Para Los Ninos

What Para Los Ninos does

Para Los Niños is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 1980 by social worker Tanya Tull in response to conditions affecting children on Los Angeles's Skid Row. Headquartered at 5000 Hollywood Blvd in Los Angeles, California, the organization has grown over 45 years to operate 16 locations across Los Angeles County serving more than 10,000 children, youth, and families annually.

The organization delivers an integrated continuum of education and family support services through several programs: seven Early Education centers (including Head Start and Early Head Start programs serving children six weeks to five years); two public charter schools (Transitional Kindergarten through 8th grade) in the Downtown LA Arts District and Garment District; Youth Workforce Services for disconnected youth ages 14-30; Mental Health Services including the only children's mental health provider on Skid Row; Family Services for in-home counseling and case management; and Community Transformation initiatives via the Best Start regional collaborative and the LA County-funded Mental Health Promoters Program.

The business model is donation-and-grant-driven. Revenue streams include individual giving (online, stock/crypto/DAF, recurring Corazon Circle), foundation and corporate grants (Ballmer Group Philanthropy at $500K+, Cedars-Sinai, Annenberg, Weingart, Parsons, and others), government contracts with the City of Los Angeles Economic and Workforce Development Department, LAUSD, and First 5 LA, and subsidized program fees — all Early Education and charter services are free or low-cost to qualifying families. Programs are delivered in-person across physical sites; enrollment runs through SchoolMint for charter schools and ChildPlus for early-education. The organization maintains no proprietary technology platform and discloses no revenue figure beyond event-level fundraising outcomes (e.g., $765K raised at the 2026 Annual Benefit). Leadership: Drew Furedi, Ed.D. as President & CEO; Marjorie Ehrich Lewis as Board Chair; Sandra Aispuro as Vice Chair.

Name

Para Los Ninos

Legal name

Para Los Niños

Website

https://paralosninos.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1980

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Para Los Niños is a 45-year-old Los Angeles 501(c)(3) nonprofit that delivers an integrated continuum of early education, charter schooling, mental health, family support, and youth workforce services across 16 locations, serving more than 10,000 low-income children, youth, and families annually in LA County.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nonprofit Education and Social Services

NAICS

Child and Youth Services (62411), Elementary and Secondary Schools (6111), Child Care Services (624410)

SIC

Services-Child Day Care Services (8351), Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Homeless, Foster Care & Highly Mobile Youth Education Services (EDAJAEAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Special Needs Early Intervention & Preschool Programs (EDAKAAAE), Transition Services (Secondary to Postsecondary/Employment, Life Skills) (EDAJAKAG)

Keywords

• Early childhood education
• Youth workforce development
• Mental health services
• Family support services
• Charter school education

Headquarters

HQ city

Los Angeles

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices18 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: PLN receives donations from individuals through various channels including online donations, stock/crypto/DAF contributions, workplace giving, memorial gifts, and in-kind donations of goods and services. The Corazon Circle is a recurring donor program.
2. Foundation and Corporate Grants: PLN receives significant funding from foundations and corporations including Ballmer Group Philanthropy, Annenberg Foundation, Cedars-Sinai, and others listed in annual report donor tiers from $500,000+ down to smaller gifts.
3. Government Contracts: PLN receives government funding including contracts with City of Los Angeles Economic and Workforce Development Department, LAUSD partnerships, and First 5 LA for early education programs.
4. Program Fees: Early Head Start and Head Start programs are free or low-cost for qualifying families. Charter schools do not charge tuition and are open to any California resident.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Para Los Niños is a Los Angeles-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit that operates early education centers serving children from 6 weeks to 5 years, TK-8 charter schools, youth workforce services for youth ages 14-30, mental health and behavioral health services, and family support and community transformation programs across 16 locations in Los Angeles County. Programs are offered free or at low cost to low-income families, with services delivered in English and Spanish.

