School Board Partners
School Board Partners is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2019 that supports, trains, and connects elected U.S. school board members through a competitive Fellowship, Membership network, annual conference, and governance consulting for districts.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2019
- HeadquartersNew Orleans, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What School Board Partners does
School Board Partners (SBP) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2019 and headquartered in New Orleans, Louisiana, with a mission to support, connect, and re-elect representative, student-focused school board members across the United States. The organization runs a yearlong competitive National Policy and Leadership Fellowship pairing elected school board members with mentors, coaches, and a national peer network, and supplements the Fellowship with a Membership program, an annual 'Our Collective Power' national conference, and Consulting engagements that help districts implement SBP's Empowered Governance framework and related assessment tools (Superintendent 360 Assessment, Board Member Self-Assessment, Issue-to-Impact Framework). As of 2026, SBP has supported more than 500 school board members across 41 states and 192 districts, collectively serving over 8 million students.
SBP's business model blends earned and contributed revenue: membership dues, conference registration fees, and district consulting engagements provide earned income, while grants and donations (notably a $250,000 Salesforce Foundation grant in 2021 and a 2022 EdLoC Boulder Fund grant to co-founder Ethan Ashley) underwrite the Fellowship and programmatic expansion. The organization does not develop or sell a technology product; its competitive differentiation rests on a growing national alumni network, proprietary governance frameworks co-developed with Columbia University's Center for Public Research and Leadership ('Fulfilling Promises' report), and a competitive election-cycle track record — SBP-backed candidates posted an 88% win rate in the 2025 cycle. Leadership transitioned in 2024 from a co-CEO structure to Ethan Ashley as sole CEO, with Carrie Douglass remaining as co-founder.
School Board Partners firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- School Board Partners
- Legal name
- School Board Partners, Inc.
- Website
- https://schoolboardpartners.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2019
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- School Board Partners is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2019 that supports, trains, and connects elected U.S. school board members through a competitive Fellowship, Membership network, annual conference, and governance consulting for districts.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
School Board Partners industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Education Governance Services
- NAICS
- Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813), Elementary and Secondary Schools (611110)
- SIC
- Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Membership Organizations (8600)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Policy, Governance & Board Administration (EDAJAHAG)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- K–12 Support & School Improvement Nonprofits (BPAGADAB)
Keywords
Where School Board Partners is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- New Orleans
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
School Board Partners business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Membership fees: School board members and education leaders pay to join the SBP membership network, gaining access to tools, training, coaching, and a national peer community. The specific fee structure is not publicly disclosed.
- Conference registration: The organization hosts an annual national conference ('Our Collective Power') where participants pay registration fees to attend. Registration fees are noted as part of event-driven GTM and community engagement.
- Consulting engagements: SBP offers consulting services to districts seeking to implement the Empowered Governance framework and address governance challenges, providing a revenue stream from institutional clients.
- Donations and grants: As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, SBP raises funds through donations and grant awards. Notable grants include the Boulder Fund (EdLoC) grant supporting leaders of color, and other philanthropic funding.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | Membership program — annual subscription for school board members |
| Subscription | Annual | Fellowship program — yearlong competitive program for elected school board members |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Webinar registration — From Passion to Power session |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels7 records
School Board Partners product offering
Product offeringCore offering
School Board Partners is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that supports, connects, and re-elects representative, student-focused elected school board members in the United States. It delivers a yearlong National Policy and Leadership Fellowship, an annual 'Our Collective Power' national conference, a paid membership network, and consulting engagements that help districts implement the proprietary Empowered Governance framework.
Product overview
School Board Partners is a nonprofit organization offering a platform of interconnected programs and resources for school board governance excellence. The core offerings include a yearlong Fellowship for leadership development, an annual Conference for peer networking, Consulting services for implementation support, and a Membership network providing ongoing access to tools and training. These are supplemented by specialized resources including a Free Policy Toolkit, Empowered Governance framework, Superintendent 360 Assessment, CSU Certification, Exemplars, Issue-to-Impact Framework, Board Member Self-Assessment, and a Webinar Series. The organization also publishes research such as the Fulfilling Promises report and annual impact reports. Together, these products provide school board members with training, mentorship, policy tools, peer community, and strategic frameworks to drive student-centered governance.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Quantifiable outcome
- 88% overall win rate for SBP-backed school board candidates in the 2025 election cycle; 89% win rate for candidates of color; 91% win rate for women candidates.
