10,000 Degrees Business Plan
April 2012
Social Impact Exchange Business Plan Competition 2012
Round II
10,000 Degrees Business Plan
Executive Summary 3
The Solution 4
Market research 6
Vision, mission and objectives 12
What 10KD will do 14
The organization and people 17
Earned and contributed income strategies 22
Financial projections 26
Marketing 27
12 month operating plan 30
Appendices 31
2 | 10,000 Degrees Business Plan
Executive Summary
10,000 Degrees is the premier “college access and success” program in California, located
in the San Francisco Bay Area and operating with a budget of $5 million. 10,000 Degrees
(10KD) students attend public schools, live below the poverty line, and are often the first
in their families to pursue a college degree. Despite these factors, 84% of 10KD students
have not only gained acceptance to college but have graduated. 10KD is transforming
low-income and minority students from a potential burden on society to a substantial
economic stimulus. With college graduates earning an average of $1 million more over
their lifetimes than those without a degree, 10KD is strengthening California’s social fabric
and impacting its long-term economic prosperity. Based on these figures, when 10KD
achieves its immediate growth goals, every cohort of 10,000 students has the potential to
annually contribute one billion dollars in lifetime earnings to the California economy.
10KD’s expansion is imminently achievable. The cost to go from 2,500 students to
10,000 students, and prepare for 10KD’s further expansion, is $5 million and represents a
tremendous return on investment.
Over a three-year period, the investment is designed to put at least 10,000 underprivileged
students on the path to a college education in the North San Francisco Bay region
(approximately 25% of the target population) through expansion of programs and services
to 7,500 more students in adjoining communities where demand has been expressed –
Sonoma County, Solano County and West Contra Costa County. Funds will be employed
to (1) Strengthen 10KD’s infrastructure to create a more robust operating platform; (2)
Support research and development that will build financial sustainability and prepare 10KD
to bring its solution to other regions both inside and outside California; (3) Provide seed
capital for expansion into new communities, and (4) Secure additional capital to accelerate
earned income marketing, advance our technology innovations and take advantage
of opportunities for accelerated growth. At the time of this printing, key programs and
services have already been extended to students in Sonoma and Solano counties,
enabling us to reach our benchmark of 4,000 students in 2012-2013. With a multi-year
fundraising campaign in the planning stage, one donor has already committed $1 million
to this effort and strategic partnerships (worth over $3 million) have been procured,
significantly reducing the infrastructure and scholarship resources required.
Our model is proven, cost-efficient, and easily adoptable. Our key strategy has been,
and will continue to be, listening to stakeholders about where gaps in the student pipeline
exist, sharing relevant data with them, and collaboratively developing plans to put as many
students as resources allow on the path to a college education. This strategy will serve us
well as we develop client partnerships for new earned revenue streams, leverage strategic
partnerships with mission aligned organizations and funders, and develop technology
solutions that will be licensed to others in the field.
Creating college graduates who change the world. | 3
Importantly, our solution is not just about academic, emotional and financial supports
to help these underprivileged students overcome the odds. Our solution is also about
developing life skills, critical thinking, the ability to work effectively in teams, and an
appreciation for the value of public service. When our students accept their diploma, they
enter the workforce knowing that anything is possible. Many are involved in charitable and
non-profit work. Some are community leaders. Hundreds of our alumni have come back
to volunteer or work at 10,000 Degrees.
The Solution
The transformation from student-in-need to college graduate is inspirational to witness. But
it doesn’t happen nearly enough. Too many kids in too many marginalized communities
still have no one who believes in their potential. We all lose out. No one implants the idea
of a college degree, becomes their mentor, helps them research and apply to colleges,
provides them with financial aid, or delivers the emotional support they need to persevere
and earn their degree. That’s the work we do.
Our model is a relationship-intensive, 14-year program that begins with college exposure
in 3rd grade, is open to any low-income or minority student in the region, and promises
kids that if they stick with it they will earn their degree. Lower achieving students are
encouraged to participate. Our own need-based scholarship program, strategic leveraging
of community and government aid, and capable volunteers, especially alumni, make it
extremely cost-effective.
4 | 10,000 Degrees Business Plan
Research by the Bridgespan Group has identified the primary factors contributing to the
successful completion of college: (1) academic preparation, (2) expectations (that college
is possible and essential), (3) information (about college preparation) and (4) affordability.1
These factors formed the basis of the 10KD
program. We know that accessing college
opportunity is only the first hurdle for students
from low-income households and those who
are the first generation to attend college. These
students face another set of challenges after they
matriculate. Because of unmet financial need
many students must work part-time or full-time
and live off campus, resulting in an inability to
engage meaningfully in college life. They struggle
to connect with support services, faculty and
other students, and participate in extracurricular
activities. Without a high level of academic
and social integration, students fail to persist.
Our programs address these factors to provide students with the tools and resources to
prepare for and persist in college and graduate within 6 years.
In fact, 84 percent of our students who attend a four-year college graduate, compared to
the national rate of 24 percent for students from low-income households.
Since 1981, we’ve helped more than 17,000 students earn a college degree. Our
movement is growing, transforming lives and increasing in scale and impact. Over the last
three decades, we’ve built one of the most effective, efficient, innovative college access
organizations in the country.
An outside evaluator, the TCC Group, concluded an extensive evaluation of 10KD in
January 2011, consisting of a longitudinal survey of 10KD alumni, a survey of current
participants, and numerous focus groups. Specifically, the study found that 10KD students
reported “greater confidence in their capacity to complete high school, succeed on college
entrance exams, and understand the advantages and disadvantages of two-year vs.
four-year colleges.” Graduates also reported increased ability to formulate academic and
career goals, work in teams with their peers, and take tests. In addition to these qualitative
outcomes, 10KD was able to document 100% of 10KD students graduate from high
school, 98% matriculate in college, and 84% complete their degree.
As articulated in our logic model (Appendix A), while there are many organizations that aim
to lift up disadvantaged students and get them into college, 10,000 Degrees stands out
as one of a very few organizations with a proven solution to get kids all the way through
college to graduation and on to promising careers. Our projected social impact is outlined
1 Bedsworth, William, et al., Reclaiming the American Dream, The Bridgespan Group (October 1, 2006).
Creating college graduates who change the world. | 5
in the final column of the logic model.
Market research
While there has been an increase in awareness of the “achievement gap” and the value of
investing in a variety of interventions over the last decade, the field of college access and
success is relatively young. College completion has only come to the forefront as a pivotal
indicator over the past two or three years and program models vary significantly.
In California, there are 18 organizations (local, national and government-funded) working
to address the achievement gap among public school children. 10KD is one of three
serving the Bay Area with a comprehensive, long-term approach (First Graduate serves
San Francisco County only, the other– the Hispanic Scholarship Fund-- is based in San
Francisco, works nationally in target cities, and focuses on the Hispanic population.) There
is no direct competition in Marin, or in the 3 counties where we are expanding. In fact,
both First Graduate and the Hispanic Scholarship Fund are our partners.
