A new donor collaborative is committing $7 million to postsecondary education innovation.
Eight education foundations have joined forces to launch the Innovative Postsecondary Models (IPM) Fund to invest in organizations demonstrating that postsecondary education can be designed, delivered, financed and assessed differently – and better – for learners in the United States.
Managed by Panorama Global, the IPM Fund is backed by Ascendium Education Group, College Futures Foundation, ECMC Foundation, Gates Foundation, the Evelyn and Walter Haas, Jr. Fund, Lumina Foundation, the Raikes Foundation and Strada Education Foundation.
A focus on student-centeredness
The IPM Fund is launching at a time when the perception of the value of a college degree is changing, and a growing emphasis on credentials that lead directly to employment and the emergence of new learning technologies are driving new thinking across the sector. The Fund was designed to identify, resource and learn from the organizations leading this work, according to a press release.
The Fund will award up to 10 grants ranging from $750,000 to $1 million, supporting organizations rethinking postsecondary education across four key areas, all grounded in student-centeredness:
- Reimagining instructional design, delivery, assessment and student support
- Advancing affordability and financial sustainability
- Career and workforce alignment
- Removing barriers for underserved learners
Eligible applicants include institutions, employers, vendors, platforms, intermediaries and consortia demonstrating, or with the potential to demonstrate, meaningful improvements in how learners access, experience and benefit from postsecondary education.
Applications are open through Sept. 14, 2026.
Grantees will work with the Fund to gather and share learnings, insights and data to inform how philanthropy can remove barriers to postsecondary access and shape how postsecondary education evolves nationally.
“This initiative is the kind of collaborative philanthropy that moves a field forward, bringing together not just resources but relationships, knowledge, and a shared goal to learn from practitioners,”said Jennifer Cho, Panorama Global’s vice president of social impact. “We’re proud to facilitate this collaboration shaping what accessible postsecondary education can look like for learners in the United States.”
