Participated · Seed · Oct 2023

Escalate operates a proprietary platform designed to reduce turnover among frontline and hourly employees by creating a community of support and providing opportunities for learning and career growth. The company aims to address the high attrition many frontline workers face within their first year on the job. Escalate is based in Silver Spring, Maryland, and has participated in TEDCO programs such as Prelude Pitch, Network Advisors and the Loaned Executive program. Financially, Escalate has received prior support from TEDCO’s Social Impact Funds in 2023 and secured an additional $250,000 pre-seed investment from TEDCO’s Pre-Seed Builder Fund. The company plans to use the new capital to continue scaling and to help more businesses offer support to hourly workers.

Led · Seed · Jan 2020

Edquity is a Brooklyn-based company that provides a research-driven basic needs insecurity and emergency aid technology platform for college students. Its platform includes emergency aid underwriting and disbursement functionality and a hub for social services referral. The company is led by CEO David Helene and Chief Strategy Officer Sara Goldrick-Rab. Edquity previously launched its evidence-based technology in the Dallas County Community College District. In that deployment the technology processed more than 100 applications within the first hour, has since processed over 500 applications, and has deployed nearly $100,000 in emergency assistance. The company plans to use the newly raised funds to expand its emergency cash grant and social services referral technology to additional colleges and universities. Edquity is a Brooklyn-based edtech and fintech company that offers a suite of technology platforms aimed at college financial success. Its core product is a cash-flow management, emergency resource referral, and emergency aid platform for college students designed to help students weather food and housing insecurity and other financial emergencies. The platform enables colleges to identify students at risk of dropping out for financial reasons, measure utilization of emergency resources on- and off-campus, and track the immediate impact of emergency aid on student financial health. Edquity has partnered with institutions including LaGuardia Community College, Nevada State College, and Palo Alto College, and has worked with K-12 districts and non-profit college access organizations such as the New York City Department of Education, DC Public Schools, IDEA Public Schools, and College Possible. Led by founder and CEO David Helene, the company planned to launch the new platform at LaGuardia and Nevada State in late January 2019. Beyond growing its campus presence in 2019, Edquity intends to roll out its own financial products to meet the needs of low-income learners and has received over $1.5M from partners including the Lumina Foundation, Wells Fargo, CFSI, the Gates Foundation, and New Schools Venture Fund.