MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. (March 31, 2022) — EmpowerU, a leading provider of evidence-based, turnkey social-emotional (SEL) programs that supports the mental health of students and educators, today announced that it has raised $975,000 in Series Seed II funding to continue the company’s exponential growth. This additional capital will enable the company’s services to reach more students at a time when mental health support is more important than ever.
EmpowerU delivers SEL and positive mental health supports within the K-12 and college environments, using a personalized digital platform with integrated asynchronous coaching. This daily blend of supports leads to significant improvements in mood, school attendance, and grades, while decreasing the need for more costly interventions.
“The pandemic proved that years of disinvestment in mental health supports in schools has very high costs for students and educators,” said Katie Dorn, the CEO of EmpowerU. “With this funding, we are excited to continue expanding our offerings to ensure that not only students, but also educators are getting the support they need.”
EmpowerU uses brief, daily lessons to engage students at every stage of their emotional development, and pairs these lessons with reflection, feedback and coaching. EmpowerU coaches hold advanced degrees and are licensed, typically as school psychologists, social workers, counselors, or therapists. They help students face their obstacles and make the important connection between core concepts in the online lessons and the unique challenges in their lives.
Students who have experienced the program have made tremendous gains. In fact, 93% of students who completed EmpowerU’s online program increased their confidence and well-being—and 94% made progress toward their personal goals.
“I am happy again, and I love myself again,” one student wrote. “I thought EmpowerU was not going to work since I had already tried so many things. I’ll admit I was wrong. It did wonders! I finally got my sparkle back.”
EmpowerU’s lessons and mental health coaches support educators as well as students. “This course was very eye-opening in many areas,” said one educator who experienced it. “In terms of my purpose as an educator, I was reminded that my job is not only to teach my subject but also to help the whole student. This course was very rewarding, and I will certainly miss the reflections. I grew a lot as a person and became healthier mentally and physically. I appreciate this course so much!”
To learn more about EmpowerU, visit EmpowerU.education.
About EmpowerU
EmpowerU’s highly personalized, online SEL program helps young people replace anxiety and depression with resilience and confidence, fueling student transformation without a heavy lift for staff or the need for additional hires. The program provides each student with interactive lessons and personalized coaching, pairing technology with brain research in a unique way that supports students and empowers their growth. Multi-year data makes it clear: Nobody understands Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) and approaches SEL the way EmpowerU does.
