BOSTON, Jan. 28, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — American Student Assistance® (ASA), a national nonprofit changing the way kids learn about careers and prepare for their futures, today announced the expansion of its EvolveMe partner network, including CodingNomads, ESAI, Vero Learning, Wicked Saints Studios, DataCamp, Milestone C, and SkillUp Coalition. Launched in 2023, EvolveMe® is an award-winning, skill-building and career experimentation platform that incentivizes young people to take actions that advance their career interests. Through the platform, teens have access to more than 180 diverse career experimentation tasks – powered by innovative partner organizations – with an 81 percent completion rate.
Part of ASA’s digital ecosystem of free career readiness experiences, EvolveMe enables teens to discover and engage in high-quality, credible career experimentation activities—called Tasks—including virtual internships, AI-powered career coaching, mock job interviews, coding courses, and virtual career mentorships; and develop transferable skills they can apply to any job. These tasks involve many different engaging formats, such as watching videos and taking quizzes, playing games, and completing mini-lessons or quests. For tasks completed, teens earn points they can redeem for gift cards to their favorite retail, restaurant, and entertainment brands. They can also track their progress and accomplishments through fun and dynamic visuals. To date, some of the platform’s popular career readiness tasks include activities, such as improving one’s resume, discovering careers for machine enthusiasts, developing skills that apply to any job, getting started in animation, and money smarts for student athletes.
“Through our suite of free career readiness experiences, including meaningful tasks powered by innovative partners, ASA directly engages with kids and empowers them to see their futures more clearly,” said Clay Colarusso, CMO and SVP of Digital Strategy, ASA.
New EvolveMe Partners and Associated Tasks:
CodingNomads: Offering “Introduction to Data Science and Machine Learning,” CodingNomads is an online learning platform and technical training program that helps learners of all backgrounds gain low-cost access to high-value skills and career opportunities in software development, data science, machine learning, and artificial intelligence. In 2024, CodingNomads served 250,000 learners across 190 countries. CodingNomads offers more than 1,700 free interactive tutorials on its learning platform in topics such as Python, Java, JavaScript, SQL, data science, machine learning, and AI. “Since launching our partnership with ASA’s EvolveMe platform, we’re thrilled to see learners dive into CodingNomads’ data science and machine learning tasks with such enthusiasm. The levels of interest and engagement prove that these young minds are eager to shape the future of technology. We’re proud to work alongside ASA to provide the education and tools that the next generation needs to succeed in these rapidly advancing technical careers,” said Ryan Desmond, CEO of CodingNomads.
ESAI: Via “Enhance Your Unique Story With AI,” ESAI empowers students of all backgrounds and resources to craft their personal narrative for college apps and beyond. ESAI has helped over 400,000 students with personal discovery and postsecondary pathways, saving families an estimated $100M+ in college advising costs. “When seeing the story of their lives through a new lens, students can make more confident and inspired decisions about their college and career paths. At ESAI, we believe every student’s story is worth celebrating, and our partnership with ASA’s EvolveMe platform empowers more students to uncover their unique strengths and goals,” said Julia Dixon, Founder & CEO of ESAI.
Vero Learning: Providing a skills assessment, Vero Learning is an AI-based talent optimization platform. “At Vero Learning, we empower students to take control of their career journeys by identifying the experiences and skills they already have that are relevant to employers. Our AI-powered platform provides students with a clear understanding of their current strengths and connects them to resources that build transferable skills. In just two quarters, we’ve onboarded nearly 10,000 users with a 94 percent conversion rate and achieved an impressive 87 percent completion rate. We are proud to partner with ASA to provide young people with the tools they need to find their best-fit first jobs and succeed in the modern workforce,” said Chrissybil Boulin, CEO of Vero Learning.
Wicked Saints Studios: With “Dive Into Fantasy, Improve Your Reality,” Wicked Saints is building the world’s first adventure activism game called World Reborn. It is an interactive story game that tackles mental health, fosters healthy relationships, and activates young people to positively impact people and the planet with real-world quests that make real-life impact. World Reborn is the first story game ever that will reveal players’ real-life “character strengths” and help players use them to better their reality. Backed by behavioral science, positive psychology, and designed to boost self-belief—this game will prove that you’re already strong. “Being featured in ASA’s EvolveMe platform has provided us with key learnings and insights about our product and core audience. Pairing the qualitative feedback we’ve gained from students with the data points has helped us fundamentally change the experience of our game and find the core motivations that keep our players coming back,” said Jessica Murrey, CEO and Co-Founder, Wicked Saints Studios.