There are also a growing number of charter schools aimed at lifting up lower income and
underrepresented students to prepare them for college. In addition, increasing numbers
of youth-focused community organizations are now beginning to think about including
college and career preparation in their programming. These are all good signs that 10KD
has a growing base of potential fee-for-service clients, technology licensors and strategic
partners.
Our “customers” break down into the following categories:
• Beneficiaries - Low-income students and their parents or advocates
• Fee for Service Clients
• Contributors – individual philanthropists, community foundations, private foundations,
corporations.
• Licensors of our technology solutions
Beneficiaries - Students from low-income households and their parents/
advocates
The breakdown of the 2,500 students we currently serve
is below. There are approximately 40,000 free-lunch
eligible students in the 4 counties we will serve. By 2015
we will reach 10,000, or 25% of them.
The context of educational attainment and inequity in
California is useful in understanding 10KD’s exclusive
focus on low-income and minority students.
6 | 10,000 Degrees Business Plan
• California ranks 46th out of the 50 states in high school attainment
• California ranks 47th out of the 50 states in college completion
• There is a 21% point difference in college enrollment rates between White and
Hispanic students (43% vs. 22%)
• 25% of California students are non-native English speakers. Fewer than one in
ten students in the United States are English-language-learners (ELLs); in California, one
out of every four students is an ELL.
• 50% Low-income. Half of all students in California are eligible for free or reduced-price
meals; this share is higher than the national average of 42%.
• Low-income and ELL students struggle from the start. On average, California
students whose parents have low education levels and low-income, African American,
Latino, and ELL students begin school less-prepared. These groups score lower on
standardized tests that begin in second grade and the achievement gaps persist.
Higher educational attainment – earning a two- or four-year college degree – has never
been more critical to the success of our citizens, our community, and our country. Nearly
60% of newly created jobs require some level of post-high school education.
• Earning power. A college graduate earns 1.8 times more than a high school graduate,
worth more than $1 million over a lifetime.
• Quality of life. People who get college degrees are more likely to have fulfilling jobs,
better health, and longer lives. They are also less likely to be unemployed.
• Economic strength. If all racial/ethnic groups had the same educational attainment
and earnings as whites, total annual personal income in the state would be about $170
billion higher.2
• Strong cities and suburbs. Higher education rates correlate to lower crime,
expanded community amenities, and a more substantial tax base to pay for important
city services.
While there is demand for 10KD’s college success solution in many places around the
country, 10KD is currently focused on scaling the impact of its programs and services to
neighbouring communities in Northern California, where communities have seen the power
of 10KD programs and are anxious to have us working on their campuses (See letters of
support in Appendix E).
2
National Center for Higher Education Management Systems. As America Becomes More Diverse:
The Impact of State Higher Education Inequality. California State Profile. November 2005.
Creating college graduates who change the world. | 7
FEE-FOR-SERVICE CLIENTS
Clients include schools, colleges, and “achievement gap-focused” peers that 1.) realize that
they cannot deliver college completion outcomes without further student supports ; and/ or
2.) require on the ground assistance to achieve their mission more efficiently or effectively.
Our ideal client partners are schools, school districts, colleges and youth-focused
community-based organizations – well-funded, but without some service-providing
expertise that 10,000 Degrees can offer. We are in conversations with three potential client
partners (a school district, a school, and a network of charter schools).
10KD, which has been “ahead of the pack” in developing college persistence programming
and collecting college completion data, has become a resource to other organizations
working in this market, frequently providing technical expertise to mission-aligned
organizations locally and around the country. There is tremendous opportunity for 10KD to
take its programs, back office systems, technical expertise, and technology innovations to
this growing market to create earned revenue streams while also bringing organizations in
alignment with an approach that we know works.
Word-of-mouth and targeted advertising and public relations have been the drivers of
purchasing behaviours among these potential client organizations. Organizations with no
track record and minimal offerings have managed to break into this marketplace simply
by showing up at network meetings and conferences, or getting an article in a credible
publication.
CONTRIBUTORS
Private Foundations: California is home to some of the largest concentrations of foundation
assets in the country and therefore some of the highest levels of foundation giving in the country.
The San Francisco Bay Area leads the state in philanthropic activity, with San Francisco itself
receiving $678 per capita in annual foundation giving. Grantmakers for Education, in their
recent study entitled “Benchmarking Trends in Education Philanthropy 2011” reported that
grantmakers have deepened their understanding of the complex challenges in the field of
education. Fortunately, the priorities that are funded most widely by education grantmakers
today mirror 10KD’s approach and strategy:
• Closing the achievement gap (90%)
• Innovation/new models of learning (75%)
• Out of school and afterschool programming (71%)
• Promoting college and career readiness (69%)
When 10KD worked only in Marin County, it was not eligible for most of the grant
opportunities out there. With its expanded geographic scope that is no longer the case.
Foundations working in this sphere are looking for proven, scalable solutions that combine
these priorities, particularly those working in the national arena. We only need to introduce
8 | 10,000 Degrees Business Plan
ourselves and begin to cultivate those relationships to take advantage of this opportunity.
Community Foundations: Community foundations are very effective at building local
philanthropy. They are leaders in their communities, drawing attention and resources to
priority community concerns.
Individual Philanthropists: Using Marin as our test market, 10KD has demonstrated
year over year growth in revenue and donor demand. From fiscal years 2008 to 2011,
we experienced 183% growth in major gifts revenue while also increasing funding
diversification. In the coming years, access to new markets in Sonoma, West Contra Costa
and Solano counties and a multi-year fundraising campaign will provide opportunities for
regional leadership and fuel major gift growth.
Corporations: 10KD will only begin investing in a corporate partnership program in the
next year. Without any investment or formal corporate engagement strategy, 6 % of our
revenue was raised from corporations.
Please see a full breakdown of the 10KD Ecosystem in Appendix F.
COMPETITORS AND PARTNERS
For the programs: How does 10KD stand up next to the other college access and
success organizations? We feel that if the 10KD college success model was a car, we’d
have four tires and the others would have two.
• 10KD (Wrap-around model) – Our model is a relationship-intensive program
delivered via workshops, mentoring, and “near peer” college advisors. We invest 14
years in children from low-income families. We show them college at age 8, give them
intensive summer prep by their junior year in high school, provide meaningful financial
aid and advisory support in college, and the entire time mentor them and keep them
in our community. Lower achieving students are encouraged to participate. College
persistence programs support college transitioning, integration and career support.
Our own need-based scholarship program, strategic leveraging of community and
government aid, and capable volunteers, especially alumni, make it extremely costeffective. 10KD has yielded an 84% college graduation rate within 6 years.