Product overview

Para Los Niños is a non-profit social services organization offering an integrated continuum of education and family support services. The organization operates a multi-service portfolio including Early Education Centers (serving infants to 5 years), two public Charter Schools (Elementary TK-5th and Middle School 6th-8th grades), Youth Workforce Services for disconnected youth ages 14-30, Mental Health and Family Services with clinical therapy and family preservation support, and Community Transformation programs including the Best Start regional initiative. Services are provided across 16 locations throughout Los Angeles County, serving over 10,000 children, youth, and families annually through wraparound support integrating education, mental health, public health, and community engagement.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Early Education Centers

Quantifiable outcome

• 91% of infants and toddlers in PLN early education programs met/exceeded developmental milestones
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• First 5 LAcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPLN partners with First 5 LA for the Best Start Metro LA pilot community focused on supporting communities' ability to foster and sustain healthy and thriving environments for families.
• City of Los Angeles Economic and Workforce Development DepartmentcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPLN contracts with the City of LA to operate Youth Source Centers (since 2004) working with youth ages 14-24 on college and career readiness.
• LAUSDcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPLN partners with LAUSD for charter schools and Youth Workforce Services programs. After-school program at Ninth Street Elementary School since 1990.
• Bet Tzedek Legal ServicescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHonored at 2026 Annual Benefit for providing free comprehensive legal services, education and training to hundreds PLN staff and families.
• Pensieve FoodscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHonored at 2026 Annual Benefit for supporting PLN in feeding food-insecure families from COVID-19 through challenging times.
• UCLA-UCSF ACEs Awareness Resilient Network (UCAAN)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner at $250,000-$499,999 level supporting ACEs (Adverse Childhood Experiences) awareness and resilience programming.
• LA County Department of Mental HealthcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFunded the expansion of the Mental Health Promoters Program to serve additional communities including Black/African Heritage, Asian Pacific Islander, LGBTQ+, and others.
• Skid Row CollaborativecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCross-sector collaborative of providers working with families experiencing homelessness trauma, created through Cedars-Sinai grant and led by PLN. Includes dozens of local organizations.

Scale indicators14 records

Recent moves12 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Children's Bureau of Southern California: Los Angeles-based nonprofit providing integrated child welfare, family preservation, mental health, and early childhood services. Highly comparable to PLN in mission, multi-service model, and target population of vulnerable children and families in Southern California.
• Crystal Stairs: LA-based nonprofit focused on child care and early education services, including Head Start and Early Head Start, for low-income families. Directly comparable to PLN's early education portfolio and family support mission.
• Mexican American Opportunity Foundation (MAOF): LA-headquartered nonprofit providing early childhood education, youth services, workforce development, and family support to Latino and immigrant communities. Closely matches PLN's service mix, target demographics, and integrated community-based model.
• SHIELDS for Families: Skid Row-anchored nonprofit delivering social services, mental health, substance abuse treatment, and family preservation to families experiencing homelessness and trauma. Direct overlap with PLN's Skid Row-based mental health and family preservation work.
• St. John's Well Child and Family Center: LA-based federally qualified health center combining clinical care, mental health, and social services for low-income families. Comparable to PLN in integrating health, mental health, and social support for underserved LA populations.
• New Economics for Women (NEW): LA-based nonprofit providing early childhood education, youth programs, housing, and economic empowerment to low-income immigrant women and families. Direct overlap with PLN's family services, early education, and economic mobility mission.
• Child Care Resource Center (CCRC): LA County-based nonprofit providing child care referrals, Early Head Start/Head Start, and family services. Highly comparable operational scope and funding model to PLN's early education and family services portfolio.

Regional players

• Para Los Niños Charter Schools Network Equivalents - InnerCity Struggle: East LA-based community organization focused on youth leadership, education equity, and systemic change. Comparable to PLN's Community Transformation and youth workforce programming serving similar demographics in adjacent LA neighborhoods.

Broad incumbents

• First 5 LA: Los Angeles County child advocacy and grantmaking organization funding early childhood programs (including PLN's Best Start work). Acts as both a strategic partner to PLN and a comparable scaled organization shaping the early childhood ecosystem in LA.
• Boys & Girls Clubs of America - Greater LA: LA-area youth development organization providing education, workforce readiness, and wraparound services to youth. Comparable to PLN's Youth Workforce Services and after-school programming in mission and youth outcomes focus.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/paralosninosorg
• Facebookfacebook.com/paralosninosorg

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 records

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 Para Los Ninos