A Few of Our Clients

Acelero Learning partners with local communities to support and manage high-quality Head Start programs. For the last five years, they have worked tirelessly to provide local Head Start programs with the best tools and systems possible to assist with their most important work: ensuring that children and families receive the support they need to enter school prepared to succeed.

Achievement First is a charter school management organization started in July 2003 by the leaders of Amistad Academy, a high-performing charter school in New Haven, CT. A non-profit, 501(c)(3) organization, Achievement First is creating a network of achievement-gap closing charter schools in Connecticut and New York to bring to scale the dramatic, life-changing student achievement results produced at Amistad Academy. Achievement First currently operates 12 schools and has plans to open 1-3 schools per year over the next several years. Over the next decade, Achievement First will support 25 schools serving over 7,000 students in New York and Connecticut.

American Jewish World Service (AJWS) is an international development organization motivated by Judaism's imperative to pursue justice. AJWS is dedicated to alleviating poverty, hunger and disease among the people of the developing world regardless of race, religion or nationality. Through grants to grassroots organizations, volunteer service, advocacy and education, AJWS fosters civil society, sustainable development and human rights for all people, while promoting the values and responsibilities of global citizenship within the Jewish community.

Ashoka is the global association of the world's leading social entrepreneurs that innovate solutions for urgent social problems. By unleashing the same innovative and entrepreneurial mindset that has driven business sector growth over the last two centuries, Ashoka is leading a dramatic transformation in society, fueling the citizen sector's unprecedented growth. Through a global community of social entrepreneurs, Ashoka develops models for collaboration and designs infrastructure needed for this growth. Since 1981, Ashoka has elected over 1,800 leading social entrepreneurs as Ashoka Fellows to develop, implement, and spread social innovations worldwide.

Be The Change, Inc. seeks to create sustainable, long-term positive social change in our communities by connecting service alumni with leadership opportunities in policy and advocacy. Focused on four core action areas, Be the Change, Inc. aims to craft a bold and innovative policy agenda, build a web-fueled citizens' movement, develop a broad-based coalition of leaders, and partner with and invest seed money in advocacy groups in order to build coalitions for change. Founded in 2007 by Alan Khazei, co-founder and former CEO of City Year, Be The Change prides itself on being a truly entrepreneurial start-up venture.

BELL (Building Educated Leaders for Life) is a community-based, non-profit tutoring and mentoring program founded by Black Harvard Law School students in 1992, which is dedicated to enhancing the educational achievements, self-esteem and life opportunities of elementary school children living in low-income, urban communities. BELL serves children in Boston, New York City, Baltimore and Washington, D.C.

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Blue Ridge Foundation New York identifies innovative ideas with high-potential for social impact and helps transform them into effective, enduring institutions. Acting as an incubator, the Foundation provides start-up nonprofit organizations in New York City with critical tools and support in order to accelerate their development and help connect people living in high poverty communities to the opportunities, resources, and support that they need to fulfill their full potential.

Breakthrough Collaborative is a national nonprofit that increases educational opportunity for high-potential, low-income middle school students and inspires outstanding college and high school students to pursue careers in education. Breakthrough's innovative Students Teaching Students model partners middle-school students with college and high school students who serve as teachers, role models and mentors. As a result, 82% of Breakthrough student alumni are accepted to college preparatory programs and 72% of Breakthrough teachers, many of whom were Breakthrough students, go on to pursue professional careers in education.

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Founded in 1971, Cambridge College is a private, non-profit institution dedicated to providing academically excellent, time-efficient, and cost-effective higher education for a diverse population of working adults for whom those opportunities may have been limited or denied. Cambridge College serves over 9,200 students at its main campus in Cambridge and across eight regional centers in Springfield, and Lawrence, MA; Chesapeake and South Boston, VA; Augusta, GA; Ontario, CA; Memphis, TN; and San Juan, Puerto Rico.

