Opportunity Education

What Opportunity Education does

Opportunity Education is a U.S. non-profit foundation founded in 2005 by TD Ameritrade founder Joe Ricketts, headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, and operating a hybrid education model that combines direct school operation, a digital curriculum platform, and free teacher-facing tools. The foundation runs a network of schools comprising private Quest Forward High Schools in Omaha and Santa Rosa, public charter schools in Iowa (Cedar Rapids Prep and Des Moines Prep opened August 2025, with Davenport Prep announced), and a legacy international primary schools program that historically reached over 1 million students across 11 countries, plus an active Tanzania secondary program.

Its core technology stack is anchored by the Quest Forward Learning platform, which delivers an active, student-driven curriculum through 2,000+ individual lessons ("quests") organized into 60 standards-aligned collections (Common Core, NGSS, C3), and by Feedback Forward, a web app and browser extension that uses generative AI and predictive analytics to synthesize daily student exit tickets into weekly teacher reports. A 46-project Pathways curriculum handles college and career preparation, and a library of self-paced Professional Learning Courses and free downloadable teacher resources supports adoption. The platform integrates with Clever and Google for school SSO and pulls classes and rosters directly from school LMS systems.

Revenue mechanics are mixed and non-traditional: charter schools receive Iowa per-pupil public funding and state infrastructure grants (Des Moines Prep received a $500,000 state grant), private Quest Forward schools operate on undisclosed tuition plus scholarships and donations, and the broader foundation is sustained by Joe Ricketts' personal philanthropy (over $50 million historically invested) and grants. All teacher-facing software (Quest Forward, Feedback Forward) and professional learning courses are provided free, with the freemium distribution model intended to drive school-level adoption and brand reach rather than direct software monetization. Customer segments include Iowa families seeking charter alternatives, private-school families, K-12 teachers and administrators, and schools adopting active-learning technology.

Name

Opportunity Education

Legal name

Opportunity Education Foundation, Inc.

Website

https://opportunityeducation.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Opportunity Education is a non-profit foundation founded in 2005 by Joe Ricketts that operates private and charter schools and provides the Quest Forward Learning platform, Feedback Forward AI tools, and free teacher resources to schools and teachers in the U.S. and Tanzania.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

K-12 Education Services

NAICS

Elementary and Secondary Schools (6111), Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)

akta.pro primary industry

Career & College Readiness Platforms (Guidance, Planning, Scholarships) (EDAJAMAO)

Keywords

• Active learning curriculum
• Charter school operations
• Teacher professional development
• AI-powered formative assessment
• Standards-aligned K-12 content

Headquarters

HQ city

Omaha

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Charter School Public Funding: As operator of public charter schools (Cedar Rapids Prep, Des Moines Prep), Opportunity Education receives per-pupil public funding from the state of Iowa. Charter schools are tuition-free to students.
2. Private School Tuition: Quest Forward High Schools in Omaha, Nebraska and Santa Rosa, California are independent private schools funded by tuition, scholarships, and donations.
3. Grants and Donations: Opportunity Education Foundation was established by Joe Ricketts who has invested more than $50 million in primary education. The organization receives grants and donations to support operations and expansion.
4. Government Infrastructure Grants: Charter schools receive government grants for infrastructure. Des Moines Prep received a $500,000 state infrastructure grant.
5. Free Teacher Resources: The organization provides free lesson planning resources, professional learning courses, and software tools (Quest Forward, Feedback Forward) to teachers and schools at no charge, building brand awareness and driving adoption.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

Opportunity Education is a non-profit foundation that operates a network of public charter schools and private high schools while providing teachers with free digital curriculum and tools, including the Quest Forward Learning platform (active, student-driven lessons) and Feedback Forward (an AI-powered exit ticket and analytics web app). The organization also offers the Pathways career-preparation curriculum, professional learning courses, and a free teacher resource library, serving K-12 schools, teachers, and students in the United States and Tanzania.

