Draft:Upwardly Global
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| Established | 2020 |
|---|---|
| Founder | Jane Leu |
| Founded at | San Francisco, CA |
| Type | Nonprofit organization |
| Registration no. | 94-3346127 |
| Purpose | Social Entrepreneurship, Immigrant Inclusion, Workforce Inclusion, Advocacy |
| Headquarters | New York City, NY |
| Services | Career counseling, career resources, mentoring, training, resume services |
CEO | Gregory Adam Haile |
| Website | upwardlyglobal.org |
Upwardly Global is a U.S.-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization formed in 2000 that provides career coaching and employment services to immigrant and refugee professionals.[1]. The organization is headquartered in New York City, with additional offices in San Francisco, Chicago, and Washington, D.C.
History
[edit]Upwardly Global was founded in 2000 by Jane Leu[2] in San Francisco, California.
In 2009, Leu stepped down as CEO and joined the board of directors[3]. Nikki Cicerani served as executive director from 2009[3] to 2018, during which the organization expanded from two to four metropolitan areas and launched virtual services in 2013[4].
Jina Krause-Vilmar served as president and CEO from 2018[5] to 2025. In December 2025, Upwardly Global announced the appointment of Gregory Adam Haile as CEO. Haile assumed the role in January 2026. He previously served as president of Broward College from 2018[6] to 2023 and is an equity partner at Strategos Group, where he founded his Higher Education and Workforce Advisory practice[7]. He is also a senior fellow at the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government at the Harvard Kennedy School[8] and serves as board chair of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta[9].
Programs
[edit]Career Coaching Program
[edit]Upwardly Global offers a free career coaching program for immigrant and refugee professionals[10]. The program provides one-on-one coaching, job search assistance, resume support, interview preparation, and skills training to help participants navigate the U.S. job market[11]. Participants also receive access to online learning platforms, including Coursera[12], Cisco Networking Academy[13], and eCornell[14].
In 2022, Upwardly Global partnered with employers and organizations in Poland to provide career coaching services to displaced Ukrainian professionals[15].
Partnership Model
[edit]Upwardly Global partners with workforce agencies, educational institutions, and other nonprofit organizations and provides them with tools and training to support immigrants and refugees in their job searches[16]. Services include professional development for coaches, technical assistance, and access to Upwardly Global's online learning platform.
Partners include the New York State Office for New Americans[17], Welcome Back Initiative[2], and Global Detroit[18].
Employer Engagement
[edit]Upwardly Global works with midsize and Fortune 500 companies to support the hiring of foreign-born candidates[19] and the development of returnship and mid-career internship programs. It also organizes employee mentorship and volunteer opportunities[20].
Partners include Accenture[21], JPMorgan Chase[2], Wells Fargo[19], Cisco[22], and Deloitte[10].
Advocacy
[edit]In 2023, Upwardly Global worked with the Illinois State Medical Society, the Chicago Bilingual Nurse Consortium, and State Rep. Theresa Mah to develop legislation creating a new medical licensing pathway for internationally trained doctors in Illinois[23]. The law created a limited license allowing foreign-trained physicians to practice under a supervising doctor for two years, followed by a provisional license for an additional two years, before receiving a full unrestricted license[24]. The law went into effect in 2025.
Upwardly Global is a member organization of the Evacuate Our Allies (EOA) Coalition and has advocated for the Afghan Adjustment Act[25], which would provide lawful permanent resident status to certain Afghan nationals paroled into the United States[26].
Technology
[edit]In 2021, Upwardly Global released an AI-based job pathways tool to help immigrants navigate U.S. job searches. In 2024, with funding from Cisco, the organization added a career navigation assistant and an AI-powered resume builder[27].
In 2023, Upwardly Global partnered with HiredScore to develop AI tools intended to reduce bias in automated hiring systems. This partnership resulted in Upwardly Global Fetch, a custom API integration with Workday's HiredScore AI recruiting tool[28]. The integration pulls candidate profiles from Upwardly Global's database directly into recruiters' existing Workday workflows. In an initial analysis, the tool surfaced 575 candidate recommendations for open roles from a pool of 1,500 immigrant job seekers[28].
Funding
[edit]Upwardly Global's first grant was awarded in 2002[2]. The organization has since received funding from sources including the Achelis Foundation[29], Ashoka: Innovators for the Public[30], GitLab Foundation[31], Siegel Family Foundation[32], Western Union Foundation[33], the Eric and Wendy Schmidt Fund for Strategic Innovations[25], among others.
In 2024, the organization received a philanthropic gift from MacKenzie Scott's foundation, Yield Giving[34]
Recognition
[edit]Upwardly Global has received several awards, including the 2004 Manhattan Institute Award for Social Entrepreneurship[35], the Migration Policy Institute's 2010 E Pluribus Unum Award[36], and a Bronze Anthem Community Voice award for their work supporting Ukrainian refugees in Poland[37]. The organization received honorable mentions in Fast Company's 2023 World Changing Ideas Awards[38] and Ragan's Crisis Communications Awards[39] for its response to Operation Allies Welcome, which assisted Afghan newcomers.