The Center for Effective Philanthropy (CEP) works with foundations to help them more effectively address society’s most pressing needs. Specifically, CEP provides management and governance tools and conducts research to define, assess, and improve overall foundation performance. More than 150 foundations have used CEP’s assessment tools – and have implemented significant changes on the basis of what they have learned. CEP works primarily with the largest five hundred foundations in the country, including the Gates, Rockefeller, Hewlett, and MacArthur Foundations among others.

Since 1995, Citizen Schools has built a creative and effective learning model that addresses community needs while building student skills through hands-on experiential learning activities. Citizen Schools operates a National Network of apprenticeship programs for youth that connects middle school students with adult volunteers in hands-on learning. At Citizen Schools, students develop the academic and leadership skills they need to excel in school, build self confidence, get into college, and become leaders in their communities. Citizen Schools currently enroll 2,000 middle-school students and engage 1,500 volunteers at 30 school campus sites nationwide.

City Year unites young people of all backgrounds for a year of full-time service, giving them the skills and opportunities to change the world. As tutors, mentors, and role models, these young leaders make a difference in the lives of children and transform schools and neighborhoods across the United States and in South Africa. More than 1,500 corps members serve in 19 City Year sites across the United States and one site in Johannesburg, South Africa.

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Civic Builders is a nonprofit facilities developer that provides turnkey real estate solutions for high-performing charter schools. By assuming responsibility for building financing, acquisition, design and construction, Civic relieves charter schools of the burden of navigating a complex real estate market and provides affordable educational facilities. Civic's work supports the success of charter schools by enabling school administrators to focus their time and resources on the important work of educating children.

Founded in 1993, College Summit is a nationally-recognized nonprofit increasing college enrollment rates of low-income students. College Summit's innovative and scalable model helps build a college-going culture in schools from within—by tapping influential students, and providing high schools and colleges with the tools to ensure that every student who can make it in college makes it to college. To date, College Summit has served more than 10,000 low-income students, with current regional offices in California, Colorado, Illinois, Missouri, Washington, DC and West Virginia. College Summit also serves students in a growing number of other potential sites around the country. For four years in a row, College Summit has been recognized by Fast Company Magazine as “one of the top groups changing the world.”

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Computers for Youth inspires low-income children to become more engaged in their learning so they can succeed in school and become life-long learners. Focusing on children's learning environment at home and its connection to what happens in the classroom, its signature program, Take IT Home NY, provides home computers and comprehensive services to all the members of selected school communities. CFY's goal is to expand its innovative, low-cost program throughout New York City and to replicate it elsewhere.

New York City's legacy of attracting and cultivating some of the nation's most talented citizens is the foundation of the Coro New York Leadership Center. Coro gives individuals and groups opportunities to have an impact in building a stronger and more vibrant City that celebrates the spirit and diversity of this community of eight million people. Coro New York offers civic leadership programs for New York City high school students, early- and mid-career professionals, seniors, and emerging leaders in the immigrant community.

DonorsChoose.org is a simple way to provide students in need with resources that our public schools often lack. At this not-for-profit web site, teachers submit project proposals for materials or experiences their students need to learn. These ideas become classroom reality when concerned individuals choose projects to fund. Any individual can search proposals by area of interest, learn about classroom needs, and choose to fund the project he/she finds most compelling. Today, 24,000 teachers are using DonorsChoose.org to help their students. Citizen philanthropists from all 50 states and 10 foreign countries have funded more than 25,700 classroom projects at DonorsChoose.org, channeling over $12 million worth of books, art supplies, technology, and other resources to 554,000 students in low-income communities.

Echoing Green identifies emerging social change leaders and provides them with seed capital and technical assistance to launch innovative social change organizations. Since its inception in 1987, Echoing Green has been the primary provider of first-stage funding and strategic support for social entrepreneurs. Through its signature fellowship program, Echoing Green has distributed more than $25 million in seed capital to 450 visionary leaders who have created 350 new organizations in forty U.S. states and thirty countries.

