The National Education Equity Lab

The National Education Equity Lab is a nonprofit organization dedicated to expanding access to college courses for high school students from historically underserved communities. Guided by the principle that “Talent is evenly distributed, opportunity is not,” the Lab partners with leading colleges and universities to offer credit-bearing courses that are delivered directly into Title 1 high schools across the country through its innovative dual enrollment model. Students who successfully complete courses through the Lab earn both high school credit and widely transferrable university credit. Since its founding in 2019, the Ed Equity Lab has offered university courses to 33,000+ students in more than 123 school districts across 32 states.

In 2023, at President Drake’s request, UC began a three-year pilot with the Lab to place UC courses in Title 1 high schools nationwide. In 2024 UC launched its first courses through the pilot:  UC Merced MIST 11, Climate Justice, and UC San Diego POLI 117R, Climate Solutions for All, which enrolled 220 and 116 students, respectively. In fall 2025, two additional UC courses join the Lab’s catalog of offerings – UC Berkeley Math 1, Foundations of Mathematics, and UC Davis AMS 1E, Nature and Climate: Cultures of Climate Justice; and in spring 2026 UCSD POLI 117R will be offered again to an anticipated enrollment of 300 students.