Peer Power Foundation

Peer Power Foundation: Overview

Mission & Vision

Mission: To provide high-quality, life-enhancing tutoring and mentoring services that ensure personal, partner, and provider success.

Vision: To create a world where all children receive holistic, individualized academic support regardless of their zip code.

About Peer Power

Peer Power is a tutoring and mentoring program with 20 years of experience in:

1. Youth development
2. Workforce development
3. College preparation

Our model produces employable and college-ready young people.

Impact & Achievements

• More than 2 Million tutoring and mentoring hours and counting
• In 2023-2024, 145 success coaches supported 83 teachers and 886 class sections in 12 Memphis Shelby County Schools
• Serves over 10,000 students at 12 high schools every day
• Expanding by two high schools each year
• More than 150 success coaches have become teachers (1 in 7 go on to become educators)
• Teachers with success coaches report higher job retention and satisfaction
• 88% homegrown talent, including our CEO
• Success Coaches have an 84% college graduation rate (33% higher than average)
• Designated by Stanford University's National Student Support Accelerator as a high-impact, high-quality tutoring program
• Received the National Student Support Accelerator Tutoring Program Design Badge
• Recognized by Johns Hopkins University: "Peer Power's commitment to quality, innovation, and continuous improvement was evident throughout the summer training and the evaluation process."
• ACT Prep University improves scores by an average of 3.2 points
• ACT Prep University students qualify for nearly $1,000,000 in Tennessee HOPE scholarships annually
• Second-largest employer of University of Memphis students, only behind the University itself

University of Memphis Partnership

• 33% higher success coach graduation rate (exceeding U of M honors college)
• Hire students who qualify for Federal Work Study
• Students gain internship hours across all majors and colleges
• Higher recruitment and retention rates

Research Focus Areas

• Mentoring students from high-crime neighborhoods
• Sociocultural factors in education
• Role of language in relationship building
• Culturally relevant curriculum development
• Community-based education initiatives
• Teacher-success coach collaboration
• Peer influence on academic success
• Youth participatory action research

Contact Information

Cortney Richardson, CEO
Email: cortneyinspires@peerpowerfoundation.org
Phone: 901-734-4311