As part of PwC's $125 million
According to Michael Sutphin, president of the PwC Charitable Foundation, the investment seeks to upskill students, get them prepared with career readiness and provide them with the digital skills they need to succeed academically and professionally. By leveraging the intellectual capital of PwC, Sutphin said the goal was to strengthen the broader community college system and provide training to students who otherwise might not have access to valuable resources.
"We're thrilled with the initiative because this is such a remarkable opportunity for talented Hispanic and Black students in community college ranks across the country," said Sutphin. "We're optimistic that making an investment in their future is going to have long-term outcomes not just for them, but for their communities and families as a whole."
Three organizations will receive $3 million each in recognition of their innovative, impactful policies when it comes to community college students:
Beyond 12 is a tech-based nonprofit that aims to increase college graduation rates for students from historically underrepresented communities. In conjunction with career counseling, Sutphin said that community college students can receive tech support to receive digital and in-person coaching in areas such as course or major selection. With Beyond 12's 100,000-student reach across California and Georgia, Sutphin said PwC saw an opportunity to help them expand even more.
One Million Degrees is a nonprofit providing wraparound services to help students persist and graduate from community college on a pathway to economic mobility. The foundation's grant will help enable OMD to serve 3,500 Black and Hispanic/Latinx students at City Colleges of Chicago over the next three years.
Phi Theta Kappa is an international honor society helping high academic performers seek degrees and credentials. Sutphin said PwC chose this organization because it had an exclusive reach to community college students around the country and for its unique emphasis on mentoring and leadership development. The grant seeks to support PTK's programming, scholarships and other initiatives to help increase completion and transfer outcomes and academic experiences for 11,000 Black and Hispanic/Latinx students in community colleges in the United States.
"We want to try to help in communities where we live and work, and I think the combination of these three organizations will help us fund and invest in innovative organizations that are helping community college students," said Sutphin. "We really felt that students not only needed financial support but also a combination of holistic opportunities such as mentoring or networking to help them get through."
After an examination period, Sutphin said PwC chose to dedicate its $25 million commitment toward community college students because they experience different challenges than students studying at a four-year university. According to the National Center for Education Statistics,
In supporting Black and Hispanic/Latinx students, these grants aim to drive increased student persistence, graduation rates and transfers to four-year institutions, but also elevate leading practices. Furthermore, they aim to strengthen the impact of Access Your Potential by bringing its curricula and resources to a larger segment of high-performing college students.
"Whether these community college students finish their degree to join the workforce or transfer to a four-year university, we felt that it was an opportunity for us to try to help those who are struggling to finish," said Sutphin. "Some of the data research we have found is that a lot of times the reason they weren't finishing their degree wasn't that they weren't capable, but because of other challenges. As a result, we felt like this was an area that could use some more investment."
By the end of 2026, PwC will decide where the remaining $16 million will be committed and will continue focusing on direct services for students, institutional capacity building and research to drive sustainable change. Among other factors, Sutphin said PwC will pay close attention to investments in technology, faculty and talent retention to promote educational equity. Over the past 10 years, the foundation has invested more than $145 million in helping drive academic outcomes for underserved communities and their youth.
"When you go into any average city in the United States, you don't have to look too far to see that there are a lot of children that just lack opportunity and access, and this has been a problem that has been plaguing our society for many years," said Sutphin. "There are a lot of good people who are working to solve those problems in the public sector, but I think that trying to have companies who create solutions in collaboration with public school systems is critical. That's why we've really been trying to remain engaged, strategic and thoughtful about where those investments go."
