Every student should own their next
We’re on a mission to help high schoolers plan and prepare for
their own best direction after graduation.
Too many students walk into a future they’re not ready for
— or didn’t even choose
With the limited resources and planning support in schools—plus the external pressures to fit a certain mold—many students can end up struggling in early adulthood.
They can easily find themselves on a path with reduced career opportunities, lower wages, and/or poor personality fit. Socioeconomically disadvantaged students, first-generation college students, and students of color are often disproportionately affected due to access and participation barriers.
We’re here to make sure every student has the opportunity to confidently direct their next chapter.
How we guide and support their next steps
Identifying their strengths and interests
We help students figure out what they’re great at, what excites them, and what they might want to lean into in their next chapter.
Discovering and exploring their options
We introduce students to the diverse opportunities they can pursue in post-secondary training, education, and employment.
Getting college or career ready
From resume support to mock interviews, we help students gain the skills and knowledge they need to be well prepared for their future.
We give students the choices they didn’t know they had
If no two students are the same, why does society encourage them all to follow a single formula? Our kids deserve to know their many options—and pursue what works for them.
Project Next aims to open students’ eyes to the many pathways out there—from college to trade school to the workforce—and help them choose and step into the one that fits them best.
Project Next goals
Ensure all high school students participate in a grade-appropriate college/career readiness activity each year
Increase the percentage of students enrolling in a post-secondary training or education program after graduation each year
Support our workforce-bound students to secure a job within 3 months of graduation, ideally with higher pay and benefits or opportunities for upward mobility
Serving students since 2006
Originally founded as PACE Promise—an organization generously funded by The Leichtag Foundation to help San Marcos Unified students gain access to college—Project Next has expanded its role year after year into what it is today.
Big-hearted investors, community supporters, and our dedicated Board of Directors have helped us offer more services to more students, including an expansion into our second school district in 2024. We can’t wait to see what our own “next” is as we continue to grow and serve more high schoolers in North San Diego County.
Help more students navigate their next step
Your donation will fund the critical programs and services
that take local students from uncertain to unstoppable.
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Equal Employment Opportunity. The San Marcos Promise dba Project Next is an equal opportunity employer. In accordance with applicable law, we prohibit discrimination and harassment against team members, applicants for employment, individuals providing services in the workplace pursuant to a contract, unpaid interns, and volunteers based on their actual or perceived: race (including traits historically associated with race, such as hair texture and protective hairstyles), religious creed, color, national origin, ancestry, citizenship status, physical disability (including HIV/AIDS) or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status (including registered domestic partnership status), sex and gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, lactation, and related medical conditions), gender identity and gender expression (including transgender individuals who are transitioning, have transitioned, or are perceived to be transitioning to the gender with which they identify), age (40 and over), sexual orientation, Civil Air Patrol status, military or veteran status, an individual’s reproductive health decisions, and any other consideration protected by federal, state, or local law (collectively referred to as "protected characteristics").
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