• School capacity-building model – These programs work inside schools with
teachers and administrators to train them or offer them curriculum to improve college
preparation for students and increase enrollment rates. Mixed results with this model
have pushed programs like College Summit to augment their program with mentoring,
college advisor support and other components of the wrap-around model. No college
graduation data has been made available yet.
• Extra-curricular college access model – These programs offer workshops, summer
programs and afterschool opportunities to support students in building self-esteem,
linking college to career, and applying to college. While these programs build selfesteem and often lead to enrollment, college completion has only been achieved in very
small cohorts with a high cost-per-student model. One of these organizations, College
Creating college graduates who change the world. | 9
Track, reports a 55% college completion rate within 6 years.
• Charter school model – Some of these schools have been incredibly successful (with
graduation rates reaching as high as 84%), but winning charter schools are hard to come
by and costs per student are at least double the 10KD model to support facilities and
extensive staff. Often students must be picked in a lottery to participate in a charter
school, leaving the majority of students out.
• Financial literacy model – This model trains students to budget responsibly and
supports them in applying for financial aid. It has been effectively deployed when added
to other parts of the value chain, such as with college prep charter school students-- 65
% graduate college within 6 years.
10KD enjoys the following competitive advantages over most college access and success
programs. We will have additional advantage in the coming years with the technology
scaling solutions that we are developing.
• A proven model with a high return on investment
• Data-driven: We use a research-based curriculum that requires we enter data on a
regular basis to track our kids’ progress and to ensure we are able to deliver on our
documented outcomes—that we are proving our effectiveness at increasing life skills,
formulating career and academic goals, and meeting the benchmarks of high school
graduation, college enrollment and degree completion.
• An open program: We have no GPA requirement, serve students interested in
community college as well as 4 year universities, and serve undocumented students.
• Combines renewable scholarships with student support: This is the combination
that yields long-term relationships with our students.
• Focus on college completion rather than enrolment.
• College persistence programming, including a technology platform that enables
tracking and monitoring as well as ongoing peer support
• Provide mentoring via volunteers, which produces a low cost per student ratio
($1,800 per student).
• Alumni involvement: Our alumni are our most powerful asset. They serve as staff,
Board members, volunteer mentors, and donors. Very few competing programs have a
sales force of alumni who work as hard as ours do.
For Fee-for-Service Clients: Meetings with dozens of those making purchasing
decisions, from college access programs to college prep charter school networks, has
revealed that pressure from funders and board members to serve larger numbers of
students, get to stronger outcomes, and to better track and support students all the way
through college, has now put them on a quest to identify external program support. 10KD
drew from its core competencies to create a line of programs and services that directly
address these needs. There are no other organizations in California with these offerings.
10 | 10,000 Degrees Business Plan
We will likely be one of very few organizations in the country that can be retained to provide
technical assistance, programs, or back office support to achieve college completion
outcomes.
While direct competition has not surfaced, there are organizations doing something closely
related – facilitating collective impact efforts in educational reform. Strive, which has
been engaged for a few years in a successful “cradle to career” collective impact initiative
in Cincinnati, is also interested in improving “achievement gap” or college access and
success” outcomes. Strive and the national consulting group, FSG, have been working
to stimulate and support a growing movement to do this work in a collective fashion with
all regional stakeholders agreeing to align themselves on strategy and success metrics.
In Marin, 10KD has been part of a leadership group to explore whether this model could
be employed effectively near our home base, where 10KD would be a leading provider.
10KD, Strive and FSG could naturally become partners in this collective work. Since most
communities are neither at the advanced stage of readiness required for this approach nor
able to raise sufficient leaderships or funds for a regional approach, 10KD does not see
Strive as competition. If nothing else, we believe that Strive and FSG are stimulating the
marketplace for proven data-driven programs like ours.
For Licensing: 1) Technology for scaling: This is “high touch” via high tech. The goal of
this project is to develop a customizable web-based tool, and eventually a mobile platform,
for college access and success programs to multiply reach. Our application will have
elements of a game, a social media platform and mission-based learning. There is nothing
like it in the marketplace. Although most of them are too basic to address the needs of our
target population (Alltuition.com, for example), financial literacy on-line learning programs
exist, so we need not spend time on that aspect of the curriculum. The University of
Southern California has created one new college preparatory game, but this is more game
than a learning tool. We are partnering on this with First Graduate in San Francisco, and
thus spreading the risk, sharing expertise, and pooling potential customers. 2) College
tracking and peer support: One organization, Beyond 12, has been developing a college
student tracking and social media platform with our support. In partnership with Beyond 12
we will offer clients concerned about college completion the Beyond 12 platform combined
with our peer and staff led college persistence programs. These two innovations represent
and enormous opportunity to capture growing demand to scale in this arena.
MARKET STRATEGY
Receptivity to our approach is high among kids and their parents, mission-aligned
organizations and community foundations. Our programming is fun and accessible,
and our model is easily supported by schools, colleges and other community-based
organizations.
Our greatest challenge has been managing demand in new communities, where the
numbers of eager students, parents, and schools are greater than the resources to serve
them. Preferring to scale impact rather than infrastructure, we are working to leverage the
capacity of mission-aligned organizations (scholarship funds, mentoring organizations,
Creating college graduates who change the world. | 11
youth groups) in targeted geographic areas in order to meet escalating demand. We
are also partnering with community foundations to create sustainable, long term funding
pools in new locations. After dozens of interviews with complementary, achievement gap
organizations and funders it likewise became clear to us that we have an opportunity to
draw earned revenue and engender strategic partnerships simply by sharing our expertise
and tools with the other organizations in this space, including many working outside of our
region, and at the state and national levels. All these factors have pointed to our positioning
as a “partner of choice” in the achievement gap/“college access and success” market.
We will accomplish our scaling objectives through a focus on strategic and client services,
licensing new technology for scaling college preparation programs, and policy advocacy/
movement-building. Integral to this strategy is a collaborative approach, continued
investment in knowledge management and evaluation, and ` for our staff, Board members,
and community volunteers who often become influential advocates.
Concurrently, we will continue to build the
capacity of our fundraising program to:
• broaden our individual gifts program,
• expand and deepen corporate partnerships,
• bring our foundation relations program into
the national arena, thereby expanding our
patron/donor base,
• and advance alumni engagement.
The variety of sources allows for long-term,
sustainable revenue and the continuation of
10KD’s programs.
Vision, mission and objectives
10,000 Degrees believes everyone should have a chance at college. We advocate for equal
educational opportunity and support students in need to successfully access, pursue and
complete higher education.
Our vision is that every student, regardless of race, ethnicity or socioeconomic
background, will be able to pursue his or her goals and have equal access to the full range
of higher educational opportunities. We will pursue this vision, day-by-day, until it is realized.
CORE VALUES
• Education is the foundation of a just and equitable society.
• Education is a right regardless of race, ethnicity or socioeconomic background.
