Christopher Gray had done all the right things to get into college—he worked hard, got good grades, and volunteered in his community. Unfortunately, growing up in a single-parent household devastated by the 2008 recession and often teetering into homelessness, he lacked one thing he very much needed: money. His amazing experience earning $1.3 million in scholarships spurred him to cofound Scholly, a college scholarship search engine app.
Early Life
Christopher Gray was raised by a single mother in Birmingham, Alabama. One of three siblings, he excelled in school as a teenager, earning straight-A’s while also finding time to volunteer in his community. While still in high school, he was elected and served for more than two years as chief executive officer for an organization that created recreational opportunities for young people in underserved communities.
Unfortunately for Gray, his high-school years were also marked by struggle. The 2008 recession cost his mother her job, and at various points, he and his family lacked housing. Gray knew that college was his ticket to a better life, but despite his good grades, the costs of continuing his education were daunting.
Remembering his grandmother’s mantra of “Ignore whatever is going on around you, put your head down, and focus,” Gray decided to find his own way to college. As a high-school junior, he spent seven months hunkered down in the library searching and applying for scholarships. One-hour screen-time limits, the lack of a smartphone, the inability to go home as his family lacked internet access—Gray overcame all these obstacles, often using the miniature keyboard on his 2008 cell phone to write 500-word application essays.
His efforts paid off, however. He earned $1.3 million in scholarships.
Beyond creating a path for him to attend college at Drexel University, the process was illuminating for Gray in that it revealed the byzantine, convoluted world of private scholarships. Through his hard work, he learned that there is a substantial amount of money available to students, but no easy way to find it. Indeed, he found that he was often the only person to apply for some of the scholarships he received. It was a problem he would mull over while at college.
College Years
At Drexel, Gray studied economics and entrepreneurship. In his second year at the Philadelphia school, he worked in an underwriting position in the local office of Fannie Mae.
He also became an entrepreneur, drawing on his education to become a founding partner of the Dorm Room Fund, a student-run venture capital fund. The company, which leveraged $500,000 in funding to invest in student-launched startups, eventually expanded outside of its original home in Philadelphia to New York and San Francisco.
Shark Tank
While studying at Drexel, Gray met fellow students Nick Pirollo and Bryson Alef. Together, they drew on Gray’s experience trying to pay for college to create Scholly, an app that helps students find and apply for scholarships.
Seeking funding for the app, Gray, who was then still a college junior, was invited to appear on the popular TV show Shark Tank. It was a memorable appearance that sparked one of the most controversial moments in Shark Tank history. Following Gray’s 60-second pitch, two of the show’s “shark” investors made almost immediate offers to him, effectively cutting off the other sharks from investing.
The move sparked an on-air argument that was reported to have continued off-air. While there may have been simmering tension between the sharks, Gray and Scholly walked away with a $40,000 investment in exchange for 15 percent equity in the company. Scholly was off and running.
Scholly
Spurred by the publicity from Shark Tank, Scholly exploded in popularity. It rocketed to No. 1 in the App and Google Play stores and went on to be covered by virtually every major media outlet.
Gray himself also won acclaim for his work, with Ernst & Young recognizing him as its 2015 Entrepreneur of the Year. He also appeared on Forbes’ “30 Under 30” social-entrepreneurship list, received the 2018 Smithsonian American Ingenuity Award, and caught the attention of public figures like Barack Obama and Oprah Winfrey.
With Gray leading as CEO, Scholly relocated from its original home in Philadelphia to California. By 2020, five years after its inception, the app had approximately 3 million users. In keeping with its mission, it had succeeded by this time in connecting students with over $110 million to pay for their higher education.
Under Gray’s direction, Scholly has also gone on to secure additional resources. For the cost of a monthly subscription, users enjoy access not only to Scholly Search but also to proofreading and math resources. By using these tools, students can edit their college essays and work through math equations, thus improving their chances of making it to college.
Philanthropy
Now based in Washington, DC, Scholly boasts more than 4 million users. Along with connecting students with private scholarships, Scholly has created new opportunities for young people to pay for college.
In February 2022, the company partnered with 25-year-old entrepreneur Bryce Thompson to launch the Financial Freedom $100,000 Scholarship. The following month, recognizing that BIPOC women are underrepresented in the tech sector, Gray and Scholly joined with Google to launch the Women of Color In Tech $10,000 Scholarship.