Peers
Over
Profit
BY NICOLE TAFE
Julie Chen
NORTH ALLEGHENY’S JULIE CHEN BRINGS EXTRA OPPORTUNITY TO
HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS THROUGH ‘PEERLIFT.’
N
orth Allegheny alum Julie Chen is focusing
her passions for educational equality, social
entrepreneurship and technology in society for the
betterment of high school students everywhere. As one
of the founders of Peerlift, a youth-driven nonprofit organization,
Chen is working hard to bring opportunity and awareness to high
school students who are seeking something extra.
Chen, 18, graduated from North Allegheny High School
in 2017. She now attends the University of Pennsylvania in
Philadelphia, where she is pursuing a dual degree in computer
science and management.
“I loved my experience at NASH, and I was actively involved
in student government, debate and community service,” she says.
“Throughout high school, I was always thankful for the amazing
opportunities NA offered, including an abundance of clubs for
me to be involved in and supportive teachers and administrators
to ensure we were receiving a good education.”
Through various scholarships and high school opportunities,
Chen met the three other founders of Peerlift— Sravya Alla,
from Exton, PA; Sam Gorman, from Burbank, CA; and Jerry
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Registre, from Spring Valley, NY. “We started Peerlift last July
after we all graduated high school,” she explains. “We discussed
how frustrated we were with the high school opportunities
search, and we came together to make a change. We had all just
finished doing months of research and looking through unhelpful
resources. After realizing that students across the country were
also doing this painstaking research, we decided to pool together
our knowledge to form Peerlift.”
Peerlift.org is a free website and youth-driven 501(c)(3)
nonprofit making access to high school opportunities faster and
fairer. Peerlift aims to change the scholarship industry, specifically
targeting low income and first generation students. The nonprofit
promises to always put peers over profit, which is why it offers all
of its resources for free, refuses to sell student data and will never
accept compensation to rank opportunities unfairly. Peerlift
evaluates opportunities, ensuring they all offer financial aid and
can be verified by previous participants.
Since Peerlift’s launch in September, it has experienced 50
percent month-to-month growth, and has secured partnerships
with the leading scholarship providers in the country.