Purpose, Possibility, Impact: Our 2025 Annual Report Is Here
2025 was a milestone year for Reconcile — our 25th Anniversary. It was a year to look back at what's been built, and forward at what's next. Alongside a refreshed brand, mission, vision, and values, the year also brought real, measurable progress toward preparing young people in New Orleans for meaningful careers.
Our 2025 Annual Report captures both the milestones and the momentum. Here's what stood out.
Meeting young people where they are. Many young people in New Orleans are ready to reconnect to education and employment but face real barriers to getting there. This year, Reconcile enrolled 136 young people into our program and made 82 referrals to 25 community organizations, connecting Interns to services like mental health support, housing assistance, family support, legal aid, and transportation. Access to opportunity starts with access to stability.
Training that leads somewhere. Through our 14-week Workforce Training Program, 65 Interns connected to employment and 21 connected to further education in 2025. They trained alongside 102 employment partners — businesses and organizations willing to open their doors, offer externships, and hire Reconcile graduates.
Support that doesn't stop at graduation. Connection to a job or a classroom is the beginning, not the end. In their first year as Alumni, 101 graduates connected to new employment opportunities and 32 to new educational pathways, supported by continued coaching from our Alumni Services team and peer connection through the Alumni Advisory Council.
One story, out of many. Chassidy started training at Reconcile in September 2022, unsure what came next after leaving college. Through career coaching, she found clarity — and through hands-on experience at Café Reconcile and an externship at The Roosevelt New Orleans, she found her path in culinary arts. She earned her Culinary Arts Associate degree from Delgado Community College on a Reconcile scholarship, all while working full-time. Today, she's the inaugural Chairperson of our Alumni Advisory Council, helped launch our first Alumni Summit, and mentors fellow graduates — including her sister, Kennedi, now a Reconcile Alumna studying at Tulane University. Chassidy also served as a youth ambassador alongside Troy Carter to help launch a bipartisan Opportunity Youth Caucus, representing young people navigating pathways to work and education nationwide.
"Reconcile prepared me for a career," Chassidy says. "My long-term goal is to start my own catering business — taking what I've learned, sharing the dishes that I've perfected with others, and seeing them enjoy what I can make."
Built to last. None of this happens without responsible stewardship. In 2025, 79% of Reconcile's expenses went directly to workforce development programming, supported by a funding base of grants, contributions, state funding, and café and catering revenue.
Twenty-five years in, the throughline is the same one Reconcile started with: when young people have access to support and opportunity, they move forward with confidence — and that strength moves through the whole community.
Thank you for being part of this work. Read the full 2025 Annual Report.
Ready to invest in what's next? Donate today, or learn about becoming an Employment Partner.