April 2025
"The Enjoyable Pain of Growth"
EPOG Academy is dedicated to integrating personal development into education through innovative AI-powered coaching solutions. Our mission is to create effective, sustainable, and scalable programs that improve student achievement and well-being while making them accessible in underserved communities.
This report documents our progress from 2023 to 2025, highlighting the evolution of our AI coaching platforms from CoachGPT to the POWER Platform and PowerPath mobile app. Through rigorous testing across diverse educational settings and student populations, our solutions have demonstrated significant impact on student engagement, goal achievement, and overall well-being.
Key findings show high adoption rates, sustained engagement from power users, and measurable improvements in academic planning, time management, and well-being. Our evidence-based approach, grounded in Hope Theory, has proved effective in helping students develop goal clarity, multiple pathways to success, and personal agency.
The national student-to-counselor ratio of 400:1 far exceeds the recommended 250:1, resulting in inadequate guidance that disproportionately harms students of color, first-generation, and low-income students. This leads to:
Only 74% of Houston graduates meet college/career readiness standards
Houston graduates earning a livable wage ($45,000+) six years after graduation
Develop an effective, sustainable, and scalable intervention that measurably improves student achievement and well-being through personal development while making it accessible in underserved communities.
We began with 1:1 coaching from ICF-certified coaches to students in underserved schools, showing measurable impact but facing logistical and scalability challenges. The emergence of advanced AI technologies provided a new pathway, leading to CoachGPT development and initial testing.
Building on CoachGPT's success, we collaborated with an ISO 27001-certified software development firm to create the POWER Platform with enhanced features, improved security, and better user experience.
Based on findings from the POWER Platform pilot, we developed PowerPath, a mobile application that provides on-demand, evidence-based coaching to help students overcome obstacles, stay motivated, and develop critical thinking skills.
Charter school
Public school
Private school
In collaboration with Rice University's Office of STEM Engagement, we conducted a 10-week pilot study of the POWER Platform between May 28th and August 8th, 2024, with community college students participating in the REU summer research program.
EPOG Academy conducted an internal study using data collected through Google Analytics, focus groups, and analysis of anonymized chat transcripts. This was separate from the Rice Researchers' study, which included direct student interviews. Analysis focused on session metrics, engagement patterns, and qualitative themes while ensuring confidentiality and bias reduction.
Have written goals, but only 15% regularly review them
Regularly use a calendar for time management
Most frequently cited barrier to academic success
Especially prevalent during exam periods and project deadlines
Particularly for long-term goals and complex subjects
Leading to perfectionism and analysis paralysis
Our AI coaching platforms are grounded in Hope Theory (Snyder, 1994), which provides a structured approach to help students achieve their goals through three key components:
Clear objectives that anchor and transform hope into action
Multiple strategies to reach goals and overcome obstacles
Self-belief and motivation necessary to pursue goals
Students who write down their goals are 40% more likely to achieve them.
Source: Dominican University Study
Individuals who commit to specific actions increase their likelihood of success by 76%.
Source: Multiple studies on goal achievement
Regular goal review significantly increases goal achievement, aligning with our platforms' weekly and ongoing review prompts.
Source: American Psychological Association (2015)
AI coaching matched human coaching in goal attainment over a 10-month period with college-age students.
Source: Terblanche Study (2022)
Our AI coaching platforms integrate Hope Theory by helping students clarify meaningful objectives, develop multiple strategies to reach those objectives, and cultivate belief in their ability to act and sustain effort. This approach enhances academic achievement, increases resilience and problem-solving under stress, and supports higher emotional well-being and engagement in long-term planning.
PowerPath turned what I said into a question, which made me think deeper about my situation. I had to reflect on why I seek validation from others and analyze my self-doubt, which helped me find a solution.
— 10th Grade Student
When I asked for help with procrastination, PowerPath helped me break down my geometry homework into smaller sections. This made it feel like an easier task instead of a hard assignment, which motivated me to finish it with time to spare.
— 9th Grade Student
I talked about my disappointing history test score and how it made me feel. PowerPath helped me understand why I felt that way and gave me strategies to manage those feelings. By the end, I had a clear plan and felt much more at ease. I appreciated having a space to express myself without judgment.
— 12th Grade Student
The most helpful strategies were identifying why I was frustrated, reframing my mindset, and focusing on solutions. Shifting from disappointment to growth helped me move forward, and creating an action plan gave me a sense of control and motivation.
— Community College Student
Coming out of high school, I didn't have anyone to talk to about what I wanted to do. My parents didn't know what to tell me because they didn't go through this. If I had this in 2019 things would be different, I probably would have graduated by now.
— Community College Student
I never planned things out before this. This changed how I approached managing my time and scheduling things.
— Community College Student
Alex quit their job to focus on school full-time, facing significant challenges in time and financial management. With the support of the POWER Platform's AI coach, Alex developed effective strategies to manage their budget and improve their time management skills.
"I recently quit my job to focus on school. I'm struggling with managing my time effectively and feeling anxious about my finances."
"Having a structured budget removed a huge weight from my shoulders. I'm now able to focus on studying without constant worry about money. The time management techniques helped me create a realistic schedule that includes both productive work and necessary breaks."
Building on insights from the POWER Platform pilot, we developed PowerPath, a mobile application that offers scalable, on-demand, and evidence-based coaching powered by AI to help students overcome obstacles, stay motivated, and develop critical thinking skills.
Personalized, non-judgmental guidance available 24/7 that asks reflective questions
Goal-setting tools that map multiple pathways to success
Gamified system to build consistency and monitor progress
Just 30 minutes a week = 20 hours of personalized guidance per student, equivalent to 8 full-time counselors providing 1:1 support
Students who feel supported and have clear goals are more motivated to attend school; PowerPath's daily check-ins and personalized encouragement create accountability
Complements existing counseling resources without requiring system overhauls, reducing burden on counselors and allowing them to focus on specialized interventions
| Today's Challenges | PowerPath Solutions |
|---|---|
| Limited: Support restricted by counselor availability, requiring extensive training and oversight | Scalable: Unlimited, 24/7 support for all students through on-demand, cost-effective coaching |
| Overburdened: 400:1 student-to-counselor ratios leave counselors strained and students under-supported | Reduces Burden: Handles diverse challenges, freeing counselors to focus on specialized interventions |
| Generic: Supports planning but misses daily personal challenges that limit progress | Comprehensive: Offers tangible resolutions from big-picture planning to daily challenges |
| Intangible: Lack of standardization leads to inequitable support | Dependable: Provides observability and consistent quality for every student |
The journey from CoachGPT to the POWER Platform and now PowerPath demonstrates EPOG Academy's commitment to creating innovative, scalable solutions for student support. Our findings underscore the significant potential of AI-powered coaching in delivering personalized, low-barrier, and impactful support to students across a wide range of needs.
We've validated our core hypotheses: students are willing to engage with AI for personal development, they report practical benefits, and with proper design, they will consistently use these tools for meaningful growth. The high adoption rate is promising, and strategies to increase the percentage of power users will be crucial for maximizing impact in future iterations.
EPOG Academy is committed to creating a world where more people realize their potential through accessible, effective personal development integrated into education. PowerPath represents a significant step toward bridging the gap between students' aspirations and achievements, especially for those in underserved communities.
By combining cutting-edge AI technology with evidence-based coaching techniques grounded in Hope Theory, we are building a scalable solution to the student support crisis, empowering students to develop the non-academic components of mind that foster self-awareness, self-determination, and resilience.