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use School Board Partners
Customer profileNamed customers7 records
Segments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
School Board Partners technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
School Board Partners partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Columbia University — Center for Public Research and LeadershipcoreSBP collaborated with Columbia University's Center for Public Research and Leadership to develop its flagship report, 'Fulfilling Promises: What America's School Boards Actually Need to Succeed.' The collaboration involved extensive research including over 50 interviews and surveys of current and former school board members, providing an evidence base for SBP's governance recommendations.
- Leadership for Educational Equity (LEE)minorAngela Cobián, treasurer of the Denver Board of Education and SBP community member, is also a member of Leadership for Educational Equity (LEE), a nonprofit that develops civic leaders dedicated to ending educational inequity. LEE is referenced as a parallel organization supporting education leadership development.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
School Board Partners competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Aspen Institute Education & Society Program: Runs national leadership programs for education leaders including school board members (e.g., the Aspen-Pincoffs Fellowship). Shares SBP's mission of improving K-12 governance and leadership quality but operates with significantly greater philanthropic scale.
- National School Boards Association (NSBA): The largest national membership association for school board members in the US. NSBA serves a similar elected school board audience through advocacy, training, and conferences, but operates at a much larger, more traditional association scale rather than SBP's equity-focused, member-driven model.
- AASA (School Superintendents Association): The national professional association for school superintendents and district leaders. AASA serves the district leadership ecosystem that SBP's board members oversee, and its leadership development programming is comparable in scope and audience.
Direct peers
- Education Leaders of Color (EdLoC): A national nonprofit supporting leaders of color in education, including school board members. EdLoC's Boulder Fund directly funded SBP's co-founder; the two organizations share target audience, mission alignment, and grant-maker relationships.
- Leadership for Educational Equity (LEE): A nonprofit that develops civic leaders — including school board members — committed to ending educational inequity. LEE parallels SBP's fellowship-style leadership development for elected education leaders and is explicitly referenced as a peer community organization.
- Council of Urban Boards of Education (CUBE): An NSBA-affiliated program serving urban school board members with governance training, networking, and policy support. CUBE overlaps with SBP's district-focused governance engagement and consulting offerings.
Emerging players
- Teach Plus: A national nonprofit that develops teacher and education leader voices in policy. Teach Plus runs fellowship-style leadership programs targeting educators moving into school board and policy roles — directly adjacent to SBP's board-member focus.
- Chiefs for Change: A bipartisan network of state and district education chiefs committed to improving outcomes for students. Operates as a peer leadership cohort similar in spirit to SBP's Fellowship, but targets system-level leaders rather than elected board members.
- America Succeeds: A nonprofit focused on education-to-workforce policy and leadership development, including engagement with state and local education leaders. Shares SBP's orientation around policy reform and leadership pipelines for K-12 governance.
Regional players
- Colorado State University (CSU) — School Board Certification Program: Hosts the school board member certification that SBP distributes (CSU Certification). A regional academic institution with a comparable governance-training offering for school board members in Colorado and beyond.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
School Board Partners social profiles
Digital presenceSchool Board Partners financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
School Board Partners leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
School Board Partners funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors1 record
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
School Board Partners M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about School Board Partners
What does School Board Partners do?
School Board Partners is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that supports, connects, and re-elects representative, student-focused elected school board members in the United States. It delivers a yearlong National Policy and Leadership Fellowship, an annual 'Our Collective Power' national conference, a paid membership network, and consulting engagements that help districts implement the proprietary Empowered Governance framework.
Is School Board Partners a public or private company?
School Board Partners is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was School Board Partners founded?
School Board Partners was founded in 2019. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is School Board Partners based?
School Board Partners is headquartered in New Orleans, United States, in the North America region.
How does School Board Partners make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Membership fees are the primary driver. The others are conference registration, consulting engagements and donations and grants.
Who are School Board Partners's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Aspen Institute Education & Society Program, National School Boards Association (NSBA) and AASA (School Superintendents Association). Direct peers are Education Leaders of Color (EdLoC), Leadership for Educational Equity (LEE) and Council of Urban Boards of Education (CUBE). Emerging players are Teach Plus, Chiefs for Change and America Succeeds. Colorado State University (CSU) — School Board Certification Program is listed as a regional player.
Does School Board Partners have an API?
No public API is recorded for School Board Partners.
What industry is School Board Partners in?
School Board Partners's product category is Education Governance Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAJAHAG, Policy, Governance & Board Administration, with a secondary code of BPAGADAB, K–12 Support & School Improvement Nonprofits. Its NAICS code is 813 and its SIC code is 8200.