A farewell to Forge
Seven years ago my good friend Alyssa Dizon and I went to Revolutionary Soup on the Corner for a quick dinner. We went during one of those Virginia March snowstorms that sometimes happen even when you thought spring was here to stay.
We were both second years at UVA, both bright-eyed about the future, loving college life, yet deeply dissatisfied with what we were learning in class. We had just been given the opportunity to restart a little nonprofit (then) called HackCville. We saw a chance to build the student learning community we wished we had. We decided over dinner to go for it.
There’s no way I could’ve known how much that decision would change my life. For the last seven years, HackCville (now Forge!) became a place to experiment and to figure out what it means to build something, for me, for Alyssa, and for thousands (!!) of other students. It’s where I’ve faced countless challenges that seemed simply impossible, both personally and professionally. And through it all, #9 Elliewood Ave is where I’ve made countless friends I know I’ll have for a lifetime. It’s been my home.
It’s time for me to say goodbye and to start a new chapter. That’s why on April 15, my dear friend, right hand, and current COO Andy Page will take the reins as Forge’s next Executive Director. I have the utmost respect and confidence in Andy to bring Forge to new heights, and I couldn’t be more excited for what his team has in store for the next few years.
Today, I wanted to briefly reflect on just how far we’ve come. And then I wanted to share a bit more about Andy, his team, and why I’m so excited for what will come next for Forge.
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One year ago, right as COVID turned the world upside down, Forge faced an existential crisis.
There was no obvious path forward for Forge to continue given that normal life was put on pause and hiring came to a halt across the world. It was in this context I began my time as Executive Director.
Our incredible student team, full-time team, and alumni community got us through. Within weeks, we raised $60,000 in emergency funding from 200+ Forge alumni, parents, students, and friends. We moved all of our programs online, secured emergency grants and loans, (somehow) found hiring companies during a pandemic, and just made it through.
The summer of 2020 was filled with an exciting and daunting mix of launching new ideas and planning for the worst. We were out of the woods, but the future was anything but certain. We knew we had one shot to find a sustainable path forward for Forge, both by improving existing programs and by launching new experiments to make it through a year of COVID.
The ambitious plans we made last summer led us to where we are today. In just 10 months:
- We secured nearly $200,000 in emergency grants and small-donor fundraising to survive the impacts of COVID-19.
- We shifted 100% of our education programs online while maintaining or improving student satisfaction across every metric.
- We simplified the Launch program while drastically improving the student and company partner experience, which led to confirming over 130 student internships for summer 2021. That’s 53% growth compared to 2019 and 160% growth compared to 2020.
- We completely rebranded the organization and codified its mission and values through a 15-week process involving 100+ students, alumni, and staff.
- We launched our first alumni fundraising campaign, securing nearly $12,000 to support student scholarships.
- We tripled the size of our Board of Directors to ensure we have a strong, diverse, and active base of support to launch Forge’s next big steps.
I cannot express just how grateful and proud I am of our insanely dedicated and talented team. Over the last year, our student and full-time staff have spent countless hours going above and beyond to keep Forge alive and to help it grow during the most challenging year imaginable.
Our staff and students have put in the work without any promise of recognition, success, or, at times, even a paycheck. Even as each and every member of our team faced insanely difficult personal, academic, and professional challenges, every person gave it their all to ensure the Forge community would be there for its next group of students. It’s been inspiring and humbling to see hundreds of people work together, from alumni to students to professors to parents, to keep Forge moving forward.
And on top of it all, our team and our students found time to support our local community. Save the Corner raised $6,000+ to feed those in need and support local small businesses through COVID. HoosVoting.org got hundreds registered and to the polls during a complicated year for voting. I could go on and on. Through the hardest year imaginable, this community still found opportunities to help Charlottesville and its people.
In a strange way, this is all why I’m confident to leave Forge. Our scrappy, nontraditional little school came together in the most powerful way possible last year, and it’s now ready to head into 2022 and beyond stronger than ever.
I’m thrilled to introduce the team that will lead Forge forward.
Andy Page is Forge’s current COO and its next Executive Director. He’s been an incredible co-founder, mentor, right-hand, and friend for six years now, and I could not think of anyone more perfect to lead Forge forward.