DataCamp: Through the “Basics of Data & AI Curriculum,” DataCamp is establishing its broader mission of democratizing data and AI skills for everyone. “DataCamp is thrilled to announce our new partnership with American Student Assistance (ASA) to empower young learners aged 13 to 18 with in-demand data and AI skills,” said Jonathan Cornelissen, Co-founder and CEO of DataCamp. “Together, we’re committed to equipping the next generation with the data and AI literacy skills they need to thrive in the workplace of tomorrow.”
Milestone C: Piloting “Learn About Drones,” Milestone C is shaping future STEM leaders. “Bringing learning directly to students can be challenging, but our partnership with EvolveMe has been a fantastic way to expand our reach. At Milestone C, our goal is to shape the next generation of STEM leaders, and this partnership has helped us connect directly with students. ASA and our company share a common vision: we believe the greatest impact is achieved through partnerships, and the most meaningful change comes through education,” said David Conelias, Founder and CEO.
SkillUp Coalition: Unpacking “Work Styles,” “Gateway Jobs,” and “Career Training,” SkillUp Coalition is a nonprofit that helps individuals secure high-opportunity employment. SkillUp focuses on non-degree career pathways that provide livable wages and support the jobseeker from start to finish. Founded in July 2020, SkillUp connects workers with the right tools, resources, and support to make confident career shifts, find quality living-wage jobs, and position themselves for promising career growth without the need of a college degree. Through its cutting-edge technology platform and step-by-step career guidance options, SkillUp has connected more than 3 million workers to career, training, and job support nationwide, with more than 500,000 of those aged 16-24. The coalition brings together more than 100 leading organizations, including training and education providers, technology developers, policymakers, employers, and philanthropies. “SkillUp thrives in curating and implementing tools and resources to guide individuals toward more promising career paths. Our partnership with ASA allows us to make meaningful and tangible progress toward promoting high-opportunity careers to youth across the country. We’re helping youth discover their potential, determine their career destination, and get there faster and more confidently through our career support services,” said Steven Lee, CEO, SkillUp Coalition.
Current EvolveMe Partners – Success Metrics and New Tasks:
Athletic Tech Group: Creating “Own Your Brand,” “Prompt Engineering,” and “Crack the Code to Problem-Solving,” ATG empowers young people with the tools, resources, and opportunities they need to excel in their careers, entrepreneurship, and personal development, fostering a generation of leaders building in an ever-evolving world. To date, ATG has supported over 53,000 youth across multiple disciplines, equipping them with the tools, skills, and insights from industry leaders necessary to excel in a rapidly evolving digital landscape. “Students, athletes, and creators face unique challenges in navigating traditional personal and career development paths while building dynamic futures. With Training Ground.ai’s partnership with ASA’s EvolveMe platform, we’re shaping a new framework. By emphasizing personalized microlearning and scenario-based learning, we aim to empower identities and digital skills, equipping them for the future of work. This synergy ensures they can thrive within their passions and beyond,” said Randy Osei, Founder of Athlete Tech Group, CEO of Training Ground.
The DeBruce Foundation: Expanding tasks that bring visibility into skills, purpose, careers, and income, as well as tools such as the Agile Work Profiler©, The DeBruce Foundation changes how people pursue careers. The DeBruce Foundation is a national foundation whose mission is to expand pathways to economic growth and opportunity. The Foundation is committed to helping individuals unlock their potential and find career pathways. “By partnering strategically, we increase experiences and exposure to widen career opportunities, starting with youth and working across the lifespan. The success of this collaborative partnership can be seen in the 99 percent completion rate of DeBruce tasks in EvolveMe in 2024. Young people are our future. They bring ideas, perspectives, and solutions that will lead us to an empowered workforce. We’re grateful to partner with ASA and youth across the nation to expand career pathways for all,” said Dr. Leigh Anne Taylor Knight, Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer, The DeBruce Foundation.
