StriveTogether invests in Houston’s proven approach to improving student outcomes and expanding pathways to economic mobility
Exciting news: Good Reason Houston has been selected to receive a $3 million investment from StriveTogether over the next four years. This is a significant recognition of Houston’s collaborative approach to education — and an opportunity to accelerate the progress we’re already seeing across the region.
What This Investment Means for Houston
This funding will advance our work toward our North Star Goal: doubling the rate of public school graduates earning a living wage by 2040. It’s an ambitious vision, but one that’s already uniting partners across 25 school districts serving 700,000 students around a shared commitment to expanding economic opportunity through education.
The investment will help us put 45,000 more students on the path to economic opportunity by focusing on three strategic priorities:
Strengthening early literacy and expanding pre-K access. We’ll work to increase Greater Houston pre-K enrollment with particular emphasis on aligned instructional supports and data use. When students build a strong foundation in early literacy and early grade reading, they’re set up for success throughout their education.
Advancing policy alignment. We’ll align regional and state policy priorities around literacy, college readiness, FAFSA completion, and postsecondary transitions. By connecting local success to statewide policy conversations, we can help scale what works and remove barriers that prevent students from reaching their potential.
Deepening cross-sector collaboration. We’ll continue building partnerships with district leaders, higher education institutions, employers, and community organizations to scale evidence-based student success strategies citywide. This is how we create coordinated systems that support students from kindergarten through career.
Why Houston?
Houston is one of just three communities selected for StriveTogether’s Transform Impact grants. We join Marin Promise Partnership in California and Rocky Mountain Partnership in Colorado — communities that, like Houston, are demonstrating strong collaboration, data-driven decision-making, and commitment to equity.
StriveTogether chose Houston because we’re already showing what’s possible when education partners work together strategically. Houston ISD has eliminated all F-rated schools and put 145,000 more students in A- and B-rated schools. That’s real progress, and it’s the result of districts, educators, community partners, and families united around a shared vision for student success.
“Good Reason Houston is reshaping how partners work together to improve outcomes and expand opportunity,” said StriveTogether President and CEO Jennifer Blatz. “Their data infrastructure, strong support for school systems, and statewide leadership are creating conditions where more young people can thrive. This investment will help build on strategies that increase economic mobility across the Houston region.”
Building on Houston’s Momentum
As Cary Wright, CEO of Good Reason Houston, puts it: “At its core, this is about giving every child a solid foundation to walk on that will lead them to more open doors in the future. This investment from StriveTogether will help us ensure more students have access to high-quality early learning and clear pathways to living-wage careers. This will allow more Houston students to thrive and our region to grow with them.”
This is in an investment in Houston, and education across the country, as we build a model that can be replicated across Texas and beyond. By using district-level proof points to shape broader conversations about scalable student success strategies, we’re positioning Houston as a leader in demonstrating how education can drive economic mobility at scale.
What Comes Next
Over the next four years, we’ll be working alongside our partners to strengthen the systems that support students from their earliest years through their transitions to college, career, and meaningful employment.
This investment is a testament to what Houston has already accomplished and a vote of confidence in what we can achieve when we work together. When students thrive, Houston thrives. And with this investment, we’re building the foundation for even more students to reach their full potential.
Good Reason Houston unites the region around student success by showing what’s working and what’s not, pushing for bold policies, and partnering with districts to set goals and improve results. We bring together families, schools, businesses, policy leaders, and philanthropists around one North Star Goal: double the rate of public school graduates earning a living wage by 2040.
StriveTogether is a national network of community partnerships working toward a future where youth can thrive in their communities. Cradle to Career Network members change the way their communities work together. They do this by building connections, sharing resources, and using data to put more young people on a path to economic mobility.
