History of the Ladder Alliance

Starting from humble beginnings, The Ladder Alliance has grown to impact thousands of individuals.

Sharon Cox, a high school business computer teacher in El Paso, TX founded The Ladder Alliance after realizing most of her students were living in poverty and were the children of migrant farm workers.

Knowing that computer skills were essential to employment in a technical job market, Sharon realized that the computer skills her students were learning would assure they could secure employment following graduation.

In 2001, following a move to Fort Worth, Sharon realized her dream of opening a non-profit that focused on teaching computer skills to women survivors of domestic violence and low-income women.

In January of 2003, The Ladder Alliance held its first class consisting of seven students from Women’s Haven (now SafeHaven) in donated space at First Christian Church.

In 2015, the second training program, Professional Office Skills Training, was developed to provide more advanced skills geared towards administrative level careers. The Ladder Alliance partnered with the TCU education department to develop a Business Communications curriculum to be added to the program.

In 2017, The Ladder Alliance begins development of the Certification Program to become a Microsoft Office Specialist Program to serve ESL learners in the Tarrant County Adult Education & Literacy Consortium.

Sharon Cox retired in April of 2019, and The Ladder Alliance welcomed a new CEO, Bliss Coulter. Upon arrival, Bliss recommended the implementation of a Professional Development Seminar to address barriers to client needs, service gaps and barriers. This new program began summer of 2019.

Of the equity gaps identified, one of the most critical was the lack of bilingual services. To address this, The Ladder Alliance hired their first Bilingual instructor and began offering their first Basic Computer Skills Training and Professional Development Seminars in Spanish as of summer of 2020. This focus on inclusivity allows us to serve a vast amount of our Hispanic population that has not been previously served.

In 2024 the completion of the newly updated and renovated Success Store had its grand opening. Through partnerships with local businesses and community leaders, The Ladder Alliance continues to make a lasting impact, empowering women to overcome obstacles and create positive, lasting change in their lives.

One Safe Place

The Ladder Alliance is located at One Safe Place Family Justice Center. One Safe Place is located in Fort Worth, Texas, and serves as a comprehensive resource center dedicated to supporting victims of domestic violence and their families. Established with the goal of creating a safer community, this facility offers a range of services, including crisis intervention, counseling, legal assistance, and educational programs. The organization strives to empower individuals affected by domestic violence, providing a haven where they can find the necessary support and resources to break free from abusive situations. One Safe Place plays a crucial role in fostering awareness and fostering a community committed to ending domestic violence in Fort Worth and beyond.