NAF: Shaping teen awareness with tasks like “Professional Speak,” “Pitch Perfect,” and “AI to Revolutionize Fashion,” NAF is where opportunity begins. More than 113,000 high school students in 619 NAF academies across 363 high schools benefit from the NAF design. KnoPro [powered by NAF] is a free web platform that helps U.S. K-12 school students, aged 13 and older, tackle real-world problems faced by business leaders, receive expert feedback from industry mentors, build their skills and resumes, and learn about new careers. “NAF is thrilled to have our KnoPro product be a part of ASA’s EvolveMe platform, as our goals and missions are strongly aligned in ensuring that the next generation is future-ready now,” said Lindsey Dixon, Vice President of Product & Innovation, at NAF. “With so many important career decisions to make, it becomes essential for students to have access to free resources and tools that will help them navigate their journeys forward. EvolveMe and KnoPro both make it interesting and fun for teens to explore career interests, test out different options, develop critical skills, and much more – all while earning points for cool prizes – so that they can feel confident and primed to take on their next steps after high school! We look forward to the partnership and supporting students along the way.”
FitMoney: New tasks now available from FitMoney’s Financially Fit Certificate. FitMoney provides free, unbiased financial literacy programs to empower K-12 students with critical life skills for a financially fit future. “FitMoney is thrilled to continue supporting EvolveMe students to build the financial skills they’ll need for life. By forming sound financial management habits early, students can learn to navigate whatever future they choose,” said Randy Houk, Executive Director of FitMoney.
Skillsgapp: Skillionaire Games by Skillsgapp are award-winning career video games that let youth try on in-demand jobs in their regions, including roles in healthcare, advanced manufacturing, life sciences, and cybersecurity. “Our partnership with ASA allows us to scale career exploration in a way that hasn’t been done before. With aligned missions and ASA’s reach to millions of teens through their EvolveMe platform, youth nationwide can experience in-demand jobs, explore titles, salaries, and pathways, and spark career passions—all through fun and engaging career gaming,” said Tina Zwolinski, CEO, Skillionaire Games by Skillsgapp.
ProjectSet: ProjectSet helps students build durable skills through a personalized journey of on-demand videos, accredited masterclasses, and mentored projects – both inside and beyond the classroom. ProjectSet is growing rapidly and has helped 60,000 new users to learn about and build durable skills. “Our partnership with ASA and EvolveMe reflects our shared commitment to democratize access to durable skills and career readiness for middle and high school students. By combining ProjectSet’s simulated work-based learning programs for durable skill development with EvolveMe’s innovative platform and user franchise, we’re driving real impact by helping young people to discover and realize their professional potential,” said Co-Founder Dhruva Banerjee.
To learn more about how teens are preparing for the future through EvolveMe, read the Worktour and the DeBruce Foundation case studies.
More on ASA’s Award-Winning, Free Suite of Digital Career Readiness Experiences for Teens
When taken together, these digital experiences create a powerful ecosystem that can help students find what they’re good at, what they can be paid for, what the world needs, and what they love. Starting in middle school, teens can explore careers through experiences like the Future Network, a series of original videos that spans five categories and follows Gen Z as they explore and learn about different careers from industry professionals; and Futurescape®, a mobile-first experience that enables career exploration aligned with teens’ interests and strengths. As teens continue their journey through high school, they can build career-ready skills and experiment with fields of interest using Next Voice™, a digital youth advocacy platform that empowers kids with the durable skills they need to effectively make change for the issues and causes that impact their futures; and EvolveMe, co-created with input from thousands of young people.
About American Student Assistance® (ASA)
American Student Assistance® (ASA) is a national nonprofit at the forefront of changing the way kids learn about careers and prepare for their futures through equitable access to career readiness information and experiences. ASA helps middle and high school students to know themselves–their strengths and their interests–and understand their education and career options so that they can make informed decisions. ASA fulfills its mission–in schools and beyond the classroom–by providing free digital experiences, including Futurescape®, Next Voice™, and EvolveMe®, directly to millions of students, and through advocacy, impact investing, research, thought leadership, and philanthropic support for educators, intermediaries, and others. ASA fosters a generation of confident, crisis-proof young people who are ready for whatever path comes next after high school. To learn more about ASA, visit www.asa.org/about-asa.
SOURCE American Student Assistance (ASA)