12 | 10,000 Degrees Business Plan
• Education is the responsibility of families, schools and communities.
• Education is critical to the well-being of individuals, families and the economic and social
health of our community.
GUIDING PRINCIPLES
We embrace diversity and recognize the unique needs and desires of families and
students.
We commit to partnerships that support families and individuals to attain a quality of life
and full participation in our community.
We serve as an educational resource for students and families.
We target all of our resources to students from low-income households, traditionally
underrepresented in higher education and first generation to attend college.
We select for funding those individuals with demonstrated financial need, desire for learning
and the perseverance necessary to complete their educational goals.
We advocate for educational equity.
We invest in students’ educational dreams.
GOALS
The primary goal is to significantly increase the number of students directly impacted
by 10,000 Degrees, thereby impacting their respective communities and to achieve the
benchmarks that will be critical to sustainable growth:
• Demonstrate that the model can work at scale and can be sustained in other
communities in Northern California.
• Generate evidence of both short-term direct impact (putting kids on the path to college)
and longer-term systemic impact (increasing college attainment rates and impact on
community’s college-going culture and public policy) in multiple settings.
• Create organizational capabilities and financial capacity for sustainable growth.
OBJECTIVES
• Expand 10,000 Degrees throughout the North Bay region, growing from 2,500 to 10,000
students served annually by the end of 2015.
• Work collaboratively, potentially as a facilitator, with other college access and success
organizations to (1) leverage one another’s resources and (2) achieve meaningful impact
in the region, and (3) Expand our knowledge of how best to scale impact.
The expansion initiative, described below, advances 10,000 Degrees’ theory of change by
Creating college graduates who change the world. | 13
putting into place in communities of need the programs that will act as levers to move more
underserved students through the educational pipeline to a college degree. From research,
evaluation and our 30 years of experience, we know what works to make this happen and
how to expand and grow strategically to meet the need.
What 10KD will do
This measured expansion (building a robust platform with proven scalability) to adjoining
communities will allow the organization to test its approach in multiple settings and further
strengthen its financial model before considering the creation of a broader network. The
map pictured shows 10KD’s current reach. The planned expansion will take place within
Northern California and focus on the organization’s target population of low-income
students in the North Bay. Staff members and community partners have identified Sonoma
County, Solano County, and the city of Richmond in West Contra Costa County as
communities in which to focus initial expansion.
APPROACH
The adoption timeline in each county is approximately three years and works along the
following sequence:
1.Developing relationships with school, college, and relevant community leaders.
2.Collecting data. Identifying gaps in the college access and success value chain.
3.Identifying and cultivating both programmatic and funding partners.
4.Identifying and cultivating any potential fee-for-service clients.
5.Developing a pilot phase budget and operational plan, and pools required funding.
6.Launching pilot phase. Evaluating and refining continuously.
7.Continuing to roll out programs and services as funds are raised or earned.
EXTENT OF SCALING TO-DATE
We launched the 10KD Institute in Sonoma County in 2009 and began a very small
pilot program in Solano County in 2010 to test these markets. An environmental scan in
Richmond (of West Contra Costa County), to assess needs and potential partners was
completed in January 2011, and strategic and client partnerships are being developed now
to serve this area.
MARKET ENTRY
10KD currently serves 2,500 kids with low and high touch programs in three counties,
consisting of 13 schools. Over the next three years we plan to grow to a total of four
counties and 22 schools, serving 10,000 kids. We will expand our reach in current
communities and establish highly visible pilot programs in new ones. Initial market entry
has taken place in three of the four counties. West Contra Costa County will be the last to
occur in 2014. Program market entry there may be preceded by a fee-for-service technical
assistance contract, as the school district has invited 10KD to assist in the design of
14 | 10,000 Degrees Business Plan
10KD will use a phased approach to implement its business plan, with the
following goals defined for each phase:
PHASE I:
PHASE II:
PHASE III:
Expanding throughout
Sonoma County, marketing
10KD Center for Tech
Assistance (fee-for service),
launching first multi-year
fundraising campaign, and
building necessary support
systems.
Piloting programs in West
Contra Costa County,
testing earned revenue
strategies, building capacity
of fundraising program.
Piloting additional programs
in Solano County.
Evaluation of work in all
4 counties. Planning for
further scaling.
• Make necessary course
corrections in Sonoma.
• Begin Solano county
expansion
• Launch pilot in city of
Richmond (West Contra
Costa County)
• Launch external
evaluation of multiple
sites.
• Evaluate earned revenue
program
• Solidify earned revenue
program and build
necessary supports.
July 2012-June 2013
(1 year)
July 2013-June 2014
(1 year)
• Launch quiet phase of
campaign, and then
public phase in spring.
• Refine fee structure and
earned revenue policies
and practices.
July 2014 – June 2015
(1 year)
• Build on fundraising
campaign
• Solidify expanded
management team.
• Develop strategic
partnerships for Solano
County expansion.
• Build a robust
measurement and quality
system.
Napa
Sonoma
• Plan to scale 10KD
operations further,
including work with NFF
Capital Partners on a
growth capital campaign
Sonoma
Napa
Solano
Marin
Solano
Marin
Contra Costa
San Francisco
Contra Costa
San Francisco
Alameda
Alameda
Students served
College Tours
10KD Institute
2012
2015
Creating college graduates who change the world. | 15
district-wide internal efforts to improve college preparation.
Fiscal Year
Number of Communities
Number of Schools
Kids Served Annually
2011-2012
2
13
2,500
2012-2013
3
16
4,000
2013-2014
4
19
7,500
2014-2015
4
19
10,000
The delivery of programs in new communities in the North Bay region has been, and
will continue to be, determined based on students’ needs and a thorough assessment
of the “college access and success” landscape. In these new communities 10KD would
like to provide our proven 14-year process that takes students from 3rd grade to college
graduation and beyond. In most cases we will work with existing resources and community
based organizations to add whatever pieces of the college preparation pipeline is missing.
Our experience in Marin has taught us that it is easier to build partnerships with peer
organizations by gradually introducing programs and services incrementally. We will
usually launch programs in a new community in the following logical sequence: (1) “Getting
Ready”/information and guidance – including the 10KD Institute and 10KD University; (2)
“Finding the Money” - financial education and aid; (3) “Planting the Seed” work – including
College Day Tours; and (4) “Earning the Degree” – college transition support, a suite of
services for college persistence and “College Clubs”, and (5) Career support and alumni
engagement.
The rationale of beginning with the 10KD Institute and other information and guidance is
predicated on two core beliefs: (1) If we want to change students’ beliefs (from “I can’t
go to college” to “I CAN go to college”) and behaviors, we need to create a community
around them where those new beliefs can be practiced, expressed and nurtured over time.
