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| Fighting Chance Foundation | |
|---|---|
| Name | Fighting Chance Foundation |
| Type | Nonprofit organization |
| Founded | 1999 |
| Headquarters | New York City |
| Founder | Ruth Nagel and Janet Spragens |
| Area served | United States |
| Focus | Cancer survivorship, vocational rehabilitation, psychosocial support |
Fighting Chance Foundation
Fighting Chance Foundation is a nonprofit organization that provides transitional work, vocational rehabilitation, and psychosocial support to people affected by cancer and other serious illnesses. Founded in 1999 in New York City, the organization operates programs that connect clients with employment opportunities, peer support, and clinical services while partnering with hospitals, universities, and corporations. Its work interfaces with well-known institutions in oncology, rehabilitation, and social services to promote workforce reentry and financial stability for survivors.
The organization was established in 1999 by Ruth Nagel and Janet Spragens after observing gaps in post-treatment support at institutions such as Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Mount Sinai Health System, and NYU Langone Health. Early collaborations included pilot programs with Columbia University researchers and referrals from clinics at Beth Israel Medical Center and Montefiore Medical Center. In the 2000s, the foundation expanded services through partnerships with American Cancer Society chapters and engaged clinicians connected to Johns Hopkins Hospital and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Following grant awards from private philanthropies and corporate foundations, the group developed structured vocational curricula drawing on models from Social Security Administration vocational rehabilitation guidance and evidence emerging from longitudinal studies at Harvard Medical School and University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine.
During the 2010s, the foundation scaled its peer-mentoring initiatives informed by interventions evaluated at Yale School of Medicine and University of California, San Francisco. It piloted digital outreach with academic partners including Columbia School of Social Work and workforce researchers at Rutgers University and Cornell University. The COVID-19 pandemic prompted coordination with public health entities such as New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and collaborations with corporate workforce programs at firms like IBM and Google to address remote-work transitions for survivors.
The foundation's mission centers on enabling vocational reintegration, psychological resilience, and financial stability for individuals affected by cancer, reflected in programs that combine clinical services, vocational counseling, and employer engagement. Core programs include transitional work placements modeled after supported employment practices studied at University of Washington and University of Michigan, a peer-mentoring network drawing on models from Macmillan Cancer Support and CancerCare, and clinical counseling aligning with psychosocial oncology frameworks from Society for Integrative Oncology and American Society of Clinical Oncology guidelines.
Signature initiatives have included a paid transitional work program developed in consultation with occupational therapists from New York-Presbyterian Hospital and vocational rehabilitation specialists who have published with researchers at University of California, Los Angeles and Mayo Clinic. Employer-focused curricula have been delivered in partnership with human-resources teams at JP Morgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, and Bank of America to facilitate reasonable accommodations and return-to-work plans inspired by legal frameworks such as the Americans with Disabilities Act. Educational seminars and research collaborations with institutions like Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health and Georgetown University further disseminate evidence-based practices.
A board of directors governs the foundation, drawing leaders from oncology, human resources, philanthropy, and law. Past and present board members have affiliations with Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Mount Sinai Health System, Harvard Medical School, NewYork-Presbyteroriam, and nonprofit leaders linked to Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and Ford Foundation. Executive leadership has included professionals with backgrounds at American Cancer Society and corporate program leads formerly at Microsoft and Accenture. Clinical advisory committees have included oncologists and rehabilitation specialists associated with Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Johns Hopkins Hospital, and Mayo Clinic to ensure alignment with contemporaneous standards in survivorship care.
Funding sources have included private foundations, corporate giving programs, individual donors, and government grants evaluated by agencies such as New York State Department of Health and municipal workforce development boards. Institutional funders and partners have included Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Ralph Lauren Corporate Foundation, and philanthropic arms of financial institutions like Citigroup. Programmatic partnerships have connected the foundation with academic centers including Columbia University, Yale School of Medicine, and University of Pennsylvania for evaluation and training, as well as community organizations such as CancerCare, Gilda's Club, and Leukemia & Lymphoma Society for referral networks.
Corporate collaborations have involved pilot employer programs with Google, IBM, and Pfizer to develop return-to-work toolkits and workplace accommodation guides. Strategic alliances with legal-aid nonprofits and disability rights groups that have engaged with ACLU-affiliated projects and employment law clinics at NYU School of Law have helped shape policy advocacy and education initiatives.
The foundation measures outcomes using employment retention rates, income stabilization metrics, and validated psychosocial instruments employed in survivorship research at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Stanford Medicine. Evaluations conducted in partnership with researchers at Columbia University and Rutgers University have reported improved job placement and reduced financial toxicity for program participants, aligning with findings from workforce reintegration studies at University of Michigan and University of Washington. Peer-reviewed analyses and program reports have been presented at conferences hosted by American Society of Clinical Oncology and National Cancer Institute-affiliated symposia.
Longitudinal tracking has leveraged methods developed at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health to monitor health-related quality of life and employment trajectories. Independent audits and program reviews by evaluators connected to Urban Institute and RAND Corporation have informed continuous program refinement.
The foundation and its leadership have received recognition from philanthropic and healthcare organizations, including awards and citations from entities such as New York State Assembly commendations, philanthropic honors linked to Robert Wood Johnson Foundation initiatives, and community impact awards from City & State New York. Leadership has been profiled by media outlets with ties to The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and broadcast features on networks such as NPR and CNN for contributions to survivorship services and workforce reintegration. Advocacy collaborations have been acknowledged in policy roundtables convened by U.S. Department of Labor and advisory panels associated with National Cancer Institute.
Category:Non-profit organizations based in New York City