The Niche Clinic

The Niche Clinic works to radically transform the school-to-prison pipeline through hands-on financial literacy, which combines: paying internships, bank account origination and financial asset accumulation, secondary school placements, post-secondary education counseling, and instruction in personal finances.

The Niche Clinic was founded by Dan LaSalle, a veteran Philadelphia educator whose students were hungry for skills like budgeting, managing bank accounts, and discerning wants from needs. LaSalle drew on his  background in cognitive science and education to design an experiential program at Olney High School, one where students “earn while they learn.” In 2019, the Niche Clinic  gained 501(c)(3) nonprofit status, and that same year, MarketWatch called The Niche Clinic “the most innovative financial literacy program,”

In 2021, The Niche Clinic grew beyond the school to partner with the District Attorney’s Office of Philadelphia to provide an alternative to criminal sentencing for youth and young adults who have encountered the justice system. The Niche Clinic is also a Career Connected Learning (C2L-PHL) provider of paid, work-based learning experiences. To date, The Niche Clinic has provided financial education and mentorship, access to banking, and workforce participation training in the form of paid fellowships to over 3,800 youth and young adults across Philadelphia with an emphasis on the most economically vulnerable.