Each 10KD Institute cohort is a small community that consists of 50 students, 50 mentors and 50 other adult allies including parents, college advisors, teachers, etc. (2) A small
close-knit group made up of the right people has the power to exponentially magnify the
belief and message. We believe that creating many peer support groups with each 10KD
Institute cohort can create a larger, growing movement in the community. As students
progress, a group of 50 alumni begin to pay it forward as volunteers, donors, or just ambassadors, and new cohorts are added, ultimately becoming a generative cycle leading to
systemic change.
INFRASTRUCTURE REQUIRED TO SUPPORT EXPANSION
This business plan has implications for both facilities and technology. In summary, our
objective would be to maximize technology, helping us achieve greater efficiencies and
eliminate any unnecessary overhead in occupancy costs.
16 | 10,000 Degrees Business Plan
10,000 Degrees will maintain small administrative offices in Sonoma and Solano Counties
to house mostly program staff, but aims to deliver most of its programs in communitybased sites including college campuses, secondary schools, other organizations that are
natural gathering places for our students, and via webinars for mass trainings of mentors
and school personnel. Our plan sets out the following:
• Program offices in Sonoma Valley, Santa Rosa and Vallejo, with a possibility of
Richmond to follow.
• Program staff will be equipped with appropriate technology and dispersed throughout
the community at student gathering sites, i.e. high schools and other community-based
organizations, i.e. Youth Centers. We anticipate some minimal occupancy costs may
apply.
10KD has historically used a contact database and scholarship module through Foundation
Power. However, in order to achieve a more user-friendly and cost-affordable environment,
we migrated our donor database from FoundationPower to Salesforce and our accounting
database to MIP. In addition, we enhanced our student tracking system through a
Facebook and Salesforce Platform, Beyond 12. We have redesigned our website to meet
students, donors and customer’s needs along with an integrated social media strategy and
an animated video series.
Other technology needs include a web interface to conduct Webinar Trainings, search
engine and social media optimization, and equipping staff with more flexible and accessible
communications technology to better support community-based operations.
In addition to technology and space, we will need to specifically increase staff capacity per
the plans outlined on page 21.
The organization and people
10,000 Degrees has a distinguished track record of growth as a premier college success
solution.
1981- 2001
Awarded $28 million in scholarships to 11,000 students.
2000
Inaugural 10KD Summer Institute.
2002
Mission shift to focus on students who have been traditionally
underrepresented in higher education; full scale college access programs are
launched.
Creating college graduates who change the world. | 17
2002 - 2011
Programs grew to include a complete and well-tested college success
solution; Awarded more than $26 million in scholarships, putting 7,000 kids on
the path to a college degree.
2005
Lumina Foundation recognized the 10KD Institute as one of ten national
college access models.
2009
Replicated program in Sonoma County.
2010
External evaluation is conducted by TCC; Launched pilot program in Solano
County.
2011
Awarded $1.8 million to 572 students and leveraged an additional $16,458
on average in free financial aid for each of our 353 undergraduate students;
touched more than 2,500 students and their families with programs and
services. 100% of the 10KD Institute classes of 2008, 2009, 2010 graduated
high school and enrolled in college.
2010
Appointed first alumnus Board Chair.
2011
Received first $1 million gift.
2011
Awarded “National Scholarship Provider of the Year”, National Scholarship
Providers Association, sponsored by FastWeb; Selected as 1 of 3 finalists for
the Social Impact Exchange National Business Plan competition.
2012
Established the Scholarship Foundation of Sonoma County in partnership
with the Community Foundation of Sonoma County; opened new office in
Sonoma Valley; New Leadership Corp is launched.
2012
Celebrates 84% baccalaureate degree attainment rate.
ORGANIZATION STRUCTURE AND GOVERNANCE
10,000 Degrees has strong and consistent leadership. Led by Kim Mazzuca, President
and CEO since 1999, and chaired by an alumnus, the organization is governed by a
25-member board, 19 voting members and 6 Emeritus and Honorary members. The
Board of Directors includes representation from alumni, trustees of secondary schools and
higher education institutions, philanthropy, financial services, business and public relations.
95% of board members complete three three-year terms and remain actively involved
on committees thereafter. The committee structure includes Executive, Finance, Audit,
Program Development and Evaluation, Advancement and Revenue Generation, Strategic
Thinking, Governance and Alumni. The Board meets seven times per year and committees
meet monthly with the exception of Executive, Audit and Alumni. Each committee is
governed by a charter that is updated annually.
18 | 10,000 Degrees Business Plan
Our Board of Directors is passionately committed to 10,000 Degrees’ mission, each
contributing significant time, talent and financial resources. In addition to increasing our
annual budget and diversifying revenue streams, the Board of Directors has more than
quadrupled our fundraising results in the last 6 years, collectively raising more than $1
million annually.
SENIOR MANAGEMENT TEAM
The senior management team consists of the following:
Kim Mazzuca, President and CEO – Kim has led 10,000 Degrees since 1999.
Almost immediately upon taking the helm, Kim led the organization through a significant
transformation beginning with a mission shift in 2000 from a technical processing center
to a premier college success organization serving students who have been traditionally
underrepresented and now yielding an 84% college completion rate. Under her leadership,
the organization developed the 14-year wrap around full-service model, executed a major
advocacy campaign for “educational equity” and developed a fundraising program that
now raises more than $1 million in annual gifts. Most recently, Kim led the organization
through a business planning process resulting in a growth and scaling plan, new brand
identity and name change, and is currently setting the stage for a major growth capital
campaign. She holds her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from San Francisco State
University, is a graduate of the Stanford Graduate School of Business Program for
Nonprofit Leaders where she was named a fellow in 2001, and is currently seeking her
doctoral degree in Organization and Leadership at the University of San Francisco. Ms.
Mazzuca has served on numerous community boards and currently serves on the National
College Access Network Board of Directors.
Traci Lanier, Vice-President of Programs and COO - Traci joined 10,000 Degrees
in 2003 and developed the organization’s first organizational advancement plan, and
co-founded Marin Educational Equity Week. She was named Vice-President and Chief
Operating Officer in 2007 and is responsible for all scholarship and program operations.
Previously, Traci served as Annual Giving Manager at the Colorado School of Mines,
Account Manager for ProSavvy, an international business-to-business start-up, and
Development Manager at the University of Phoenix. She earned her master’s degree in
International Economics from the University of Denver and her bachelor’s degree from San
Francisco State University.
Karen Bluestone, Managing Director of Strategy and Innovation - Karen joined
the 10,000 Degrees’ team in October 2011. With more than 20 years of strategic planning
and problem solving experience in the public and private sectors, Karen’s emphasis has
always been on expanding opportunities for growth and development. She has held
executive-level positions at philanthropic organizations such as the Eurasia Foundation
and the Jewish Community Federation of SF, led the global economic strategy firm IDeA,
and learned the craft of fundraising at two University of California campuses. At 10,000
Degrees Karen is working closely with the Board’s strategic thinking committee and
Creating college graduates who change the world. | 19
staff, enabling the organization to rise above constantly changing economic conditions,
developing innovative and flexible strategies – from earned income and strategic
partnerships, to technology development – for the organization to not only grow, but thrive.
