“Better is relative. Educational EXCELLENCE is not.” That’s the motto of Dr. Valencia Belle, who founded V B Ideas / S.C.H.O.O.L.S Programs, which stands for “Success Can Happen Out Of Low Scores,” a globally certified B Corp that has been providing high-quality, cost-effective standardized test preparation to underserved groups for nearly 40 years. Her goal is to eradicate intergenerational poverty that arises from student loan debt.
“Our niche is raising test scores for minority students who are two to three grade levels behind in literacy and math, which is a function of attending under-resourced, poor-performing schools,” says Belle. “To me, it’s a matter of social justice.”
Technology solution helps students make the grade
S.C.H.O.O.L.S. uses innovative edtech solutions to offer business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-consumer (B2C) test prep subscriptions for the ACT and SAT that connect test prep with workforce development and college and career readiness. The ultimate strategy is to allow BIPOC, Latinx, rural and other marginalized K-12 students to earn from what they’ve learned, she explains.
“Our competitive advantage is that we achieve ten times the average composite score increase of other U.S. test prep vendors—for example, an average of 5 to 100 points for the ACT and 100 to 200 points for the SAT—at one-tenth of the cost,” Belle says.
That impressive bump comes with affordable rates of $375 for group sessions, versus a common $3,750, and $35 an hour for one-on-one individualized prep, compared with average competitor rates running up to $350 an hour. And it’s all accomplished in a fraction of the time—an average of two to five weeks rather than what she cites as the industry standard of six to 12 months.
Identifying and filling the gaps in college test prep
Belle began S.C.H.O.O.L.S. ACT Prep in 1988 as a 12-year-old high school freshman, with the purpose of helping other scholar-athletes in her community access high-quality, cost-effective standardized test prep so they could qualify for NCAA scholarships and continue their collegiate athletic careers without student loans. She was filling a void in her urban neighborhood that lacked brick-and-mortar test prep companies, with other available solutions largely cost-prohibitive for the majority of her peers.
“I set out to change the narrative, one scholar-athlete at a time,” she says. Belle recounts a familiar scenario in her community: A talented athlete would earn local acclaim, with news accounts trumpeting the multiple offers they had received from a vast array of colleges and universities. While intended to change their lives for the better, she found that in reality, it often resulted in one of three paths.
“Either they broke the law, broke a body part or became broke…period,” she says. Related consequences often resulted in the athlete being unable to finish their degree; or in the event they were able to continue their sport success at the professional level, they often lacked the financial literacy, soft skills training or other preparation for life after professional sports, in which case they often ended up emotionally and financially bankrupt.
As the state of Alabama’s first BIPOC, female-led globally certified B Corp, she began S.C.H.O.O.L.S. as a free, mission-based service and found she was often met with contempt at this worthy goal of purpose over profit.
Yet she remained undeterred, recognizing the lasting importance of helping youth optimize their future. “Because my family and I had overcome many financial barriers, including the intergenerational poverty student loan debt can cause, we were aware of the power of standardized test prep, and I was able to harness that to realize many educational opportunities.
Belle intends to expand this advantage to more students nationally and globally, with a five-year vision to capture a .75% slice of the 71 million students aged 18 and under who seek online test prep each year, a $23 billion per year business.
Paying tribute to excellence during National Black Business Month
Belle takes the occasion of National Black Business Month to celebrate the fact that her business has thrived for decades as a mission-focused enterprise and to reflect on her status as a Black “femme-preneur.”
“The intersectionality of being both Black and female in business often equates to experiencing the multi-faceted effects of a myriad of ‘isms’ all at once—racism, sexism, ageism, colorism and educationalism,” she says. “Simply knowing that a time has been set aside to honor Black business is a statement to the grit and grace necessary to pursue such a critically necessary endeavor to uphold our community.”
She has an encouraging message to others considering becoming an entrepreneur: “Believe in your natural talents and abilities, and never hesitate to bet on yourself!”
