Student Success Nonprofit Awarded $3.5 Million To Expand Wraparound Supports for Community College Students

Ballmer Group's investment in One Million Degrees will help thousands of low-income, first-generation students complete degrees and connect to quality careers

CHICAGO, Sept. 18, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- One Million Degrees (OMD), a Chicago-based student success nonprofit known for its holistic approach to supporting community college students, today announced a $3.5 million grant from Ballmer Group. The grant will accelerate OMD's efforts to expand its evidence-based model—which combines intensive academic coaching, financial assistance, career services, and employer engagement—to community colleges and state systems.

"Community colleges are among the most powerful — yet underutilized — levers we have for increasing economic mobility and reducing inequality," said Dr. Aarti Dhupelia, CEO of One Million Degrees. "This investment enables us to scale a proven, evidence-based model that not only improves graduation rates, but also strengthens the long-term earnings potential of students, builds institutional capacity, and delivers economic benefits that will ripple through families and communities for generations."

By 2031, the U.S. economy is expected to add more than 8 million new jobs in fields such as health care, technology, and skilled trades—roles that typically require education beyond high school but not always a four-year degree. Yet more than 60 percent of adults report that they lack a clear pathway from education into employment, and nearly half of community college students leave school before earning a credential. Research from Georgetown University's Center on Education and the Workforce has found that workers with an associate degree earn about $400,000 more over a lifetime than those with only a high school diploma, highlighting the economic stakes of stronger connections between college and career.

To help close that gap, One Million Degrees partners with community colleges, states, and employers to provide wraparound support—including intensive academic coaching, financial assistance, career services, and employer engagement—to help students finish degrees or certificates and transition into quality careers.

According to a randomized control trial by the University of Chicago's Inclusive Economy Lab, OMD scholars were 73% more likely to earn a degree within three years and more likely to either enter the workforce or transfer to a four-year institution. Partner colleges have seen students persist at higher rates, accumulate more credits, and transition successfully to both four-year programs and in-demand jobs.

The $3.5 million investment will fuel the expansion of OMD's Advisory and Capacity Building portfolio, enabling more colleges to embed wraparound student support into core institutional practices. In early 2025, OMD announced a statewide partnership with the University of Illinois System and a national collaboration with Complete College America to bring its coaching and career-preparation model to more states. This initiative will serve between 1,500 and 1,700 students in Illinois, Louisiana, Ohio, and additional states, improving educational, transfer, and career outcomes.

This grant builds on a period of rapid growth for OMD. In 2022, City Colleges of Chicago launched a systemwide OMD expansion, automatically enrolling eligible students across multiple campuses. Today, more than 2,000 students annually benefit from the OMD program through partnerships with Prairie State College, South Suburban College, William Rainey Harper College, and others—reaching both urban and suburban communities. OMD also works with employers to create on-ramps to in-demand jobs through internships and apprenticeships, while advising institutions nationwide on designing and implementing holistic student support systems.

"Ballmer Group is committed to expanding economic mobility by ensuring more students, especially those from low-income backgrounds, have the support they need not only to complete college but to move into good jobs and lasting careers," said Emma Uman, Director of National Career Success at Ballmer Group. "One Million Degrees' model delivers on that promise by helping community colleges connect learning to industry pathways, remove barriers to student success, and build bridges to the workforce that create lasting opportunities for students, families, and entire communities."

Ballmer Group joins a network of supporters that includes Ascendium Education Group and the Kresge Foundation.

For more information, visit www.onemilliondegrees.org.

About One Million Degrees: One Million Degrees (OMD) is a Chicago-based higher education nonprofit dedicated to accelerating community college students' progress on pathways to economic mobility. Through a research-proven model combining intensive coaching, career readiness, and financial support, OMD has helped thousands of students persist, graduate, and launch their careers with a foundation for long-term success. Learn more at www.onemilliondegrees.org.

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SOURCE One Million Degrees