Insights
A look inside JPMorganChase’s The Fellowship Initiative
October 17, 2024
Launched by JPMorganChase in 2010, The Fellowship Initiative (TFI) is a college and career success program that uses a holistic approach to increase the economic mobility of young people. By offering academic enrichment, skills building, mentoring, career readiness, and leadership development, TFI supports young people from all backgrounds – including, without limitation, Black and Latino – and communities that face systemic barriers to economic opportunity. TFI has served over 1,200 young people, and over 800 JPMorganChase employees have volunteered in the program, most making a three-year commitment to mentor the Fellows. Grounded in the communities it serves, TFI is run by nonprofit partners in Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, New York, Oakland, Houston and Washington, DC.
As an employer of over 300,000 workers globally, JPMorganChase is committed to expanding opportunities for skills development, career mobility, and building diverse talent pipelines. In the last five years, we have invested more than $500 million in expanding career opportunities nationally. We have also supported efforts to bring workers who are often overlooked into the workforce through apprenticeships and inclusive-hiring strategies that support veterans, those re-entering the workforce after a career pause, and justice-impacted individuals.
JPMorganChase is committed to promoting high-quality career pathways through improving education and workforce systems and building partner networks with educational institutions, employers, and other key stakeholders, including strengthening local institutions that provide education and skills training, such as community colleges, HBCUs and HSIs.
100 percent of TFI graduates have been accepted to college. TFI Fellows report increased confidence, civic engagement, and connection to a supportive community of peers, mentors, and other adults they trust and who treat them with respect.1
Three key elements of TFI’s success are (1) collaborating with effective local partners; (2) experiential learning that is supported with mentorship; and (3) centering culture and identity in program design and implementation.
“Like many Fellows, I had leadership potential. It was nurtured through my exposure to different experiences and the world outside of my neighborhood, and by building a community around me that reinforced my goals. Involving the same young people, like me, who have benefited from TFI expands the pool of skilled coaches and role models who have the credibility to gain the Fellows’ trust. This comradery, belonging and shared purpose adds an important dynamic and motivating factor to your sense of confidence and accountability. This is why I believe those of us who are the products of this type of program, are uniquely equipped, qualified, and—ultimately—the best positioned to lead this work.” -Dariel Vasquez, TFI alum and founder of Brothers@, which leads TFI NYC
When developing TFI, JPMorganChase prioritized a sustainable, scalable approach grounded in communities and local partner networks. JPMorganChase has supported more than a dozen nonprofit organizations to implement TFI and to identify and implement interventions that improve education and career prospects for young people, with a focus on their social and emotional development. In Washington, D.C., TFI is implemented by Youth Guidance, a nonprofit, working with the District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) to engage D.C. students in school-based programming tailored to their needs. This collaboration more than doubled the number of Fellows served across six D.C. high schools and built connections to other local education organizations including Howard University, a leading Historically Black College and University (HBCU), for college visits and other learning opportunities.
Experiential learning and mentoring are key to the TFI program. TFI mentors work with Fellows to bolster their social capital and enhance experiential learning through access to educational and cultural experiences, such as job shadowing, college application support, and outings to the theater or athletic events. As a result, fellows report that they feel more confident in their skills and abilities.2 Work-based learning develops technical and professional skills that may increase the prospects of career success, especially for young people. TFI mentors prioritize consistent engagement and supporting the Fellows’ growth to develop authentic, long-lasting relationships.
TFI creates a deep sense of community among participants—from the first touch point that Fellows receive to the intentional peer learning approach used throughout the program. TFI prioritizes mental health and wellness through social emotional learning, which is the process of developing the self-awareness, self-control, and interpersonal skills that are vital for school, work, and life success.
Sagid Mohamed’s path from school to JPMorganChase started during a TFI event in high school, which sparked his career interest in financial services. With support from his TFI mentor, he learned more about the industry and applied to Howard University. While at Howard, he was accepted into JPMorganChase’s Advancing Black Pathways (ABP) Fellowship Program, a five-week paid, full-time summer fellowship. Sagid graduated from Howard University with a Bachelor of Business Administration in 2024 and recently joined JPMorganChase as an Asset Management Analyst.
“TFI helped me find direction. They just put me in front of so many people that it was inevitable that I would find where I was trying to go. Beyond helping me find a great mentor, build skills, and get my first internship, TFI helped me learn what being college-ready meant, both mentally and academically. This helped me achieve a lot of success during my first year at Howard University.” -Sagid Mohamed
In 2023, JPMorganChase, alongside One Million Degrees and College Track, announced an expansion of TFI with a focus to improve college graduation rates and increase access to well-paying jobs for young women of color in college. This initiative is being piloted in Chicago and Washington, D.C.
