What Live Oak School does

Live Oak School is an independent, nonprofit, co-educational K-8 day school founded in 1971-72 and located in the Potrero Hill neighborhood of San Francisco, California. The school enrolls approximately 400 students across kindergarten through eighth grade, organized with a co-teaching model in lower school (two lead teachers per ~22-student kindergarten class) and a ~16-student class session structure in the middle school grades. Its curriculum is structured around essential questions and throughlines, and is differentiated by a formalized Changemaker Program (launched 2024-25) that integrates social justice themes, a Social Impact Studio for middle school students, and a ChangeMaker Lab maker space for design and innovation.

The school derives revenue primarily from annual tuition set on a sliding scale, ranging from $500 (minimum Adjusted Tuition) to $48,420 (K-5 full tuition) and $49,060 (6-8 full tuition), with 25% of families participating in the Adjusted Tuition Program assessed via Clarity. Tuition includes lunch, books, technology, field trips, and athletic uniforms. Supplementary revenue streams include Extended Day Programs ($2,500 annually), Roots & Branches enrichment classes ($400-$700), a one-time $1,500 capital fee (waived for Adjusted Tuition families), and the annual Live Oak Fund giving campaign. The school maintains a Futures Fund endowment exceeding $5,000,000 (established 2021-22) and is developing a second property at 195 De Haro Street. Supporting technology infrastructure is limited to educational tools (iPads/laptops), a My School App LMS, and Clarify for financial assessment; the school has no proprietary technology products or AI-native capabilities.

Name

Live Oak School

Legal name

Live Oak School

Website

https://liveoaksf.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1972

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Live Oak School is an independent, nonprofit K-8 progressive day school in San Francisco serving approximately 400 students with a sliding-scale tuition model, formalized Changemaker curriculum, and a $5M+ endowment.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

K-8 Independent Education

NAICS

Elementary and Secondary Schools (611110), Elementary and Secondary Schools (6111), Educational Services (611)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Nonsectarian Independent Day Schools (EDAJABAA)

Keywords

• Private K-8 education
• Progressive day school
• Independent school education
• Elementary middle school
• Experiential learning programs

Headquarters

HQ city

San Francisco

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Tuition: Annual tuition for K-5 is $500-$48,420 and for 6-8 is $500-$49,060. Tuition includes lunch, books, materials, technology, outdoor education, field trips, lab fees, yearbooks, and athletic uniforms. The school offers an Adjusted Tuition Program where 25% of families participate, with tuition as low as $500 for families with demonstrated financial need.
2. Live Oak Fund (Annual Giving): The school conducts annual fundraising through the Live Oak Fund campaign. Over the past five years, financial support increased by 20%. Gifts range from $10-$50,000. 94% of current families participated in giving during the 24-25 school year.
3. Futures Fund (Endowment): An endowment fund established in the 21-22 school year (Live Oak's 50th anniversary). At the close of 21-22, the Futures Fund held over $5,000,000 for future expansion of mission-driven programs and facilities.
4. Extended Day Programs: Annual Unlimited Extended Day Program costs $2,500, billed monthly through Tuition Management. Roots & Branches enrichment classes range from $400-$700. Both are adjusted for families in the Adjusted Tuition Program.
5. Capital Fee: A one-time capital fee of $1,500 is paid in the first year of attendance, waived for families in the Adjusted Tuition program.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Live Oak School is an independent, nonprofit K-8 progressive day school that delivers a full curriculum spanning language arts, mathematics, social studies, science, Spanish, arts, drama, music, design and innovation, physical education, and social-emotional learning. The school sells annual tuition for kindergarten through 8th grade, an Extended Day after-school program, Roots & Branches enrichment classes, athletics, Camp Live Oak, and a ChangeMaker Lab experience, with 25% of families receiving tuition adjustments through a need-based Adjusted Tuition Program.

Product overview

Live Oak School is an independent K-8 school offering a progressive educational program structured around essential questions and throughlines. The core educational program encompasses language arts, mathematics, social studies, science, social emotional learning, art, drama, music, Spanish, physical education, and design & innovation. Supporting programs include the Changemaker Program (with Social Impact Studio for middle school), Extended Day Programs with Roots & Branches enrichment, Athletics (cross-country, volleyball, basketball, futsal), and Camp Live Oak. The school also offers an Adjusted Tuition Program for financial assistance and utilizes the ChangeMaker Lab for hands-on maker education.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Futures Fund: Endowment fund established to collect and distribute resources for strategic priorities and future expansion of mission-driven programs and facilities.
• Live Oak Fund
• Changemaker Program
• Changemaker Lab
• Extended Day Programs
• Roots & Branches