The Edna McConnell Clark Foundation focuses on helping increase the capacity of nonprofit youth organizations to serve more young people from low-income backgrounds with high quality programs. The ultimate aim of this work is to ensure that more youth successfully make the transition to independent adulthood. The Foundation carries out this work through its Youth Development Fund. Foundation staff work as a team to help youth-serving organizations build their organizational strength, capacities, and sustainability.

Facing History and Ourselves is an international non-profit education organization headquartered near Boston, Massachusetts. Our mission is to engage students of diverse backgrounds in an examination of racism, prejudice, and anti-Semitism in order to promote the development of a more humane and informed citizenry. Facing History is a market leader, both in the kind of content it provides, as well as the models for teaching this content in the classroom. In addition, Facing History has been on the cutting edge in its use of the Internet to deliver its content and services to educators. Facing History’s strategic plan calls for a significant increase in the reach and impact of the program, both domestically and internationally.

The GreenLight Fund is a community-based, community-focused solution to the challenge of growth in the nonprofit sector. GreenLight provides a vehicle to catalyze and support successful, sustainable replication that allows nonprofit solutions, developed in other cities, to be adapted, owned, and sustained locally in Boston. The GreenLight Fund supports organizations that address urban issues affecting primarily low-income families and children in key areas such as education, youth development, workforce development, and healthcare.

A growing network of more than one million volunteers changing communities inside and outside the United States, Hands On Network brings people together to strengthen communities through meaningful volunteer action. Hands On Network creates and manages nearly 50,000 projects a year, from building wheelchair ramps in San Francisco to teaching reading in Atlanta, to rebuilding homes and lives in the Gulf coast communities. Hands On Network is currently made up of 55 national and international volunteer organizations that act as entrepreneurial civic action centers.

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The I Do Foundation is a national nonprofit foundation that is changing the way weddings are celebrated by incorporating opportunities for charitable giving into every step of the wedding planning process. As a social enterprise, the I Do Foundation offers engaged couples a variety of programs that help transform wedding spending into new donations for charity. By making it easy to integrate philanthropy into special life celebrations, the I Do Foundation seeks to increase charitable donations, particularly to social justice causes.

Jumpstart is a national nonprofit organization focused on pairing low-income preschoolers with caring adults in an effort to work toward the day when every child in America enters school prepared to succeed. Jumpstart's year-long, one-to-one mentoring relationships focus on building language and literacy, in combination with social and emotional readiness. Today, Jumpstart positively impacts 10,000 young children each year in 60 communities across the country.

KIPP NYC is the family of all KIPP (Knowledge Is Power Program) programming in New York City and includes four KIPP public middle schools (KIPP Academy, KIPP STAR, KIPP AMP, and KIPP Infinity) designed to teach students to develop the academic and character skills necessary for success in high school and college, to be self-sufficient in the competitive world and beyond, and to build a better tomorrow for themselves and all of us. KIPP NYC also runs a comprehensive advocacy program for alumni, KIPP to College.

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Named as one of the top ideas in 2006 by the New York Times Magazine and called "revolutionary" by the BBC, Kiva is the world's online micro-lending marketplace for the working poor. Kiva lets internet users lend as little as $25 to specific developing world entrepreneurs — providing affordable capital to help them start or expand a small business. Since launching in October 2005, Kiva has been one of the fastest growing social benefit websites in history, with thousands of people lending millions of dollars to entrepreneurs in over 35 developing countries.

Started in 1996 by an elementary school teacher as an informal project, Little Kids Rock (LKR) has become a nationally recognized nonprofit organization serving thousands of students in ten states. Knowing that music is a critical component of a first-rate education, Little Kids Rock inspires children to express themselves through music, building the creativity, confidence, and self-esteem that are critical to success in school and beyond.

Massachusetts Public School Performance (MPSP) was founded in January 2005 with a mission to build the capacity of school leadership to understand and effectively use real-time data to improve instruction and thereby increase student achievement. MPSP designs, administers and scores interim assessments that get administrators and teachers real-time assessment data on a regular schedule and trains and coaches school leaders and teachers to apply it instantly in the classroom. MPSP works with like-minded schools who believe in the power of assessment and real-time data to support teaching and learning. This approach ensures a partnership where both the school and MPSP organization feel ownership over increasing student achievement and improving school performance.

