URBAN ALLIANCE FOUNDATION INC
Employing Youth. Inspiring Excellence
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
High School Internship Program
In partnership with over 200+ employers, we level the playing field for young people in the workforce by equipping them with the tools to overcome the systemic barriers that prevent equal access to economic opportunity. Our signature High School Internship Program provides skills training, mentoring, and paid internships to high school students that keeps them connected to school or the workforce.
Where we work
External reviews

Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
Urban Alliance aims to ensure that all young people have access to education and employment opportunities, leading to lives of self-sufficiency, regardless of race or socioeconomic status.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
Urban Alliance is an intensive intervention for high school youth, providing up to 700 hours of service to each young person served.
The intervention revolves around a ten-month, paid professional internship. Examples of placements include, law firms, banks and financial institutions, government agencies, and other non-profit organizations. At the worksite, Interns are able to hone in on such professional skills as office administration, technology, and communication. In addition, they are exposed to a new world of professional contacts and mentorship.
Prior to placement, Interns are put through an intensive training where soft skills such as professionalism, attitude, and punctuality are emphasized. These skills are reinforced in weekly workshops throughout the year.
Finally, individual case managers work with each youth to create a detailed post-high school plan, ensuring youth are on-track for college and career readiness.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
Youth have access to multiple sources of positive adult relationships. All Urban Alliance Program Coordinators, who have a caseload of approximately 30 young people, are trained in Advancing Youth Development principles. In addition, most of these trained youth developers have had previous classroom experience.
Moreover, each Intern is paired with a worksite supervisor or Mentor. Mentors not only act as a professional support, providing tasks and appropriate feedback, but also support the young person in pursuit of their post-secondary goals, often acting as a professional reference and contact.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
Urban Alliance is committed to its results and are constantly tracking them against regional averages. Results are listed below:
- High School Graduation Rate = 100%
- College Acceptance = 95%
- College Enrollment = 81%
- College Persistence = 81%
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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Who are the people you serve with your mission?
Urban Alliance helps young adults, predominately people of color, overcome systemic barriers to access and opportunity in the workforce. We connect high school students from all backgrounds with paid internships, training, and a network of caring adults committed to their long-term success. We also connect community-minded employers with a diverse, skilled talent pipeline.
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How is your organization collecting feedback from the people you serve?
Electronic surveys (by email, tablet, etc.), Focus groups or interviews (by phone or in person), Case management notes, Constituent (client or resident, etc.) advisory committees,
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals,
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With whom is the organization sharing feedback?
Our staff, Our board, Our funders,
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We take steps to get feedback from marginalized or under-represented people, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on demographics (e.g., race, age, gender, etc.), We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We act on the feedback we receive,
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
It is difficult to get the people we serve to respond to requests for feedback, The people we serve tell us they find data collection burdensome, It is difficult to find the ongoing funding to support feedback collection, Staff find it hard to prioritize feedback collection and review due to lack of time, It is difficult to get honest feedback from the people we serve, It is difficult to identify actionable feedback,
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
URBAN ALLIANCE FOUNDATION INC
Board of directorsas of 09/20/2022
Mary Zients
Urban Alliance
Mary Zients
Urban Alliance
Christine Gregory
NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund, Inc
Andrew Plepler
Bank of America
Nicholas Kilavos
Alliance Partners LLC
Veronica Nolan
Alexandria City Public Schools Board
Gregory Desautels
Capital One Financial Corporation
Kelly Dibble
Northern Trust
Shahin Rezai
Retired, Capital One
Marta Urquilla
Education Design Lab
Jeanna Vidale
Clark Construction
Linda Assante
Former Managing Partner, Jasper Ridge Partners
Kevin Greer
Partner, New Profit
Deborah Harmon
Co-Founder and CEO, Artemis Real Estate Partners
Eshauna Smith
Director of Community Mobilization, Ballmer Group
Zed Smith
Chief Operating Officer, The Cordish Companies
Marta Urquilla
President, Centri Tech Foundation
Rick Wade
Senior Vice President of Strategic Alliances and Outreach, U.S. Chamber of Commerce
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? GuideStar partnered on this section with CHANGE Philanthropy and Equity in the Center.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data
Equity strategies
Last updated: 09/20/2022GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support.
- We disaggregate data by demographics, including race, in every policy and program measured.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.