Karen holds an MBA from UCLA’s Anderson School of Management and a bachelor’s
degree from the University of California, Berkeley.
Ellyn Weisel, Chief Development Officer
Ellyn Weisel recently joined 10,000 Degrees as Chief Development Officer. She brings
broad development, marketing, and non-profit experience as well as a passion for
spreading our mission and message to families. Before coming to 10KD, Ellyn served
as Vice President of Development at Common Sense Media for five years and began
her professional career at International Management Group (IMG), a worldwide leader in
sports and entertainment events marketing and management, talent representation, and
production. While at IMG, she worked in corporate consulting and was Vice President of
that group when she left in 2000 to have her three children. Ellyn is actively involved in
non-profit work. From 1995-1999 she served on the Board of Sportsbridge, a mentoring
program for underprivileged girls. From 1998- 2009, Ellyn served on the Board of Directors
of the Boys and Girls Club of San Francisco (BGCSF). BGCSF is one of the largest
providers of services to at-risk youth in the Bay Area. She was Chair of the Marketing
Committee from 2000-2003 and Chair of the Board from 2004-2006. Ellyn also serves
on the Board of Trustees of Marin Country Day School and the Holderness School in
Plymouth, NH. Ellyn is a graduate of Colby College.
Seth Goddard, Director of Communications
Seth joined 10,000 Degrees in April 2012. He brings to the team both corporate and
entrepreneurial experience in communications, marketing and technology. As a reporter
in New York City for LIFE magazine, Seth learned the craft of story-telling from one of
America’s finest journalism teams and won art direction awards as a member of the initial
internet-enabled Time Inc. New Media. Seth bolstered his technology chops during the
turn-of-the-millennium dot-com boom as an early-stage designer at Kmart’s BlueLight.com
and as Creative Director with Silicon Valley’s 2Wire. Before bringing his talents to the nonprofit sector, Seth learned the art-and-science of database marketing at San Francisco’s
Loyalty Lab. He was tapped by Convio and the Salesforce Foundation in 2011 to produce a
webinar highlighting the communications strategies he implemented at the climate change
and social justice non-profit TransForm. Seth majored in American Studies and hold’s a BA
from Skidmore College, Saratoga Springs, New York.
ACCOUNTABILITY
Senior management report on progress to the Board via an established dashboard on a
quarterly basis, including an analysis of actuals to budget. As earned income initiatives
are further developed these will be added to the dashboard. Progress on expansion will be
reported on an annual basis to investors and donors.
To ensure that our programs and services are of a consistently high standard, in addition
to internal and external evaluation, students and education leaders are regularly asked (via
20 | 10,000 Degrees Business Plan
surveys) to rate the quality of our programming.
Our partnerships with Northern California, schools, colleges, and community organizations
continue to grow and we are becoming a leader in the national dialogue on college access
and success.
STAFFING PLAN
A list of current staff and positions for which we will be hiring:
Title
President
Vice President of Programs, COO
Managing Director of Strategy and Innovation
Chief Development Officer
.5 FTE
New Hire
FY13
FY14
FY15
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
39
Chief Financial Officer
Chief Technology Officer
Chief Communications Officer
Finance Manager
Finance Associate
HR Manager
Student Interns
Events Coordinator
Development Associate
Foundation & Institution Grants Manager
Director of Corporate Partnerships
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Alumni Coordinator
•
•
Planning & Evaluation Director
Business Development Director
Technical Assistance Associate
Technical Assistance Associate
Regional Coordinator
Regional Coordinator
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
24
32
Regional Coordinator
Regional Coordinator
Regional Coordinator
Program Director
Volunteer Manager
Scholarship / Financial Aid Manager
Scholarship Associate
Executive Assistant
College Advisor - Marin
College Advisor - Marin
College Completion Coordinator
College Completion Coordinator
College Completion Coordinator
College Advisor
College Advisor
College Advisor
College Advisor
# of FTE
Creating college graduates who change the world. | 21
Earned and contributed income strategies
EARNED INCOME
10KD has done extensive research over the past several months, including dozens of
interviews with CEOs of mission-aligned organizations and foundations. This research has
revealed new opportunities for 10KD to sell its program expertise (“core business”), provide
back-office know-how, and license new technology for scaling college access and success
programs. The following core competencies of 10KD were of greatest interest to the field:
• 10KD Institute
o Former Summer Application Institute (SAI)
o Includes our scholarship commitment
• 10KD University (information, guidance, planning, FAFSA)
o Pre-high school and high school workshops
o Individual appointments at schools or CBOs
• Finish Line
o Our college persistence program
o Includes 10KD College Clubs, coaching, transfer support, etc.
• Volunteer Management/Mentor Training
• Scholarship Administration
• Technology innovations for efficient scaling
Pricing has thus far been determined by assessing fixed and variable costs associated
with each program or service, identifying comparable price points in the marketplace if any
exist, and finding the sweet spot between total cost and acceptable prices. There is one
competitor who charges $10,000 for a four-day training workshop for teachers. There is
another competitor who charges $1,000 per student annually for the information, guidance
and FAFSA completion components.
A preliminary analysis of start-up costs, acceptable pricing levels, and internal and external
investment required, and the relationship of these investments and potential revenue to the
achievement of 10KD’s mission, illustrates the opportunities and decisions that lie ahead.
22 | 10,000 Degrees Business Plan
Earned Income Opportunities
Mission Achievement
10KD University
Mentor Training
Finish Line
Technology/
Game-Based
Program Delivery
Strategic
Partnerships
Volunteer
Management
Scholarship
Administration
Financial Aid
Management & Tracking
Core Business
Back Office Support
Program Extensions
Bubble size = relative
level of investment
Profitability
Profitability and mission achievement are on the x and y axes (respectively), and the size of
the bubble correlates with the level of investment needed to bring the initiative to market.
The “core business” product line brings us the greatest impact. However, profitability may
be difficult to achieve. “Strategic partnerships” (like those with community foundations)
and Finish Line (college persistence programming and services) offer the greatest
potential. The strategic partnership with Beyond 12 to combine our Finish Line program
with their technology platform has significant potential – as competition in this area has
not yet surfaced – and 10KD has an attractive track record. “Back office support”, while
not contributing significantly to outcomes, does have potential to generate sustained
income and engender close relationships with others in the field. The program extension
represented by the green bubble is the collaborative technology project mentioned earlier
with First Graduate and Nuvana. The significant investment required is spread across our
three organizations, as is the risk. Funders interested in college access and technology will
provide seed capital. Once the program modules are developed this initiative could create
sustained revenue as we license the customized web-based platform to organizations all
over the country.