Products and services

• K-8 Educational Program Comprehensive K-8 day school program structured around essential questions and throughlines, providing a cohesive learning experience from kindergarten through eighth grade graduation across language arts, mathematics, social studies, science, social-emotional learning, art, drama, music, Spanish, physical education, and design and innovation. Tuition includes lunch, books, materials, technology, outdoor education, field trips, lab fees, yearbooks, and athletic uniforms.
• Changemaker Program Formalized K-8 service learning program that integrates social justice themes into the curriculum, featuring the Social Impact Studio for middle school students and community partnerships for hands-on changemaking. Includes unique social justice throughlines for each grade level such as housing justice, peace and understanding, and challenging systemic racism.
• Extended Day Programs Annual Unlimited Extended Day Program offering afterschool care and enrichment for an annual fee of $2,500 (billed monthly through Tuition Management), including Holiday Care. Includes homework assistance, art activities, indoor/outdoor play, and Roots & Branches enrichment classes such as Spanish, soccer, futsal, Taekwondo, pottery, dance, chess, and robotics, with costs adjusted for Adjusted Tuition families.
• Athletics Program

Named customers4 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Think:Kids (Massachusetts General Hospital)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Three-year partnership beginning 2025-26 to implement Collaborative Problem Solving, an evidence-based, trauma-informed approach to student support. Think:Kids is a social-emotional learning program within the Psychiatry Department of Massachusetts General Hospital. Experts from Think:Kids trained the entire Live Oak staff in summer 2025 and will continue guiding Live Oak's internal implementation leaders.
• Family HouseminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFamily House serves as a home away from home for families of children with cancer and other life-threatening illnesses. Live Oak volunteers have cooked and served dinner monthly and supported Family House with Halloween costumes and hospital snack bags.
• UCSF Mission BayminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLive Oak's volleyball, basketball, and futsal teams practice and play home games at the fitness center on the UCSF Mission Bay campus at 1675 Owens Street, approximately a 10-minute walk from Live Oak School.
• Potrero Project PlayminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartnership for sports programs available for lower school students (grades K-5) through the Roots & Branches enrichment program. Offers soccer and futsal as part of Extended Care offerings.
• Inspirit AIminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInspirit AI offers an in-person, 30-hour AI summer workshop hosted at Live Oak for students in rising grades 3-8. Stanford and MIT graduates in AI teach separate sections for 3rd-5th and 6th-8th grades, covering fundamental AI concepts and socially impactful projects.
• Well Beyond AcademicsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvides puberty education for fifth graders as part of the social-emotional learning curriculum, complementing the SELFie Day retreat and contemporary history curriculum.
• RavennacoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRavenna Hub is the online platform used for the complete admissions process including inquiries, event registration, application submission, and interview scheduling. Families use Ravenna to explore and apply to Live Oak.
• ClaritycoreTechnology or IntegrationClarity is used by Live Oak to assess a family's ability to pay for independent education, ensuring objective and professional treatment of Adjusted Tuition requests. Families use Clarity app with school code 1555.
• EHDD ArchitectureminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEHDD Architecture is developing concept design studies for Live Oak's new property at 195 De Haro Street. Representatives hosted open sessions at Family Service Night for community input on campus expansion plans.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Alta Vista School: An independent, progressive K-8 school in San Francisco with a design-thinking and project-based curriculum, overlapping with Live Oak's ChangeMaker Lab and changemaker focus.
• Presidio Hill School: An independent, progressive, co-educational K-8 school in San Francisco emphasizing social justice, experiential learning, and a strong sense of community — closely aligned with Live Oak's progressive K-8 positioning.
• Marin Primary & Middle School: A progressive, co-educational K-8 day school north of San Francisco with a similar commitment to social-emotional learning, project-based work, and a close-knit community — a direct peer in the Bay Area progressive K-8 segment.
• Katherine Delmar Burke School: An independent, nonsectarian K-8 girls' school in San Francisco with a progressive, project-based curriculum and a comparable family-giving culture — competing for similar progressive SF families.
• Town School for Boys: An independent K-8 boys' day school in San Francisco with a comparable progressive ethos, athletic competitiveness, and tuition scale, competing for similar Bay Area families.
• Children's Day School (SF Friends School): An independent, progressive K-8 school in San Francisco (formerly Children's Day School), sharing a focus on equity, inclusion, and experiential learning that directly competes with Live Oak for progressive-minded families.
• San Francisco Day School: A nonsectarian, progressive, co-educational K-8 day school in San Francisco with a comparable mission around equity, inclusion, and experiential learning. Most direct peer given shared city, grade span, and progressive curricular philosophy.

Broad incumbents

• French American International School: A larger independent K-12 school in San Francisco offering progressive education with a language immersion focus. Broader incumbent competing for the same affluent, mission-driven SF families at higher tuition.

Regional players

• Brandeis Marin: A nonsectarian, progressive K-8 day school in Marin County offering a comparable experiential, social-justice-oriented curriculum, serving Bay Area families in a nearby geography.

Emerging players

• Pacific Primary: An independent, parent-participation preschool and K-3 school in San Francisco with a progressive, arts- and inclusion-focused mission; partial overlap with Live Oak's younger grades and value-driven family base.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@LiveOakSchoolSF
• Facebookfacebook.com/liveoaksf
• Instagraminstagram.com/liveoaksf
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/liveoakschoolsf

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 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 Live Oak School