Our History

From a single cohort of 12 in 2014 to almost 2,000 fellows served in 2024, COOP has grown into a powerful community helping to propel first-generation and low-income college graduates into upwardly mobile careers.

COOP's history: Founder Kalani Leifer, a former history teacher, was inspired by the pioneer cohort at Kappa International HS. It fueled the vision for his peer-led, cohort-based change theory. He is pictured here with the first cohort.