Management Leadership for Tomorrow (MLT) addresses the dramatic under-representation of African Americans, Hispanics and Native Americans in leadership positions in corporations, entrepreneurial ventures and non-profit organizations. Through its comprehensive Leadership Development System, MLT serves more than 4,000 participants nationally, and MLT has already become the No. 1 source of minority students at the nation's top business schools.

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Through its diverse board and broadly representative committees, the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools develops sound, coherent policies that support high-quality public education options for families who need them the most. Key priorities include lifting arbitrary "caps" on charter growth, closing the finance gap between charters and other public schools, and updating the federal Charter Schools Program to spur a new era of charter achievement.

New Profit Inc. is a national venture philanthropy fund designed to provide the necessary resources for social entrepreneurs to achieve their visions. New Profit Inc. provides multi-year financial and strategic support to a portfolio of organizations focused on a range of issues from childhood literacy and college access to workforce development and civic engagement.

For 23 years Nonprofit Finance Fund (NFF) has helped nonprofits match their passion and dedication with financial strength and sustainability. Nationwide, NFF works with over 170 funders including financial institutions, foundations and government agencies to develop new ways of meeting the capital growth needs of the nonprofit sector.

Peace Games was founded in 1992 on the belief that young people have the power and responsibility to change the world. It is an innovative violence prevention/social-emotional learning/school climate program that teaches students in grades K through 8 to be peacemakers. The unique Peace Games approach engages whole school communities, families, teachers, teen and college volunteers to teach lessons of cooperation, communication and conflict resolution using games and community service projects. Peace Games currently operates school-based programming in Boston, Los Angeles, and New York and has conducted trainings and spawned affiliate programs in sites ranging from Chicago to Colombia.

Public Allies is a growing national leadership development organization with local programs in 15 cities. Its mission is to advance new leadership to strengthen communities, nonprofits and civic participation. Public Allies is the premier source for identifying and cultivating the next generation of leaders for a flatter, more diverse world. Public Allies is changing the face and the practice of leadership in communities across the country to meet the demands of our changing times.

Rare, a U.S.-based conservation organization, works globally to equip people in the world’s most threatened natural areas with the tools and motivation they need to care for their natural resources. For the last 30 years, at more than 120 sites and in more than 40 nations, Rare has addressed the underlying social and economic factors that create environmental threats. Rare has been recognized by Monitor Consulting and Fast Company magazine as one of the “Top 25 Social Capitalists” in America for 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2008. Its conservation toolkit has been embraced by many large environmental organizations, including The Nature Conservancy, World Wildlife Fund, Wildlife Conservation Society, and the National Audubon Society.

Building on the unique relationship between parents and medical providers, Reach Out and Read (ROR) helps families and communities encourage early literacy skills so children enter school prepared for success in reading. Reach Out and Read trains doctors and nurses to advise parents about the importance of reading aloud and to give books to children at pediatric check-ups from six months to five years of age, with a special focus on children growing up in poverty. Reach Out and Read serves 2.8 million children annually and gives over 4.2 million new books to families each year.

Resources for Indispensable Schools and Educators (RISE) is an award-winning national nonprofit organization that creates lasting partnerships with K-12 public schools serving low-income communities and helps them attract and retain experienced, talented teachers so all students can achieve at high levels. RISE provides principals and teacher leaders with the data needed to strengthen work environments and become both highly achieving and highly sustainable. At the same time, the organization makes this data available to a selective group of job-seeking teachers who have demonstrated success and commitment to helping all students achieve at high levels.

Founded in 2004, Root Cause is a growing nonprofit organization that advances enduring solutions to social and economic problems by supporting social innovators and educating social impact investors. Its work demonstrates leading-edge management strategies and best practices that foster entrepreneurship, innovation, accountability, and sustainability. Over the last three years, Root Cause has grown to over 30 full-time, part-time and contract staff and in 2008 has an annual budget of $3 million.

