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Highlights

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Braven Summit 2025 Explores the Future of Work, AI, and Student Opportunity at San José State University

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Press Release

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Youth Leaders Discuss the Future of America

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Press Release

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Braven & NIU Career Services host business etiquette luncheon

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Event

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New UNIV 301 course helps students on path to success

NIU Today
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Announcement

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Braven CEO Named Among Notable Leaders & Executives

Crain’s Chicago Business
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Article

1,350

Chicago Fellows SERVED

85%

FROM THE NIU CLASS OF 2024

75%

EMPLOYED OVERALL FROM THE NLU CLASS OF 2024

Empowering the next generation of leaders in Chicago

Chicago is full of incredible talent, has a collaborative spirit, and has a $720+ billion economy. Despite this, not all residents get to make the most of the opportunities it creates.

Braven launched our Chicago site in 2018 (in founder and CEO Aimée’s hometown), and we are proud to join forces with the city’s higher education institutions, employers, and partners to empower our community’s rising leaders.

Read the Impact Report
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Higher education partners

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We’ve built a powerful partnership with National Louis University’s Undergraduate College (NLU). NLU is innovative, forward-thinking, and committed-as we are-to supporting students as they launch strong careers. NLU’s model offers six career pathways for students to choose from, and is built around affordability and impact.

When our partners at NLU learned about Braven, they felt it was a perfect fit for their program; it would both enhance their existing offerings and transform their students’ lives. In 2018, NLU and Braven began a partnership in which Braven is one of two career-focused course options that students take during their sophomore year. Today, more than half of all sophomores at NLU enroll in Braven. 

View upcoming courses
Volunteer opportunities
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In 2022, we launched a partnership with Northern Illinois University (NIU) that leverages our shared commitment to ensuring young people have the opportunities and economic mobility they deserve. NIU is a student-centered, nationally recognized public research university located in Dekalb, Illinois, and offers Braven’s programming as a fully virtual, full-credit course.

View upcoming courses
Volunteer opportunities

Upcoming courses

Enroll in a Braven course at your college or university and jumpstart your career!

HAVE QUESTIONS?

Learn more about our courses

Braven Accelerator

Dates:

Spring 2026

Priority Deadline:

Schedule:

Tuesdays 5:30-7:30 PM CT | Wednesdays 5:30-7:30 PM CT

Final Deadline:

Enroll Now

Eligibility:

  • Open to all majors
  • Open to all sophomore students or above; sophomore and first-year transfer students preferred

Course Description

This 3-credit course prepares students with the essential skills, networks, and confidence to land internships, jobs, and prepare for grad school. In this course, you’ll:

  • Create a strong resume, cover letter, and LinkedIn profile
  • Develop your professional skills through mock interviews, networking, team projects, and more
  • Build connections and confidence
  • Earn 3 credits toward your undergraduate degree

Course Section
By the end of the course, you will be able to:

  • Exercise habits to persist through and thrive beyond college
  • Know and demonstrate the skills and mindsets for which employers hire
  • Navigate the workplace
  • Build a record of achievement and apply skills to land a career-accelerating internship or research opportunity
    Expand personal and professional networks

Dates/Times
There are two virtual options available for the course in Spring 2025:

  • Tuesdays from 5:30-7:30 pm CT (virtual)
  • Wednesdays from 5:30-7:30 pm CT (virtual)

NIU Staff Contact

Get in touch

Interested in bringing Braven to your campus?

Leadership

Staff

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Anahí Hernandez

Coordinator, Program Operations

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Assiatou Jallow

Program Manager, Accelerator (NLU)

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Ayumi Tachikawa

Program Manager, Workforce Development

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Joe Saucedo

Regional Managing Director

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Jonathan Chaparro

Chief Regional Success & Innovation Officer

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Jose Torres

Program Manager, Recruitment

Board of Directors

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Betty Fleurimond

Principal, Deloitte Consulting LLP

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David Cohen

Chief Revenue Officer, Sword Health

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Elizabeth (Liz) Thompson

CEO, Cleveland Avenue Foundation for Education (Chicago Chair, National Board member)

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Joan Evans

Director, Prosper Road Foundation

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Kelly Mannard

Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing and Communications Officer, Northern Trust Corporation

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Mara Botman

Executive Director, Vivo Foundation

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Ron Sonenthal

Retired Partner, Deloitte

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Sarah Berghorst

Executive Director, Alta Futures

We couldn’t do it without you

Higher Education & Employer Partners

UNIVERSITY PARTNERS

National Louis University
Northern Illinois University

EMPLOYER PARTNERS

LEAD
($250K+ and programmatic support)
Allstate Foundation
Barclays
Cognizant US Foundation
Cramer-Krasselt
Deloitte
FactSet
Goldman Sachs One Million Black Women
JP Morgan Chase
LinkedIn
Medline
Morgan Stanley
NBA Foundation
Piercegray
Salesforce
Tegus
Truesearch

ANCHOR
($100K+ and programmatic support)
Anonymous
ServiceNow

KEYSTONE
($25K+ and programmatic support)
Berkshire Hathaway Speciality Insurance
Blackbaud
CIBC Bank USA
CME Group Foundation
Northern Trust
Okta
Old National Bank
UBS

INNOVATION
($5K+ and programmatic support)
GLG
Kirkland & Ellis
PierceGray
RSM
True Search

IMPACT
(<$5K and programmatic support)
Chicago Bulls
Cramer Krasselt
JPMorgan
Kindle Communications
Loop Capital
Medline
Wipfli

Supporters ($10K+)

A Better Chicago
Anonymous x4
Charles Ashby Lewis and Penny Sebring
Charter School Growth Fund
Cleveland Avenue Foundation for Education
Crankstart Foundation
Crown Family Philanthropies
Cynthia A. Niekamp Foundation
David Cohen & Kristin Argo
Deloitte Foundation
Finnegan Family Foundation
Kelly & Thom Mannard
Mansueto Foundation
Marc and Jeanne Malnati Family Foundation
Osa Foundation
Paul M. Angell Foundation
Prosper Road Foundation
Rebekah Eubanks
Ron & Kathy Sonenthal
The Siragusa Family Foundation
Square One Foundation
The Mayer and Morris Kaplan Family Foundation
Valhalla Foundation
Vivo Foundation

Interested in learning more?

We’d love to connect with you to share more about our model and partnership structure.