youth-focused nonprofits for 3-month paid fellowships, simultaneously building fellow leadership skills, partner organizational capacity, and youth outcomes in NYC, Iowa, and Chicago.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nonprofit Fellowship Services

NAICS

Civic and Social Organizations (813410)

SIC

Services-Employment Agencies (7361)

akta.pro primary industry

Youth Leadership, Civic Education & Service-Learning Nonprofits (BPAGADAI)

akta.pro secondary industry

Youth Mentoring & Positive Youth Development Nonprofits (BPAGADAD)

Keywords

• Youth fellowship programs
• Nonprofit capacity building
• Leadership development services
• Social sector fellowships
• Youth nonprofit partnerships

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Fellowship Program Fees / Grant Funding: As a nonprofit, FLIA generates revenue through grants and donations. Fellows receive living-wage salaries, which are funded through a combination of organizational resources and partner contributions. The organization's 10-year anniversary grant program and new revenue streams developed under prior leadership support operations.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Future Leaders in Action operates a 3-month paid fellowship program that places emerging leaders (fellows) with youth-oriented nonprofit organizations. Fellows lead capacity-building projects at partner organizations while receiving living-wage salaries and mentorship opportunities, creating a 'triple win' for fellows, nonprofit partners, and the youth they serve across the NYC metro, Des Moines–Central Iowa, and Chicago regions.

Product overview

Future Leaders in Action operates as a single, unified fellowship program rather than a platform with multiple modules. The FLIA Fellowship Program places emerging leaders with youth-serving nonprofits for 3-month engagements, providing fellows with meaningful job experiences, living-wage salaries, and mentorship. Fellows develop leadership skills by leading capacity-building projects at partner organizations, creating a 'triple win' for fellows, partner nonprofits, and the youth they serve. The organization offers both in-person and hybrid programming, with professional development experiences that support fellows during placements and help them build personal brands as early career professionals.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• FLIA Fellowship Program A 3-month paid fellowship placing emerging leaders with youth-oriented nonprofit organizations to develop leadership and work skills through capacity-building projects. Fellows receive living-wage salaries, mentorship, and professional development experiences during in-person or hybrid placements.

Quantifiable outcome

• 46 fellows placed across 24 youth-focused organizations over 4 years (2021–2025)
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers13 records

Segments3 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 and minor.

• South Bronx UnitedcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSouth Bronx United is a nonprofit that uses soccer as a vehicle for social change, providing academic support, college prep, mentoring, workforce development, and immigration and legal services. FLIA fellows have served as Academic Support Fellows tracking student transcripts and mentoring athletes. This is one of FLIA's most frequently recurring partner organizations, with multiple fellows placed across multiple cohorts.
• Today's Students, Tomorrow's Teachers (TSTT)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTSTT is a nonprofit dedicated to bridging educational opportunity gaps for underrepresented students by providing resources, support, and opportunities. FLIA fellows have contributed to improving operational processes and supporting key educational initiatives.
• The Flossy OrganizationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Flossy is a grassroots nonprofit addressing structural inequities in the Canarsie neighborhood of Brooklyn through community organizing. FLIA fellows engage in community justice work tackling gun violence, transit equity, environmental equity, and housing justice.
• Camp Fire Heart of IowacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCamp Fire Heart of Iowa impacts youth development through camps and programs focused on inclusivity and leadership. FLIA fellows support the organization in creating Youth Advisory Boards and guiding teens in community leadership.
• Start LighthousecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStart Lighthouse provides literacy resources through a social justice lens in the South Bronx, rehabilitating abandoned school libraries into Literacy Hubs. Fellows support programming, curriculum development, and social media.
• South Queens Women's MarchcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerA grassroots gender justice organization amplifying voices of diverse women and gender non-conforming individuals in South Queens. Fellows have served as Youth Civic Engagement Fellows and contributed to the Rise Up & Lead Youth Summer Institute.
• Navigate the Maze to Achievement (NTMA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNTMA provides Black and Latinx students with tools and resources to gain admission into NYC specialized and selective high schools. Fellows serve as Strategic Communications Fellows supporting mentorship and test prep programs.
• Press Pass NYCcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPress Pass NYC brings student newspapers to under-resourced public schools. Fellows serve as Student Journalism Fellows planning and supervising journalism programs and boot camps for high school students.
• Can PlaycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCan Play provides adapted and no-cost recreational programs for children with physical, cognitive, emotional, and financial barriers, primarily in the Des Moines metropolitan area and rural Iowa. Fellows support day-to-day programming and youth activities.
• Fiver Children's FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFiver provides a 10-year youth development program supporting children from elementary school through their educational journey, including summer camp experiences. Fellows serve as program fellows creating camp activities and supporting youth engagement.
• Liberated SuccesscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLiberated Success focuses on mentorship, job skills training, food pantry access, and transportation services for Black youth. Fellows support programming and help youth navigate career and educational pathways.
• AdmissionSquadcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAdmissionSquad works to provide equitable college admission support. FLIA fellows collaborate on developing free, culturally relevant SAT test prep curriculum for low-income Black and Brown communities in NYC.
• Boys and Girls Club of Central IowacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBoys and Girls Club of Central Iowa operates seven club locations. FLIA fellows support the Feeding the Future Programs including Cooking Club, food pantries, and weekend meal bag distribution.
• CUNY Service CorpsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCUNY Service Corps provides thousands of CUNY students with paid work experience and internships in community-based organizations and government agencies. Referenced by a FLIA fellow as a prior program that influenced her path to FLIA.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• iMentor: iMentor pairs college students with adult mentors to support college persistence. Operates in a similar youth-capacity-building nonprofit space but focuses on long-term mentorship rather than short-term fellowships.

Direct peers

• Year Up: Year Up provides paid training and workforce development fellowships for young adults from underserved communities, with placement at employer partners. Comparable paid-place-then-hire model for opportunity youth.
• City Year: City Year places young AmeriCorps members in schools to support student outcomes and leadership development. Mirrors FLIA's youth-focused service fellowship and capacity-building partner model.
• New Sector Alliance: New Sector Alliance runs paid residency and fellowship programs that place emerging leaders with social impact organizations. It is the closest direct peer to FLIA's nonprofit fellowship model targeting early-career leaders.
• Echoing Green: Echoing Green runs paid fellowships for social sector leaders and invests in emerging social entrepreneurs. Comparable fellowship structure for emerging leaders entering the social sector.
• Braven: Braven runs a fellowship combining career preparation and mentoring for college students from underrepresented backgrounds. Comparable career-pathway fellowship for first-generation and emerging-leader populations.
• Public Allies: Public Allies operates a national AmeriCorps-affiliated fellowship that places emerging leaders with nonprofit partners for community impact work. Similar cohort-based, paid structure and youth/equity orientation to FLIA.
• All Star Code: All Star Code prepares young men of color for careers in technology through summer programs and mentorship. Comparable youth-development nonprofit with a cohort-based, paid program model similar to FLIA.

Broad incumbents

• AmeriCorps: AmeriCorps is a federal service program that subsidizes paid placements of young leaders at nonprofits and schools. Functions as a much larger, federally funded incumbent in the same service-fellowship space as FLIA.

Others

• Service Year Alliance: Service Year Alliance is an intermediary advocacy organization that promotes national service and supports service-year programs. FLIA participates in this ecosystem and is an indirect beneficiary of the alliance's policy work.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/futureleadersinaction
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/future-leaders-in-action

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 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 Future Leaders in Action