# Upswing

> Upswing is a Durham, North Carolina edtech company that sells colleges a single online front door for student support - tutoring, advising, mental health, early alerts and an SMS assistant named Ana - built specifically for the non-traditional and historically marginalized students that most campus software quietly ignores. Colleges pay; students use it for free. Co-founded in 2013 by Melvin Hines and Alex Pritchett, it now works with well over a hundred institutions and has raised roughly $13 million.

- **Founded:** 2013
- **Headquarters:** Durham, North Carolina, United States
- **Founders:** Melvin Hines (Co-Founder & CEO), Alex Pritchett (Co-Founder & COO)
- **Team size:** Approximately 170 (estimate; sources vary)
- **Products:** Holistic Student Support Platform, Ana (SMS Virtual Assistant), Online Tutoring & Assignment Review, Advising & Early Alerts, Mental Health & Wellness
- **Notable:** Grew from two unpaid co-founders to a platform serving 100+ higher-ed institutions, Roughly $13M raised across seed, Series A and catalytic-capital rounds, Backing from JPMorgan Chase, Imaginable Futures, Lumina Foundation and Social Finance

## Products & services

- **Holistic Student Support Platform** — A single online hub that consolidates fragmented campus support - tutoring, advising, mental health, writing help and resources - behind one student login.
- **Ana (SMS Virtual Assistant)** — A personalized text-message assistant that proactively nudges students with reminders and encouragement, shares resources, and books tutoring or advising - no app to download.
- **Online Tutoring & Assignment Review** — 24/7 online tutoring by campus or Upswing tutors, plus written feedback on assignments typically returned within about 48 hours.
- **Advising & Early Alerts** — Online appointment scheduling with advisors and at-risk-student alert tracking so staff can intervene before a student disengages.
- **Mental Health & Wellness** — One-on-one teletherapy and wellness content delivered in a confidential environment, added alongside the 2021 Series A.
- **Data & Analytics** — Engagement and risk insights that help institutions identify which students need help and measure retention impact.

## Achievements

- Grew from two unpaid co-founders to a platform serving 100+ higher-ed institutions
- Roughly $13M raised across seed, Series A and catalytic-capital rounds
- Backing from JPMorgan Chase, Imaginable Futures, Lumina Foundation and Social Finance
- Roughly half of customers are HBCUs or Hispanic-Serving Institutions
- Marked its 10th anniversary in 2023
- WCAG-aligned, accessibility-first product design

## Latest updates

- **2024-09** — Received a $2.6M catalytic investment from Social Finance's UP Fund, plus a working-capital loan, to widen access to holistic student support.
- **2024-04** — Featured by GrepBeat for its virtual assistant approach to supporting non-traditional college students.
- **2023-01** — Marked its 10th anniversary, with co-founders Melvin Hines and Alex Pritchett reflecting on the decade.

## Links

- Website: https://upswing.io
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/upswing-io
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/upswing
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sWgGBdZVxrQ
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anabyupswing
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/upswing.io

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/upswing
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-08-21