The UP Fund is a $50 million pool of catalytic capital that aims to help upskill people who face barriers to education and employment. Since 2020, the UP Fund has supported the design and launch of eight outcomes-based initiatives to upskill workers across the country into in-demand jobs.
Goals
Leverage impact capital: Deploy $50 million in catalytic capital to fund learners, training programs, and supportive services.
Expand access to in-demand sectors: Supports innovative programs and partnerships that enable people to build careers in growing sectors like health care, skilled trades, clean energy, and IT.
Bridge opportunity and skill gaps: Help individuals upskill and achieve increased economic mobility while enabling businesses to fill critical job openings and diversify their workforce.
Five Weeks of Intense Training—and a Better Life for Stephanie and Her Son
After working a series of unsatisfying jobs, Stephanie was ready to launch a career that would provide for her and her son. She decided to enroll in ADTC through the Career Impact Bond and landed a job with Sonsray Agriculture as an apprentice technician just three weeks into training. Since starting, she’s had two pay raises.
Short-Term Training Helped Allen Land an In-Demand Job
Allen, a navy veteran living in rural Idaho, was ready for a career fresh start. With support from Social Finance’s UP Fund, Allen enrolled in a short-term fiber splicing course through telecommunications school Learning Alliance Corporation. A few weeks later, he graduated and landed a job as a fiber technician earning $25,000 more than he made previously.
For Dimitra, the Right Supports Meant a Chance to Thrive
Dimitra—a Portland, OR native and mom to a toddler—was working as a high school art teacher but was seeking more fulfillment from her career. She decided to enroll in Alchemy Code Lab through the Career Impact Bond. After graduating, Dimitra was hired as a Junior Software Developer at Cornell Pump Company with a starting salary of $65,000—$22,000 more than what she was making as an experienced teacher.
The Results
The UP Fund makes investments that enable people to build careers in high-demand, recession-resistant sectors.
$10 – 25Kmedian earnings gains across the portfolio
2,300+enrollments to date
95%graduation rate for UP Fund’s programs
75% of learners do not have a bachelor’s degree
63%of learners identify as Black, Indigenous, or a Person of Color
We’re proud to support the UP Fund to scale Career Impact Bonds across the U.S. Through this sustainable impact investing vehicle, the Fund aims to help catalyze economic mobility and close the nation’s skills gaps.
Eric Braverman
CEO, Schmidt Futures
We’re hoping many young people who currently can’t pay for college or aren’t able to access high-quality training programs will now have a very different idea of what’s possible for them—and that money will not be a barrier anymore.
Kelly Campbell
Managing Director, Portfolio Strategy and Management, Blue Meridian Partners
Social Finance is bringing key partners to the table, from public sector leaders to major employers, to design better, faster, and more agile mechanisms to train the future workforce.
Sarah Keh
Vice President, Inclusive Solutions, Prudential Financial and Vice President and Secretary, The Prudential Foundation
With generous support from Strada Education Network, MDRC is conducting a multi-year study of the UP Fund’s Career Impact Bond model across different training providers, industries, and student populations.
Website Notices
This Website displays information about the UP Fund, L.P., a Delaware limited partnership (the “Fund”). Such information is provided for information purposes only and does not constitute an invitation, offer or solicitation to buy interests in the Fund. Any offering of Interests in the Fund only will be made to “accredited investors” as defined in Regulation D under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, pursuant to a confidential private offering memorandum, the Fund’s agreement of limited partnership and a subscription agreement which may be furnished to qualified investors on a confidential basis.
All information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute, and should not be construed or used as an offer to sell, or a solicitation of any offer to buy, interest or shares in the fund described above. No offer or solicitation may be made prior to the delivery offering documents, which will contain additional information including disclosures relating to risk factors and conflicts of interest. If you have any questions, please contact Social Finance at info@socialfinance.org.
![Woman in a workshop holding a light, inspecting a car engine.](https://socialfinance.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Female-auto-mechanic-of-color-with-flashlight-1000x667.jpeg")
![Stephanie Reyes and her son taking a selfie.](https://socialfinance.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-8.58.54-AM-1000x663.png")
![A bearded man with a slightly smiling expression stands indoors, with industrial equipment in the background.](https://socialfinance.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/IMG_20230926_104919776-scaled-e1707936378710-948x1000-1.jpg")
![Dimitra SCL Headshot](https://socialfinance.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Screen-Shot-2022-11-10-at-2.12.18-PM-1000x670.png")