Emerging earned income criteria
The prioritization of earned income opportunities will be determined by the answers to the
questions that follow:
Creating college graduates who change the world. | 23
• Funding available and competitive environment
• How likely we are to secure significant dollars through each model?
• How might we need to adapt to meet the requirements of a particular funding model?
o Programs
o Personnel
o IT Systems
o Communication materials
• Is start-up capital available to get us on track?
• Do the benefits of this funding outweigh the costs?
Synergy of earned income strategy with scaling objectives
10KD staff and board members are thrilled that these earned income opportunities do
double duty. In addition to earning unrestricted revenue for the organization to put toward
priority initiatives, these earned income opportunities also help 10KD to scale - bringing our
proven model to even more students.
• Selling “core-business” services allows us to scale via affiliation with other organizations.
• Selling “back office support” services allows us to scale via affiliation with other
organizations.
• Licensing of new info-technology platforms will further support both affiliation and
branching strategies.
o May also contribute to “doctrine-building”, leading to re-evaluation of the field’s
standard operating procedures and assumptions.
CONTRIBUTED INCOME
Private Foundations: As mentioned in the market research section of this plan, there
is an enormous opportunity for 10KD to raise increasing funds from private foundations.
For the fourth consecutive year, closing achievement gaps for minority and low income
students is the priority supported by the greatest number of grantmakers. We will seize
this opportunity by:
• Investing in prospect research
• Hiring a full-time Foundation and Institutional Giving officer (previously was
a part-time position) who will develop and execute strategies to cultivate, solicit, and
steward foundations.
• Devoting time to present at professional conferences attended by foundation
representatives.
Community Foundations: 10,000 Degrees has built and leveraged key relationships with
community foundations in Marin and Sonoma. In each of these communities we have
24 | 10,000 Degrees Business Plan
a high-impact partnership with the leading community foundation in which 10KD serves
as a flagship grantee, attracting community members to support 10KD by putting their
philanthropic dollars in a special fund at the community foundation. In West Contra Costa
County, where a large, education-focused community foundation does not exist, we have
been cultivating a relationship with a national foundation (The Hispanic Scholarship Fund)
that has targeted that area for investment. In all three of these cases the foundation partner
provides fundraising infrastructure to cultivate geographically targeted donations, and
encourages donors to make long-term investments. We will approach Solano County in the
same way.
Individual Philanthropists: Although 10KD has been in the college access and success
business for 30 years, because of our supporting relationship with the Marin Community
Foundation, 10KD only began a robust fundraising program in 2009. Now four years
old, we are off to an excellent start with 685 donors, an average gift size of $2,664 and 5
donors who give at or above $25,000. We will take advantage of the opportunities that
new geographic markets offer by:
• Capitalizing on our partnerships with community and national foundations,
helping their staff to have the tools they need to effectively fundraise for us.
• Launching our first multi-year fundraising campaign with additional support from
a seasoned campaign consulting team.
• Growing our own fundraising team over the next few years, putting more
representatives of the organization out into the community, cultivating relationships with
philanthropists and reconnecting with alumni.
• Undertaking a leadership development process aimed at identifying individuals
who will be able to:
o Act as principle ambassadors for 10KD, sharing with others our mission, vision
and case for support;
o Give a major “stretch gift” personally;
o Provide entrée to other prospective donors or constituencies;
o Actively solicit major gift support for the campaign.
Corporations: As we increase our fundraising capacity in the coming years, we plan
to roll out a significant, multi-tiered corporate partnership program that will include: 1)
financial contributions, 2) in-kind contributions (such as a corporate HR office spending
time working with students on resume-building and interview skills), 3) community service
(training employees to serve as 10KD mentors), 4) and accompanying collaborative PR
projects.
OTHER SOURCES OF INCOME
10KD holds an annual gala each year called Scholarship Night. The event nets approximately
$240,000 in sponsorship and brings heightened visibility to the organization and the students
Creating college graduates who change the world. | 25
we serve. In the coming years a gala event will be held in each of the counties we serve.
Financial projections
CAPITAL REQUIRED
In order to achieve the impact of reaching 10,000 kids and their families by 2015, 10KD must
secure $5 million to fund (1) the hiring and training of key staff required for a more robust
operating platform (including a Chief Financial Officer, a Chief Technology Officer, an Alumni
Coordinator, and a Volunteer Manager); (2) seed capital to start or expand into new regions, and
(3) a reserve fund to provide additional capital to accelerate earned income marketing, advance
our technology innovations and take advantage of opportunities for accelerated growth.
10,000 Degrees
Financial Proforma
G rowth & E xpansion F Y 13 - F Y 15
Students Served
Staff FTE
FY 13
FY 14
FY 15
4,000
7,500
10,000
24
32
39
$1,804
$1,291
$1,154
R E V E NUE & E XPE NSE S
FY 13
FY 14
FY 15
R evenue
I nstitutional/ Corporate G iv ing
I ndiv idual G iv ing
E ndowments/B equests
E arned R ev enue
2,956,100
1,944,033
630,000
100,000
3,322,100
2,427,243
661,500
150,000
3,921,100
3,233,735
694,575
300,000
10,199,300
7,605,011
1,986,075
550,000
5,630,133
6,560,843
8,149,410
20,340,386
2,408,700
3,027,000
3,634,700
9,070,400
2,582,600
1,891,290
4,473,890
333,333
3,717,100
2,524,020
6,241,120
416,666
4,704,800
2,669,800
7,374,600
528,320
11,004,500
7,085,110
18,089,610
1,278,319
Total E xpenses
7,215,923
9,684,786
11,537,620
28,438,330
Strategic Partnerships
669,890
1,218,600
1,184,720
3,073,210
Additional Seed Capital Needed
915,900
1,905,343
2,203,490
5,024,734
Average cost per Student Served
Total R evenue
E xpenses
G rants & Scholarships
Non-G rant expenses
P ersonnel
Non P ersonnel E xpenses
T otal Non-G rant E xpenses
R eserv e F und
*Total Seed Capital needed over 3
years = $5M
26 | 10,000 Degrees Business Plan
Total
CASH FLOW
10KD begins each year with 90% of scholarships and 75% of revenue for operations already
committed. Our scholarships are tied to existing rather than forecasted revenue. As a
result, we have not experienced any cash flow challenges. Since our expansion plans are
predicated on secured funding commitments we do not anticipate cash flow difficulties in the
years ahead. To be certain, we are allocating an increase to our cash reserves of $1,278,000
over three years.
PROJECTED FUNDING
The long-term revenue plan (which we hope to achieve by 2020) calls for 42% of funding
from foundations, 40% from individuals (including endowments), 15% from earned income,
and 3% from corporate giving. By 2015, we will have made significant progress toward these
goals.
