What Ohio School Boards Association does

The Ohio School Boards Association (OSBA) is a private, not-for-profit statewide membership association serving the boards of public school districts across Ohio. Founded in 1950 (some sources cite 1955) and headquartered in Columbus, OH, OSBA operates through five regional managers to deliver services uniformly across the state. Its core mission is to support effective governance by member boards through advocacy, training, legal counsel, and policy expertise, with formal engagement before the Ohio General Assembly and state education agencies.

OSBA's service portfolio spans advocacy and lobbying, board member training and conferences, policy and legal reference publications (including the Ohio School Law Manual), consulting and superintendent search services, and member-directed legal counsel. It operates two notable subsidiaries: OSBA Insurance Agency LLC, which distributes insurance and risk-management products to member districts, and the OSBA Scholarship Foundation, which administers scholarship programming. The association is led by CEO Tom Hosler, supported by a C-suite including CFO Allison Morris, Chief Legal Counsel Sara Clark, and CTO Drew Clark.

The business model is membership-dues-driven, supplemented by conference and training fees, publication and consulting revenue, and commissions from the insurance agency subsidiary. Revenue is concentrated entirely within Ohio's public K-12 sector, with growth bounded by district count and state education funding cycles. OSBA employs approximately 50 staff and serves what appears to be the full universe of Ohio public school boards, positioning it as the sole statewide association of its kind.

Name

Ohio School Boards Association

Legal name

Ohio School Boards Association

Website

https://ohioschoolboards.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1950

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Ohio School Boards Association is a Columbus-based, not-for-profit statewide membership association serving Ohio's public school boards through advocacy, training, legal counsel, publications, and an insurance subsidiary across five regions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Education Association Services

NAICS

Business Associations (813910), Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Elected School Boards & Governance Councils (EDADABAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Policy, Governance & Board Administration (EDAJAHAG)

Keywords

• School board services
• Education policy advocacy
• School law resources
• Board leadership training
• Membership association

Headquarters

HQ city

Columbus

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: School districts pay membership dues to join OSBA, gaining access to advocacy services, professional development, publications, and member resources
2. Publications Sales: Sale of publications including Ohio School Law Manual, School Management News subscription ($175/year), and other educational materials
3. Professional Development Services: Fees for workshops, training programs, Capital Conference, Board Leadership Institute, and customized training services for school districts
4. Insurance Programs: AD&D insurance and other employee benefit programs offered to school district employees and board members through OSBA Insurance Trust
5. Legal Services: Legal information, consultation, and the Legal Assistance Fund for member boards of education

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Ohio School Boards Association (OSBA) is a nonprofit membership association that supports Ohio's public school district boards of education through training, legal resources, legislative advocacy, publications, insurance programs, and networking events. It offers membership services, professional development, conferences, school law manuals, custom workshops, and insurance products tailored to school board members, administrators, and education professionals across Ohio.

Product overview

The Ohio School Boards Association (OSBA) offers a comprehensive suite of services organized as a portfolio of interconnected programs and publications for Ohio's public education community. The core service divisions include Board and Management Services (offering governance training, executive searches, policy services, and strategic planning), Communication Services (producing the OSBA Journal magazine, School Management News newsletter, podcasts, and managing conferences), Legal Services (providing legal consultation, the Legal Assistance Fund, and OCSBA affiliation), Legislative Services (state/federal lobbying and policy advocacy), Financial Services, Insurance Programs, and Policy Services. OSBA operates through regional structures across five Ohio regions (Central, Northeast, Northwest, Southeast, Southwest) and manages associate groups including the Small School District Advisory Network (SSDAN), Urban Network, and Black Caucus. The association administers five regional scholarship and book grant programs (Bonnie Eddy, Leo Lucas, Lester C. Marrison, Ronald J. Diver, Paul D. Mock) and operates advocacy programs including Kids PAC. Major events include the annual Capital Conference, Board Leadership Institute, Mental Health and Social-Emotional Learning Summit, and OSBA Forums. The organization serves as a membership association providing professional development, advocacy, legal resources, and networking for school board members and administrators across Ohio.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Named customers3 records

Segments5 records

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.

• Ohio Education Policy Institute (OEPI)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOEPI conducts research and analysis on policies, proposals and factors affecting education funding, providing policy research support for OSBA advocacy efforts
• OSBA Legal Assistance FundcoreOthersTrust fund established in 1976 to provide supportive assistance to boards of education in cases or controversies of statewide significance primarily at the appellate level
• OSBA Insurance TrustcoreOthersDedicated to serving education through a variety of employee benefit programs for member districts
• Ohio Council of School Board Attorneys (OCSBA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAffiliate established in 1976 providing statewide forum on practical legal problems faced by school attorneys, promoting closer relationship between school attorneys and board members
• OSBA Black CaucuscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPromotes and provides education on unique challenges faced by African-American board members; consists of OSBA president and fifteen other members
• OSBA Urban NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPremier advisory voice to OSBA helping urban school boards prepare students for college and career; formed from Large City Commission established in 1967
• Small School District Advisory Network (SSDAN)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNetwork formed in 1971 (renamed 2010) consisting of 10-15 small districts representative of all small district interests; exchanges information on education problems and develops programs for small districts
• National Parent Teachers Association (PTA)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerReferenced as resource for hosting candidate forums and community engagement initiatives
• Affiliate Programs VendorsminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOutside vendors carefully selected to help districts with services needed for effective school management

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Illinois Association of School Boards (IASB): Statewide association for Illinois public school boards offering policy services, training, legal resources, and advocacy — a direct functional analog to OSBA operating in a neighboring Midwest state.
• Pennsylvania School Boards Association (PSBA): Statewide association serving Pennsylvania public school boards with advocacy, training, legal services, and policy support. Operates the same business model as OSBA — dues, publications, PD events, legal assistance — making it a closely comparable single-state peer.
• New York State School Boards Association (NYSSBA): Statewide association serving New York's public school boards through advocacy, training, and legal services. Closely mirrors OSBA's mission and service mix, including governance publications and member-based professional development.
• California School Boards Association (CSBA): Large statewide association for California school boards providing policy services, advocacy, training, and governance resources. Comparable in scope and service mix to OSBA, though serving a much larger district base.
• Michigan Association of School Boards (MASB): Statewide association serving Michigan public school boards with governance training, advocacy, and board development services. Comparable Midwest peer with overlapping services to OSBA's Board and Management Services division.

Emerging players

• BoardDocs (Diligent): Digital board management and policy hosting platform used by school boards nationwide, including via OSBA affiliate Simbli/eBoardSolutions. Competes with OSBA's policy hosting and board management services from a digital-native angle.
• Texas Association of School Administrators (TASA): Statewide association serving Texas school administrators and boards with professional development and advocacy. Overlaps with OSBA's PD and legislative services, though TASA is administrator-led rather than board-governed.

Broad incumbents

• AASA (The School Superintendents Association): National association serving school superintendents with advocacy, PD, and policy resources. Comparable as a national-scale education leadership association; OSBA serves a similar constituency at the state level.
• National School Boards Association (NSBA): National umbrella for school board associations across the U.S. Comparable to OSBA as a peer membership association providing advocacy, training, and governance resources, but operates at the federal level and across all 50 states rather than as a single-state affiliate.

Others

• Education Commission of the States (ECS): Interstate education policy organization providing research and policy tracking for state education leaders. Adjacent to OSBA's legislative and policy services but operates as a cross-state policy research body rather than a membership association.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ohschoolboards

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Subsidiaries2 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 Ohio School Boards Association