School Board School

What School Board School does

School Board School is a Cincinnati-based nonprofit educational organization founded in 2018 by Elisa Hoffman, a former member of the Cincinnati Public Schools Board of Education. The organization's core offering is a seven-month learning program comprising 20 sessions and field trips designed to prepare aspiring school board members and education advocates to engage in systemic change within local school districts. Over six graduated cohorts (2018-2019 through 2024-2025), the program has built a coalition of more than 100 members in the Greater Cincinnati area who work from inside and outside the school system to build more equitable school systems.

The program is delivered free of charge to selected participants through an application process and is supported by an online resource library (Take Action resources), a Member Hub for ongoing graduate engagement, and annual public Impact Fairs. School Board School does not operate as a technology platform; its "product" is a cohort-based civic training curriculum developed by Hoffman, supplemented by community-building events and a growing network of trained alumni.

The organization's business model relies on foundation grants and philanthropic support rather than earned revenue from participants. Its initial funding came through a 2018 People's Liberty Haile Fellowship of $100,000, with ongoing support from a portfolio of regional and national foundations including the Carol Ann and Ralph V. Haile, Jr. Foundation, Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies, NewSchools Venture Fund, Greater Cincinnati Foundation, Silicon Valley Community Foundation, and Camelback Ventures, plus individual and corporate donations. Marketing and outreach operate through community networks, local earned media (Cincinnati Business Courier, WVXU, Movers & Makers, Soapbox Cincinnati), partner referrals, and social channels, with no formal sales motion.

Name

School Board School

Legal name

School Board School

Website

https://schoolboardschool.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

School Board School is a Cincinnati-based nonprofit founded in 2018 that runs a free seven-month training program equipping aspiring school board members and education advocates with governance knowledge and peer networks to drive systemic change in local school systems.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Civic Education and Advocacy Training

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Elected School Boards & Governance Councils (EDADABAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Policy, Governance & Board Administration (EDAJAHAG)

Keywords

• Civic leadership training
• School board preparation
• Education advocacy training
• Community coalition building
• Education equity programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Cincinnati

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Foundation and Nonprofit Grants: School Board School is funded through grants and support from foundations and corporate philanthropies. The organization received initial funding through the People's Liberty Haile Fellowship ($100,000) in 2018 and continues to operate with support from regional foundations.
2. Individual and Corporate Donations: The organization receives financial support from individual donors and corporate giving programs as listed on their Supporters page.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

School Board School runs a seven-month learning program consisting of 20 sessions and field trips for aspiring school board members and education advocates. The program delivers training on school district operations, governance, and systemic change strategies, building a coalition of trained advocates working from inside and outside the school system. Selected participants attend free of charge through an application process in the Greater Cincinnati area.

Product overview

School Board School is a nonprofit education organization offering a single unified learning program rather than a multi-module platform. The core product is a seven-month training program with 20 sessions and field trips, delivered through graduated class cohorts (Classes 1-6 from 2018-2025). Supporting offerings include Impact Presentations where graduates showcase their research, Take Action Resources for community advocacy, and a Member Hub for ongoing graduate support. The organization does not offer a technology product, software platform, or API-based services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• School Board School Learning Program A seven-month learning program consisting of 20 sessions and field trips led by content area experts, designed to equip education advocates and aspiring school board members with knowledge about school district operations, governance, advocacy, and systemic change strategies. Free of charge to selected participants in the Cincinnati metro area.
• Take Action Resources Free online resources providing guides for advocating to school boards, understanding school board basics, speaking at meetings, writing op-eds, organizing communities, and running for school board. Available to the general public to build community-wide knowledge of school governance and policy.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 100 members trained and active in the coalition as of 2022-2023
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Teach for AmericacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTFA has multiple connections: recipient of Social Innovation Award, many TFA alumni are program members, and TFA is a listed supporter.
• University of Cincinnati - CPS StrongcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniversity program supporting CPS students that collaborates with School Board School; Dr. Lori Wright from UC CPS Strong is a Class 5 member.
• Project XLR8minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSocial Venture Partners' investment program that selected School Board School for enhanced community impact support.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Leadership for Educational Equity (LEE): LEE trains aspiring education leaders — including school board candidates and policy advocates — from the Teach for America alumni network, making it the most direct functional peer to School Board School's pre-service board training and advocacy coalition model.
• BoardSource: BoardSource is a national nonprofit focused on training and supporting board members — primarily for nonprofits but with transferable governance training frameworks — making its curriculum and coalition-building approach directly comparable to School Board School's model.

Broad incumbents

• National School Boards Association (NSBA): NSBA is the established national membership organization serving sitting school board members with training and advocacy resources. It overlaps with School Board School's training mission but addresses incumbent board members rather than aspirants, and operates as a broad industry association.
• Teach for America: Teach for America is a major education leadership pipeline whose alumni increasingly run for school boards, and which has both funded and partnered with School Board School. Its broader mission and scale make it a broad incumbent in the education-leader development space.

Emerging players

• New Leaders: New Leaders trains school principals and education leaders, occupying an adjacent lane to School Board School's board-and-advocate training. Both organizations sit in the same education-leadership development category but focus on different roles within the system.
• Local Progress: Local Progress trains and connects progressive local elected officials, including those running for school board, with a coalition model similar to School Board School's approach — but at a national scale and across multiple local-office types.
• Civic Lab: Civic Lab focuses on training and supporting first-time and diverse candidates for local office, including school board seats, with a model that overlaps with School Board School's pre-service candidate preparation.

Others

• Public Agenda: Public Agenda is a civic engagement and democracy research organization that produces research and tools to help communities participate in public decisions, including school governance — adjacent to School Board School's community-facing advocacy work.
• Alliance for Excellent Education: Alliance for Excellent Education is a national education policy and advocacy organization that pushes for federal and state-level improvements to K-12 outcomes — an adjacent policy and advocacy player with overlapping education-equity mission.
• Elections 2024 / BallotReady (now Grow Progress): BallotReady (rebranded Grow Progress) provides voter information and supports first-time candidates, including school board aspirants — adjacent infrastructure that intersects with School Board School's mission of preparing diverse candidates to run for school board.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/schoolboardschool
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/school-board-school

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about School Board School