National Education Equity Lab: Bridging the Opportunity Gap in Higher Education

The National Education Equity Lab (also referred to as Education Equity Lab or NEON - National Education Opportunity Network) is an education-focused organization dedicated to broadening higher education access for students from underserved backgrounds, regardless of their economic status or geographic location. Founded in 2019, the organization partners with top colleges and universities to deliver college credit-bearing courses to high school classrooms in Title I schools at no cost to students.

Mission and Vision

The National Education Equity Lab's mission is rooted in the belief that talent is evenly distributed, but opportunity is not. It aims to address socioeconomic mobility for high school students lacking the typical pathways to top colleges. By providing access to rigorous college coursework and support systems, the Equity Lab seeks to ensure that all students, particularly those from predominately minority communities, feel prepared and empowered to succeed in higher education. The organization aims to help colleges identify prospective students in predominately minority communities.

History and Founding

Leslie Cornfeld, a former senior advisor at the Department of Education, founded the National Education Equity Lab in 2019. Cornfeld's motivation stemmed from her observations of the disparities in access to higher education for low-income students. After advising New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and President Obama’s two education secretaries, she recognized that few low-income students were attending the universities that lead to high-paying jobs. Through visits to Title I high schools, Cornfeld heard consistent concerns from principals, district leaders, and students that even the most talented scholars in under-resourced communities were not on the radar of selective universities and did not believe that they were college-ready or college-worthy.

Program Overview

The National Education Equity Lab operates a pilot program for high school juniors and seniors from low-income backgrounds to take college courses and earn college credits for free. Students who complete these courses earn widely transferable college credits. The program's model involves delivering and supporting actual college credit-bearing courses from top colleges and universities into teacher-led high school classrooms in Title 1 underserved schools. These courses are offered as dual-enrollment classes where students receive both college and high school credit.

Key Components of the Program:

College Partnerships: The Education Equity Lab partners with a network of leading colleges and universities, including Howard University, Stanford University, Wharton School, Spelman College, Brown University, University of Pennsylvania, Harvard University, Georgetown University, Cornell University, and Arizona State University, among others.
Course Delivery: College faculty members deliver lectures asynchronously via video and hold office hours via Zoom. High school teachers co-teach the course, and university graduate and undergraduate students serve as teaching assistants.
Hybrid Teaching Teams: The Lab has created hybrid teaching teams from high schools and colleges to deliver online courses.
Support Systems: The Equity Lab provides a range of supports, including connecting professors with students via Zoom, training high school teachers as course co-teachers, and hiring college undergraduates as course teaching fellows and mentors in applying to and navigating college.
Community of Support: Scholars become part of a "community of support," which includes weekly meetings with teaching fellows and frequent guidance and recognitions. The Ed Equity Lab has formed its own honor society, which recognized more than 900 scholars for their outstanding achievements last spring.

Impact and Outcomes

Since its inception, the National Education Equity Lab has demonstrated significant impact in expanding access to higher education for underserved students.

Student Success: More than 80% of participants have passed their college classes, earning free college credits.
College Enrollment and Persistence: NEON students who pass a course are twice as likely to attend four-year colleges than students from similar high schools (58 percent vs. 29 percent) and also persist in college at higher rates (89 percent vs. 78 percent). The scholars’ first- and second-year persistence in college significantly exceeds that of similarly situated students who are not in the program; it’s higher than the overall national college average; and it also surpasses the college persistence of low-income students who took AP or IB courses or participated in other forms of dual enrollment while in high school.
Increased Awareness and Confidence: The program has built students’ awareness of a broad selection of highly selective colleges across the country and seeks to ensure they feel like they can succeed wherever they decide to attend college.
Potential Tuition Savings: In six years, the Lab reports that it has brought 60 college courses from 17 universities to more than 40,000 high school students in 33 states. Eighty percent of students have passed the courses, and those students have earned 75,000 cumulative college credits for a potential $100 million in college tuition savings.

Expansion and Reach

The National Education Equity Lab has experienced rapid growth since its founding and continues to expand its reach to serve more students across the country.

Geographic Presence: As of April 2022, Education Equity Lab operates in more than 120 high schools in 90 cities and has reached more than 10,000 students in 30 states. As of 2024, the Lab reports that it has brought 60 college courses from 17 universities to more than 40,000 high school students in 33 states.
Title I Schools: The Lab focuses only on Title I eligible public schools - those with a high percentage of low-income families. NEON is currently in every Title I school in Jackson, Mississippi, 120 Title I schools in New York City and has plans to matriculate 1 million Title I high schools into online college courses within a decade.
Future Goals: Aiming high, the Lab plans to serve 1 million high school students through its hybrid college courses and student supports within a decade.

Financials and Funding

The National Education Equity Lab receives its funding from foundations and individual contributions routed through the left-of-center pass-through organization ActBlue Charities. Individuals who donate $25,000 to the group are invited to join its National Education Equity Leadership Council.

Key Financial Information:

Revenue (2019): \$500,000
Expenses (2019): \$174,859
Grants:
- \$500,225 from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (2020)
- \$200,000 from the Carnegie Corporation of New York (2021)
- \$25,000 from the Carnegie Corporation of New York (2020)
- Grant from the New York City COVID-19 Response and Impact Fund (2020)
- \$1.5 million from the McCance Family Foundation
- \$1.1 million from the Leonard Hill Charitable Trust
- \$1 million from an anonymous donor through a donor-advised fund
Individual Support: Since 2019, 271 people have made donations in the range of $1,000 to $25,000. Another 209 people have given $1,000 and below.
Annual Revenue (2024): \$7.5 million

Partnerships

Education Equity Lab is partnered with New Visions for Public Schools, United Way of New York City, the left-of-center New York Community Trust, Open Horizon, Strive for College, American Talent Initiative, Poetry in America, and The Common Application.

Leadership and Staff

Department of Education senior advisor Leslie Cornfeld is Education Equity Lab’s founder and CEO. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and founder of the left-of-center Children’s Defense Fund Marian Wright Edelman are on National Education Equity Lab’s board of directors. As of 2024, the nonprofit has only 32 full-time staff.

Challenges and Considerations

Despite its successes, the National Education Equity Lab faces challenges in scaling its model and ensuring consistent quality across different contexts. Celeste Pico, principal of Lompoc High School in California, noted that introducing Lab courses required significant time and effort. However, she emphasized that the benefits for students, including increased college readiness and financial support, outweighed the challenges.

Read also: Eligibility for National Awards

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