The co-founders of KeyUp cumulatively have 20 years experience teaching and in that time, they realized it’s possible to have more impact beyond the classroom. So, they went to graduate school for design thinking and social entrepreneurship to tackle education problems at scale.
KeyUp began after they interviewed 88 young adults without 4-year degrees to see what issues they were facing. In those interviews, they heard one consistent theme: students are trained to believe that a 4-year degree is the only path to the middle-class.
But, 4-year degrees aren’t good fits for many people. Only 66 percent of high school graduates attempt college, and of those 46% drop out before they finish their degrees. Many of them end up in low-wage jobs.
It would be one thing to organize our educational system around 4-year degrees if they were the only way to the middle class, but they’re not.
You can become a nurse, a programmer, or an electrician without a 4-year degree and earn middle class wages. And by 2021, there are going to be 60,000 job openings in Austin that require some training, but not a 4-year degree.
But people don’t enter those careers for three reasons:
First, there’s a lack of awareness about middle-class careers that don’t require 4-year degrees. Second, it’s overwhelming to search online for training to get to those careers. And finally, there’s no easy way to find out which support programs will help to pay for training services.
In short, there’s no one-stop shop to learn about careers that don’t require a 4-year degree and the training services and support programs that can get you there.
This is why they created KeyUp, which exists to create a world in which young adults from low-income families have paths to the middle class other than attending a 4-year college.
How does it work? First, young people are introduced to the webapp by counselors and trusted community members. Then, it presents an Austin-based list of high-demand, high growth potential careers you can get without a 4 year degree. Next, a user will learn about what it’s like to be a programmer through bite-sized, accurate information that our research.
After that, a user will click through to a curated list of training services that will help them achieve their careers goals. Finally, KeyUp builds connections between users and the support programs that will enable him to graduate.
KeyUp has met with organizations all over Austin that serve more than 90.000 people in Austin. They have said, “We need this service, how fast can you build it?”
And as we zoom out of Austin, we find that there are millions who could use KeyUp. We know that there are currently 35 million people who have attempted college but dropped out. And by 2024, 48% of open jobs will require some post-secondary training but not a 4-year degree.
It is KeyUp’s vision that all people will be financially secure and participating in a thriving US economy.
