Holiday Impact Prize Announces OneGoal as a 2023 Winner
Annual award presented by two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Nicholas Kristof raises millions for featured organizations. Campaign for donations and volunteer recruitment open through January 31, 2024.
NEW YORK, November 18, 2023: This year’s annual Holiday Impact Prize has announced OneGoal as a 2023 winner for their work in transforming postsecondary advising and support so that every student can achieve their highest aspirations after high school.
The Holiday Impact Prize is presented by two-time Pulitzer Prize winner and New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof and supported by Focusing Philanthropy. It connects Kristof’s readers to exciting opportunities to donate and volunteer each holiday season. Since 2019, the Holiday Impact Prize and the special edition C-19 Impact Initiative have together raised over $34 million and recruited over 4,600 volunteers for the organizations featured.
This year’s Prize honors three previous winners as part of a special readers’ favorites edition, which includes CAMFED and Per Scholas. Each organization will receive $50,000 in addition to donations raised from readers. The campaign also recognizes one volunteer opportunity, Welcome.US, for its work facilitating the private sponsorship of refugees seeking safety in the United States.
For the first time, Kristof’s three Holiday Impact Prize winners will also become beneficiaries of The New York Times Communities Fund. Formerly known as the Neediest Cases Fund, the annual initiative has encouraged readers to donate to charitable causes since 1911. Now in its 112th year, the campaign has raised over $330 million for nonprofit organizations that have helped countless people improve their circumstances.
“I’m humbled by the generosity of the Communities Fund in adding this year’s Holiday Impact Prize winners to its list of beneficiary organizations. It is exciting to have the opportunity to introduce the broader New York Times audience to these deserving organizations, augmenting the reach of The Holiday Impact Prize and ultimately providing more people with life-changing support,” said Nicholas Kristof.
Since 2009, Kristof has written an annual “holiday gift guide” column to bridge a philanthropic gap: readers who wanted to help but didn’t know how and heroic individuals and organizations who desperately needed resources but were off donors’ radar. These columns have helped raise the profiles of nonprofits that work on the very issues he covers in his journalism—health, education, climate, human rights, and women’s rights, both domestically and abroad. In 2019, Kristof introduced his Holiday Impact Prize as a way to increase donations and create a more ambitious campaign.
“The holidays are a time when we can come together and try to help others. I’m grateful to supporters who have made it possible for the Holiday Impact Prize to continue into this fifth year. Your contributions have aided remarkable organizations working to make the world a better place,” said Kristof. “I’m delighted to welcome back a few organizations that readers particularly loved so we can help the most people possible this holiday season.”
Anyone looking to join in and make a difference can donate to OneGoal by visiting OneGoal.org. For more information, read Kristof’s holiday giving column in The New York Times.
About the Focusing Philanthropy
Focusing Philanthropy, a 501(c)3 nonprofit that finds and funds high-impact, scalable programs around the world, provides the platform for this initiative by processing readers’ contributions, monitoring and reporting on results, and replenishing credit card transaction costs of donations made on KristofImpact.org so that 100 cents on the dollar will support the winning organizations.
About OneGoal
Throughout the country, only 22% of students from low-income communities earn a postsecondary degree compared to 67% of their peers from high-income areas. OneGoal’s three-year program helps students from low-income backgrounds identify paths to success, navigate the system, and enroll in their choice of postsecondary institution. The model leverages the talents of existing high school teachers to deliver OneGoal as a daily, credit-bearing class in 11th and 12th grade and continues with remote support through the critical first year of a student’s postsecondary education. 81% of OneGoal high school graduates enroll in a postsecondary institution, and 73% persist one year later–rates that even outpace students from high-income communities. An independent study by the University of Chicago found that OneGoal students are 40% more likely to earn their postsecondary degrees than students from similar backgrounds. Your investment can help OneGoal close the opportunity gap for thousands more young people annually. $1,500 provides a student with a full year of OneGoal instruction, advising, and support.
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