Product overview

Opportunity Education offers a multi-product educational technology ecosystem centered on Quest Forward Learning, an active and skills-focused curriculum platform. The core offerings include Quest Forward Learning (with over 2,000 quests and 60 collections) and Feedback Forward (an AI-powered exit ticket and analytics tool). These are supplemented by the Pathways career preparation program, Professional Learning Courses for teacher development, and a free Teacher Resource Library. The company also operates a network of schools under the Opportunity Education Network Schools brand, including private Quest Forward High Schools in Santa Rosa and Omaha, and public charter schools (Cedar Rapids Prep and Des Moines Prep) in Iowa. Internationally, Opportunity Education runs programs in Tanzania through Quest Forward Learning and maintains a historical Primary Schools Program reaching over 1 million students across 11 countries.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Quest Forward Learning: A website that helps teachers find and create lessons for active, student-driven learning with over 2,000 quests and 60 collections.
• Feedback Forward
• QuestMaker
• Pathways

Products and services

• Quest Forward Learning An active, skills-focused learning approach and digital curriculum platform that helps teachers create and deliver student-driven lessons. Offers over 2,000 quests and 60 collections across multiple subjects with Common Core, NGSS, and C3 alignment, plus LMS integration with Clever and Google.
• Feedback Forward A web application and browser extension that enables teachers to use daily exit tickets with AI-powered insights, tracking metrics beyond mastery such as engagement and challenge level, synthesizing data, and generating weekly reports with recommended next steps.
• Pathways Program A career preparation curriculum with three core areas: Interest and Career Exploration, Foundations of Professionalism, and Personal Finance. Includes 46 projects designed to help students identify, develop, and pursue their best-fit career path, integrating career assessments, internships and job shadows, and senior capstone projects.
• Professional Learning Courses Self-paced online courses for teachers covering active learning, effective feedback, and new teacher training, including Active Learning for Student Engagement, Effective Feedback for Supporting Active Learning, and New Teacher Intensive.
• Teacher Resource Library Free lesson planning and professional learning resources including grab-and-go lesson plans, templates, how-to guides, essay guides, rubrics, and subject-specific resources for active learning and feedback implementation.
• Opportunity Education Network Schools Network of high-performing independent and charter schools including Quest Forward High Schools in Santa Rosa, CA and Omaha, NE (private, tuition-based), and Cedar Rapids Prep and Des Moines Prep in Iowa (public charter schools). Schools teach students to lead ambitious, purposeful, and fulfilling lives.
• Quest Forward Learning - Tanzania International secondary education program in Tanzania offering the first-ever digital course content for all nine secondary subjects of the Tanzania national syllabus, approved by the Tanzania Institute of Education.

Quantifiable outcome

• Students taking ownership of skill development are 53% more likely to feel prepared for post-graduation life (Gallup research)
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

AI capability4 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• GallupcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 June 2025Opportunity Education partnered with Gallup to create the report 'Learning in Focus: Examining Iowa Students' Engagement in Grades Five Through 12.' This research examined student engagement across grades 5-12 and revealed the importance of supporting student agency. Findings show only 10% of students strongly agree they enjoy classes, and students taking ownership of skill development are 53% more likely to feel prepared for post-graduation life.
• Local businesses for Pathways programminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOpportunity Education schools partner with local businesses and community organizations for student internships, job shadows, service learning, and career experiences. Pathways program helps establish partnerships with local professionals creating a network of mentors.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• KIPP Foundation: National charter school network operating 270+ schools with proprietary curriculum and teacher development programs. Most directly comparable to OE as a non-profit operating charter schools while building internal EdTech content and teacher training.
• Success Academy: NYC-based charter school network known for high-performing schools and an active learning, skills-focused approach similar to OE's Quest Forward methodology.
• Achievement First: Northeast charter school network with proprietary curriculum and extensive teacher training programs, directly comparable to OE's school-plus-curriculum model.
• Newsela: K-12 EdTech platform providing standards-aligned instructional content with formative assessment tools, directly comparable to Quest Forward's content library and Feedback Forward's assessment approach.
• Nearpod: K-12 EdTech platform providing interactive lessons and real-time formative assessment to teachers, comparable to Feedback Forward's daily exit ticket and analytics functionality.
• ClassDojo: K-12 communication and engagement platform provided free to teachers, directly comparable to OE's free product strategy for Quest Forward and Feedback Forward teacher tools.
• Uncommon Schools: Northeast charter school network focused on rigorous academics and college preparation, directly comparable to OE's Quest Forward High Schools and college/career readiness focus.

Broad incumbents

• Khan Academy: Dominant free K-12 educational content platform serving millions of students globally. Comparable as a non-profit K-12 EdTech provider with a freemium model and broad curriculum library.
• PowerSchool: Largest K-12 education technology platform for school management, learning, and analytics. Comparable as a comprehensive K-12 EdTech suite serving schools with LMS, assessment, and analytics capabilities.

Emerging players

• BetterLesson: K-12 teacher professional development platform offering coaching and curriculum resources, comparable to OE's free professional learning courses and teacher resource library.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/OpportunityEducation
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/opportunity-education-foundation
• Instagraminstagram.com/opportunityeducation/?hl=en

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Subsidiaries4 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 Opportunity Education