I remember meeting Andy seven years ago when we were both still students. I was immediately struck at just how hungry, talented, and crazy-driven he was. He wanted to build stuff that was going to make the world a better place, and nothing was going to get in his way. We’ve all been lucky to have Andy invest that drive and his talents into building the Forge community. From starting our popular data science programs to launching his own edtech company to building the systems that find all our students’ internships and jobs, Andy is simply an unstoppable force. Ask anyone who’s worked with Andy and you’ll hear just how instantly he inspires everyone around him to accomplish more.
Amanda Coombs will be stepping up as COO. Amanda was also an early member of Forge who (as long as I can remember) has wanted to use education to improve the world. Amanda’s been an indispensable leader on the Forge team over the last year as our organization has navigated the effects of COVID-19. She’s been our always-steady, optimistic leader who’s kept the team together, pumped, and always moving forward. Amanda’s a dear friend, and I’m thrilled to have her step into this vital role.
Kaleigh Watson will continue as the Senior Program Director for our premier program, Launch. Kaleigh’s steadfast commitment to her students and the quality of the program inspires me still today. She has single-handedly transformed the lives of hundreds of students, enabling them to discover their passions and kickstart their careers. More than anyone, she’s always been students’ biggest advocate, whether that means an extra push to help them be their best or standing up for a student in a tough situation. Forge owes so much of its success to her and for that I will forever be grateful.
The incoming student leadership team is nothing short of incredible. These are our incoming student directors for summer 2021 and beyond:
- Charlotte Carey + Matt Thompson, Community Directors
- Anna Grace Calhoun + Avery Colyer, Impact Program Directors
- Christian Jung + Carter Bristow, Skills Courses Directors
- Sekum Appiah-Ofori, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Director
- Charlie Boland, Launch Student Director
- Eliza Blackstone + Mary Larkin Douthitt, Marketing Directors
Behind these 10 students are 60 more student instructors, managers, and volunteers that make everything we do possible. Watch out for this group: they’re going to run the world someday.
And then there’s all of you. If you’re reading this, you’ve probably been a part of the Forge community in some way over the last 7 years, in some big way or small. I hope you continue to be part of the Forge community for its next chapter. Forge and its impact on thousands of students is simply not possible without all of the people like you — the ones that have supported our team and our students for so many years. Thank you.
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Where’s Forge going next?
I’m going to leave the details about Forge’s next steps for the incoming team to share, but suffice to say it’s exciting and ambitious. We’ve believed for a long time that Forge’s boundary-pushing ideas about education are much bigger than one city and one type of student. All that to say, you’ll hear more very soon. :)
I will remain on Forge’s Board of Directors to support our nonprofit’s future however best I can. I also plan to remain an informal mentor to the student team at Forge. Beyond that I’m excited for the incoming team to forge (pun intended) their own path forward.
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What’s next for me?
I’m actively seeking a new challenge! I’m particularly interested in operations, product, strategy, and/or partnerships roles at companies tackling big problems like climate change or education. But I’m open to consider just about anything! If you’d like to chat, or if there’s someone you think I should chat with, let me know at daniel@danielwillson.me.
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I still remember the first time I walked into Forge’s clubhouse on Elliewood Avenue seven years ago.
From the second I walked in, it felt like everyone there wanted to know “what do you want to do, and how can I help?”
Where else in the world gives a total stranger and a total newbie that kind of instant support? I was hooked. Whenever I was at that clubhouse or surrounded by its people I just got this overwhelming sense that anything is possible. I can try out that big idea I have in my head, I can learn that thing that seems really hard, I can go after my big ideas and my big dreams.
Every single day, it felt like Forge and its people infused me with a self-confidence I never had before. That’s still true seven years later. I felt that way yesterday, I feel that way today, and I know I’ll feel that way until my very last day here. I know the Forge alumni reading this right now can relate. There’s really something magic about this clubhouse and its people.
Whether you’re learning to design a cool website or code a cool app or even learning how to teach 30 students your own age, I see Forge’s programs as a means to an end. Those experiences are all there to show you that you can build what you want, you can learn what you want, you can get the job that you want, and that, most importantly, you can be the person that you want to be.
That feeling, that motivation, that self-confidence — it’s the one thing I hope I can leave behind for the new leadership team and for every new student that walks in the door: You can.
Thank you to Forge and its people for being my home and my community for so many years. I can’t wait to see what you all accomplish together next. I’ll be rooting for you.
Forge has some big ideas about the future of education. Come join the team!
Stay in touch! Reach me on LinkedIn, @danielwillson, or at daniel@danielwillson.me.