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Room to Read partners with local communities throughout the developing world to establish schools, libraries, and other educational infrastructure. We seek to intervene early in the lives of children in the belief that education is a lifelong gift that empowers people to ultimately improve socioeconomic conditions for their families, communities, countries, and future generations. Through the opportunities that only an education can provide, we strive to break the cycle of poverty, one child at a time.

SeaChange Capital Partners is an entrepreneurial nonprofit finance firm established by former leaders of Goldman Sachs. Its mission is to enhance the flow of growth capital from wealthy donors to select high-performing nonprofits, to contribute to the vital long-term effort of creating more efficient financial capital markets for the social sector. SeaChange Capital Partners identifies nonprofits with records of measurable success and present opportunities for supporting them to a network of potential donors, including wealthy individuals, foundations, and other funders.

Soliya is a quickly growing entrepreneurial nonprofit organization using the latest in Internet and communication technologies to bridge the divide between the “West” and the “Arab & Muslim World.” Its core Connect Program is a unique cross-cultural education program that directly connects university students in the US, Europe, the Middle East and the broader Muslim World. Building off the emerging community of alumni, it is developing a global social media network to enable better understanding between the “West” and the “Arab & Muslim World.” In the last five years, Soliya has gone from being the idea of two young social entrepreneurs with backgrounds in new media and conflict resolution to an established organization with partnerships at nearly 50 universities in twenty countries.

Stand for Children exists because children in communities across America have no power to influence our democratic system to meet their fundamental needs. Its mission is to teach everyday people how to join together in an effective grassroots voice in order to win concrete, long-lasting improvements for children, at both state and local levels. Since 1999, Stand for Children members have won more than 66 state and local victories that are improving the lives of more than 2.5 million children. Based in Portland, OR, Stand for Children operates in three regions: Massachusetts, Oregon, and Tennessee.

Teach For America is the national corps of outstanding recent college graduates of all academic majors who commit two years to teach in urban and rural public schools and become leaders in the effort to expand educational opportunity. TFA corps members work to ensure that more students growing up today in our country's lowest-income communities are given the educational opportunities they deserve. TFA alumni are a powerful force of leaders working from inside education and from every other sector to effect the fundamental changes needed to ensure that all children have an equal chance in life.

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TechSoup is a nonprofit that helps other nonprofits acquire and use technology in pursuit of their missions. Its content and community sites are popular destinations within the nonprofit sector, and its technology product donation service, TechSoup Stock, distributes hardware and software donated by companies such as Microsoft, Cisco, Adobe, Symantec, and Intuit to eligible nonprofits. Since its inception, TechSoup Stock has distributed over 3 million products to over 67,000 nonprofits, collectively saving them over $830 million in IT expenses. The TechSoup Global network is extending the organization's reach by partnering with NGOs around the world. TechSoup's NetSquared initiative includes an annual conference, a network of local meetups, and a vibrant online community, all focused on helping the sector develop and leverage the power of Web 2.0 and social networking applications.

Tenacity is a year round youth development organization that offers free literacy and tennis instruction to over 5,000 Boston youth in the summer and intensive after-school programs throughout the school year. Since its inception in 1999, Tenacity has raised more than $14 million in donations and has served more than 20,000 children, aged 7 to 15. The organization’s success has been built upon two core program offerings: the After-School Excellence Program, providing an intensive after-school literacy and tennis program with a focus on building resilience and the Summer Tennis and Reading Program, a city-wide neighborhood based tennis and academic enrichment program.

Year Up is a one-year, intensive training program that provides urban young adults 18-24, with a unique combination of technical and professional skills, college credits, and a paid corporate apprenticeship.

To learn how Commongood Careers can serve your nonprofit and its hiring needs, please contact James Weinberg at 617-542-1404 ext. 20 or .