Education has the power to change everything.
NAF helps underserved high school students make connections between their schoolwork and the professional world, opening their eyes to unimagined possibilities beyond the classroom.
Students in NAF academies are also far likelier to graduate than their peers who are not involved with NAF, and the long-term impact of high school graduation cannot be understated. Earning potential increases and incarceration rates decrease, helping to break the cycle of poverty while contributing to a stronger economy.
NAF serves more than 117,000 students in 34 states, plus DC, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands. As of 2020, 60% of NAF academy students receive free/reduced price lunch, 80% are students of color, and nearly half are female. Last year, 99% of seniors graduated, 87% were college-bound, and 39% of seniors had an internship—that’s thousands of students who wouldn’t otherwise have been exposed to transformative work-based learning opportunities.