Foundations
57%
Foundations
43%
Foundations
43%
Given our experience over the past several years in growing our funding portfolio, 10KD
staff and board leadership have great confidence that with an infusion of capital to support
strategic capacity growth we have the opportunities, talent and capability to achieve these
revenue goals.
Marketing
10,000 Degrees wrap-around model provides financial, technical and emotional support to
students-in-need. The effectiveness of the organization has been inspiring to community
partners and funders. Demonstrating how we amplify our allies’ effectiveness when
they team up with our wrap-around model through partnerships and collaboration is
fundamental to our strategy. We will share policy papers, best practices, research, skills
AND the spotlight with our collaborators. By bringing attention to the excellent work of our
partners, we will be seen as the Partner of Choice for any school, school district, CBO,
investor or donor.
Creating college graduates who change the world. | 27
ASSESSMENT
In April 2010, our organization changed its name, logo and overall branding. In the two
years since that change, we have a redesigned website, consistent messaging in all our
printed collateral (Annual Report, press releases, proposals, workshop flyers, etc.), uniform
templates for PowerPoint presentations, and an active presence on Facebook, LinkedIn
and Twitter. We are currently working to increase our name recognition in the greater Bay
Area with integrated communication efforts both online and offline.
STRENGTHS
• Wealth of excellent content (student stories, alumni experience, successful case studies)
- compelling, and brand-consistent
• Thirty-year history and data of excellent work and success
• Regular e-newsletter and Facebook communication with our stakeholders
• Fully-functional and populated social media profiles (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn,
YouTube, Google+)
• Salesforce database has the capabilities to track communications with donor base more
accurately
• Redesign of website (user-friendly; Open Source CMS for in-house control; social
sharing capable; mobile/iPad-friendly)
• Creation of animation video demonstrating universal appeal of 10,000 Degrees Solution
• Partnerships with key allies in surrounding regions enabling greater name recognition
28 | 10,000 Degrees Business Plan
WHAT IS NEEDED
• Integrated, multi-channel Marketing Plan with KPIs/tools to evaluate
• Market research for targeted demographics (client partners; strategic partners; social
impact philanthropists; individual donors)
• Relationships with media sources outside of the Bay Area
• Digital press kit
• Utilizing the sophistication of our CMS to segment database and convert leads to
donations
• Tools and resources choreographed into timely campaigns for supporters to become
‘brand advocates’
TARGET MARKETS
We have distinguished four distinct markets as part of our scaling business plan: client
partners, strategic partners, donors/investors and media/influencers.
• Client Partners are like-minded organizations (service providers, foundations, colleges,
schools and school districts) that would benefit from our back-office scholarship
administration services, mentor/volunteer training and student support or college
persistence programs.
• Strategic Partners are also like-minded organizations that would benefit from our
programmatic abilities but would help us fill out the value chain in a specific geographic
and mission-strategic area.
• Current donor base is a Bay Area resident, (45 – 60 years old), with a household
income of $150,000 or more. The majority of these individuals have a connection to the
organization through a friend, a direct experience with a student or through a charitable
organization’s involvement with 10,000 Degrees.
• Potential Donor/Investor is also 45 – 60 of a comparable income level, but most
likely influenced by social impact investment and the effectiveness of our model. This
potential donor/investor may sit on the board of directors for a foundation, endowment
or corporate charity.
These are sample messages for our targeted audiences:
• It’s working! 84% of our students graduate from 4-year colleges compared to 24%
nationally
• We’ve built a lean, mean college graduate machine – and we can help you build one too.
• Together – we’re better!
• Powered by people like you.
Creating college graduates who change the world. | 29
• If one college degree lights a spark that burns a fire for generations, imagine what
10,000 Degrees will do…
We plan to reach our client and strategic partners through panel presentations, speaking
engagements and ultimately personal meetings. Our presence online contributing to
education forums on LinkedIn, blog posts and Twitter feeds with relevant hashtags (i.e.
#recoverybydegrees, #firstgen) will assist us in establishing ourselves as a Partner of
Choice.
Sources of support
10KD will seek support from a number of sources. A team of campaign consultants will provide
a campaign feasibility study and well-researched case statement. A board development and
strategic planning consultant will work with us through the fall of 2012 to refine our mission,
vision and strategy screen to better equip the organization for scaling and to ensure that
the board is deeply engaged in the development of a sustainable funding model. We have
been in discussions with Achieve Mission, and look forward to working with them on the
development of our staffing infrastructure when we have a clearer understanding of our
earned revenue program and the talent that we will need to support it. The supports offered
by the Social Impact Exchange to the winner would be extremely welcome.
12 month operating plan
Fiscal year 2012-13 is integral to laying the foundation for the effective growth of 10,000
Degrees. Key components are:
July-August 2012: Public launch of partnership with the Community Foundation of
Sonoma County, hire and train additional program staff needed for Sonoma. Solidify
partners, financing and timelines for technology projects. Face to face and marketing
outreach to potential fee-for-service clients. Feasibility study, foundation and individual
prospect research completed for fundraising campaign. 10KD Institutes are held
throughout the summer.
September-October 2012: Inaugural Scholarship Night for Sonoma County. Board
retreat to review and refine strategic plans. Quiet phase of multi-year fundraising campaign
begins. Develop internal and external evaluation plan for expansion. Start of the 2012 –
2013 10KD program.
October-November 2012: Outreach to students and families, College Day Tours,
Bootcamps, etc. Hire Program Director and Volunteer Manager. Refine fee structure and
earned revenue policies and practices. Solidify expanded program staff infrastructure.
December 2012: Apply for national AmeriCorps grant and cultivate other partnerships
to grow volunteer mentor teams in Sonoma and Solano counties. Evaluate earned and
30 | 10,000 Degrees Business Plan
contributed revenue sources for upcoming year. Final push before closing the quiet phase of the
campaign.
January 2013: Board launch of public portion of fundraising campaign. First round scholarship
applications for Sonoma Scholarship Fund. Begin planning meetings with Richmond schools and
potential partners. Convene professional development series for family foundation scholarship prospects
in Sonoma County.
February 2013: Public launch of fundraising campaign. Develop CFO and CTO outreach strategy,
develop job descriptions, with goal of hire in place by July 1.
March 2013: Outreach for students for 2014-2015 10KD Institutes. Richmond planning process outlined
for launch July 1.
April 2013: Create community advisory councils in Marin, Sonoma and Solano counties. Scholarship
Night in Marin (annual fundraising event). Begin aggressive partnership development in Solano and West
Contra Costa Counties.
May 2013: Actively recruit staff for the remaining open positions. Internal evaluation of Sonoma
Scholarship Fund first year, develop recommendations for next year.
June 2012: Have CFO, CTO and Richmond program staff positions filled.
Appendices
A Logic Model
B Board of Directors Biographies
C Organization Chart
D TCC Group Evaluation Executive Summary
E Letters of support
F 10KD Ecosystem
G Funding Commitments
Creating college graduates who change the world. | 31