As OECD PISA Scores Hit Record Lows, JA Europe and UniCredit Foundation Renew Partnership to Keep At-Risk Students Learning

As OECD PISA Scores Hit Record Lows, JA Europe and UniCredit Foundation Renew Partnership to Keep At-Risk Students Learning

ROME, 13 October 2026 – Junior Achievement Europe (JA Europe) and UniCredit Foundation today announced the renewal of their “Re-Power Your Future” partnership through 2029, as part of a new three-year commitment by UniCredit Foundation to tackle Europe’s growing education challenge. The next phase will focus on helping young people in high dropout-risk schools build the confidence, skills and motivation to stay engaged in learning and prepare for their future.

The renewal was announced during Beyond Academic Performance. A European Dialogue on the Future of Education, held at the Foreign Press Association in Rome and bringing together UniCredit Foundation, OECD, Teach For All and JA Europe, alongside education leaders and experts, including Andreas Schleicher, OECD Director for Education and Skills. The discussion took place against the backdrop of OECD evidence pointing to declining learning outcomes, persistent inequalities and the need to look beyond academic attainment alone.

The partnership builds on three years of collaboration during which Re-Power Your Future reached more than 390,000 students and 5,900 schools across Europe, with a deliberate focus on those facing the greatest barriers to education. In the new phase, JA Europe and UniCredit Foundation aim to deliver more than 500,000 additional learning experiences and reach over 2,000 additional schools, while concentrating support where dropout risk is highest. 

PISA also underlines that performance gaps are closely connected to students’ sense of opportunity, growth mindset and academic resilience. For young people facing socio-economic challenges, unequal access to opportunities can compound gaps in academic performance. Re-Power Your Future responds to this challenge through practical, hands-on learning that helps students connect education to real life, develop entrepreneurial ideas and build the agency to shape their own future.

“Young people rarely leave school in a single day; they drift away when learning stops feeling relevant to their lives and future. The latest PISA results make clear that Europe must act earlier. At JA Europe, we see that hands-on learning, real-world challenges and an entrepreneurial mindset can re-engage students, strengthen their sense of belonging and help them believe in what they can achieve. Together with UniCredit Foundation, we are focusing on the areas where dropout risk is highest—turning proven experience into evidence and making early prevention standard practice across Europe,” said Salvatore Nigro, CEO of JA Europe.

“At UniCredit Foundation, we believe that every young person should have the opportunity to fulfil their potential, regardless of background or circumstances. This is why we are committed to supporting those facing the greatest barriers, helping them develop not only academic skills, but also the confidence, resilience and sense of purpose needed to thrive in an increasingly complex world. Through our partnership with JA Europe, we provide practical learning experiences that enable young people to discover their talents, broaden their horizons and prepare for the future, while bringing together schools, local communities, non-profit organisations and corporate volunteers to expand opportunities and contribute to lasting, systemic change”, said Silvia Cappellini, General Manager of UniCredit Foundation. 

Evidence from the programme points to impact beyond academic attainment. In Romania, the 2024–2025 randomised controlled trial found a 24% increase in school engagement among participating students. In the 2025–2026 randomised controlled trial, conducted across three countries — Romania, Serbia and Hungary — 65% of participating students successfully developed a concrete entrepreneurial idea. The renewed phase will continue to strengthen measurement of long-term impact, reinforcing a shared focus on understanding not only how many young people are reached, but what changes as a result.

Through the renewed partnership, JA Europe and JA Members in Europe will span 11 countries: Austria, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia and Slovenia. The approach combines direct support for young people with mentoring, career readiness, entrepreneurship education and the mobilisation of UniCredit volunteers and local networks to support schools and communities.

Together, JA Europe and UniCredit Foundation aim to translate the challenges highlighted by PISA and Education at a Glance into concrete action: addressing educational inequality through sustained investment in young people and in the educators, organisations and systems that can help them succeed.

Watch the recording: Beyond academic performance: a European dialogue on the future of education