References
[edit]- ^ Henderson, Tim (2026-04-23). "Asylum-seekers could lose right to work under proposed Trump administration rules • Stateline". Stateline. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
- ^ a b c d Straus, Tamara. "Settling Up (SSIR)". ssir.org. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ a b "Upwardly Global Names Nicole Cicerani as Executive Director". PRLog. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ "Accenture Plc : Upwardly Global Teams with Accenture to Launch New Online Employment Training Program | MarketScreener". www.marketscreener.com. 2013-12-04. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ Scanlon, Hunt (2018-07-20). "Jina Krause-Vilmar Appointed as Chief Executive Officer, Upwardly Global". Hunt Scanlon Media. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ "Broward College Names Greg Haile as New President". news.broward.edu. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ "Strategos Group Welcomes Gregory Haile, J.D. as New Partner to Lead Higher Education and Workforce Advisory Practice". Archived from the original on 2025-07-23. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ "M-RCBG Senior Fellows 2025-26". www.hks.harvard.edu. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ "Atlanta Fed Announces 2026 Board Chair and Deputy Chair and Reelections of Directors". www.atlantafed.org. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ a b Graves, Rachel (2010-03-01). "Bar Serves as Classroom for Immigrants Learning Job-Hunting Skills". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ "Upwardly Global". New York City Employment and Training Coalition. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ "When serving highly skilled refugees, you don't need to re-invent the wheel! – WE Global Network". Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ Hayden, Toni; Hayden, Toni (2021-08-23). "Upwardly Global: Bridging the divide for immigrants to thrive in the U.S. workforce". Cisco Blogs. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ "Social Impact Programs – Supporting Refugees and At-Risk Groups - eCornell". eCornell - Online Education Programs. 2025-02-05. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ "Upwardly Global and Partners Launch Workforce Inclusion Program to Support Ukrainian Refugee Professionals in Poland - Poland | ReliefWeb". reliefweb.int. 2022-10-31. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/OASP/evaluation/pdf/NewAmericansStudyFinalReport.pdf
- ^ "Governor Hochul Announces Expansion of Statewide Program to Help High-Skilled Immigrants Find Jobs | Governor Kathy Hochul | New York State". www.governor.ny.gov. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ "Hiring global talent feeds company's bottom line". www.crainsdetroit.com. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ a b Amos, Deborah (2016-12-28). "How One U.S. Group Turns Migrants Into Employees". NPR. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ Baxter, Stephanie (2026-04-19). "5 Niche Volunteering Opportunities to Inspire You". Nice News. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ "Accenture to Help Upwardly Global Expand Jobs Training Program for Immigrants and Refugees in the U.S." newsroom.accenture.com. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ Mukherjee, Debashish. "AI-Driven Job Tools Empower Immigrants: Cisco & Upwardly Global Partnership". Daily CSR (in us). Retrieved 2026-04-20.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link) - ^ Washburn, Kaitlin (2025-04-12). "New medical license pathway for international doctors could alleviate Illinois shortage". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ https://ilga.gov/documents/legislation/103/SB/PDF/10300SB1298ham003.pdf
- ^ a b "Upwardly Global". InfluenceWatch. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ Sen. Klobuchar, Amy [D-MN (2023-07-13). "S.2327 - 118th Congress (2023-2024): Afghan Adjustment Act". www.congress.gov. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ Rose, Julie; Rose, Julie (2024-07-18). "Breaking through barriers: Upwardly Global helps work-authorized immigrants secure meaningful U.S. employment". Cisco Blogs. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ a b "This New AI Tool Helps Recruiters See Skilled Immigrant Talent and Fill Jobs Faster". TriplePundit. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ https://achelisbodman.org/wp-content/uploads/grants_21.pdf
- ^ "Jane Leu | Ashoka". www.ashoka.org. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ "Making new careers possible for immigrants and refugees". GitLab Foundation. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ "Grantees". Siegel Family Endowment. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ "Upwardly Global". Granted AI. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ "Yield Giving". Yield Giving. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ "2004 Social Entrepreneurship Award". Manhattan Institute. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ "Social Entrepreneurship Non-Profit Focused on Reducing "Brain Waste" Earns National Award for Exceptional Immigrant Integration Initiatives | Migration Policy Institute". www.migrationpolicy.org. 2010-05-18. Retrieved 2026-07-20.
- ^ "Entry". Anthem Awards. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ "2023 World Changing Ideas Awards". Fast Company. Archived from the original on 2024-05-31. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ^ "Crisis Communications Awards 2022 Winners". Ragan Communications. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
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