What World Leadership School does

World Leadership School is a privately held Colorado Benefit Corporation and Founding B Corp founded in 2007 by Ross Wehner, headquartered in Boulder, Colorado with a secondary office in Alexandria, Virginia. The company partners with 100+ K-12 independent and charter schools in North America to deliver three core service lines: (1) immersive 10-21 day Collaborative Leadership Programs for students in 17+ destination countries, (2) professional learning experiences for teachers and administrators — including in-service workshops, educator travel, a Virtual Coaching Institute, and Trip Leader Trainings — serving 2,200+ educators annually, and (3) school consulting covering global program design, risk management, and strategic planning. Program delivery is supported by a network of 50+ staff, instructors, teacher coaches, and in-country coordinators.

WLS's intellectual property is pedagogical rather than technological: the proprietary Purpose Learning framework (launched 2016) and the K12 Change Lab 18-month change management methodology (second cohort launching April 2026) form the content foundation for all offerings. Underlying technology consists of standard content/web platforms (Vimeo, Mailchimp, a dedicated k12changelab.org site) and human-delivered virtual coaching — there is no disclosed AI/ML, API, or proprietary software product.

Revenue is generated primarily through direct, consultative, multi-year enterprise sales contracts with K-12 schools, with pricing handled on a quote-based basis (no public pricing). Programs are co-designed with school administrators and delivered by WLS staff and in-country coordinators. The company operates as a for-profit benefit corporation alongside its sister nonprofit, World Leadership Foundation, which channels student donations into rural school infrastructure; TeachUNITED, originally incubated by WLS, became an independent 501(c)(3) in 2020 and now reaches 100,000+ students. WLS has no disclosed institutional or venture funding and runs as a self-sustaining, mission-driven professional services business.

Name

World Leadership School

Legal name

World Leadership School

Website

https://worldleadershipschool.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

World Leadership School partners with 100+ K-12 schools to deliver immersive 10-21 day student travel programs across 17+ countries, professional learning for 2,200+ educators annually, and school consulting on purpose-driven learning and risk management.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Boulder

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. School Partnership Programs (Student Travel): WLS designs and runs partnership-based travel programs for K-12 schools. Schools pay for these programs as part of their global education offerings. This is the primary revenue-generating service, serving over 750 students per year across 100+ school partners.
2. Educator Professional Learning: Professional development programs for teachers and administrators including In-Service Workshops on Project-Based Learning, educator travel programs, the Virtual Coaching Institute, and Trip Leader Trainings. Serves 2,200+ teachers and administrators per year.
3. School Consulting: Strategic consulting to help schools develop global education programs, including program design (global diploma certificates, classroom curriculum, travel programs, faculty training), strategic planning, and risk management workshops.
4. K12 Change Lab: An 18-month change management program for schools with virtual coaching, conferences, and on-site visits. Second cohort launches April 2026. Grant funding is available for smaller independent and international schools.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

World Leadership School partners with K-12 schools to design and run immersive 10-21 day student travel programs (Collaborative Leadership Programs), deliver educator professional development (workshops, coaching, travel, trip-leader training), and provide strategic consulting for global education transformation. Programs are delivered through long-term institutional partnerships with rural host communities in 17+ countries and are built on the proprietary Purpose Learning framework, an 18-month K12 Change Lab school transformation program, and a Virtual Coaching Institute.

Product overview

World Leadership School offers a portfolio of experiential education products centered on immersive travel, professional learning, and school transformation. The core offerings include Student Travel Programs (10-21 day collaborative leadership programs), Educator Development Travel Programs, In-Service Workshops, Virtual Coaching Institute, and School Consulting services. Supporting programs include K12 Change Lab (18-month change management), Purpose Learning (a framework for thinking/feeling/doing), Virtual Immersion Programs, empowHER, Salmon River Program for School Heads, Youth Purpose Summits, Global Gatherings conferences, and K-12 Purpose Summit. The company operates as a B Corp and partners with over 100 independent and charter schools to bring greater purpose to learning, running partnership-based travel programs for over 750 students annually and professional learning experiences for over 2,200 teachers and administrators each year.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Purpose Learning: A framework for learning as thinking, feeling and doing, where students can explore their unique purpose at the intersection of these three domains.
• K12 Change Lab
• TeachUNITED
• empowHER

Products and services

• Student Travel Programs (Collaborative Leadership Programs) Immersive 10–21 day student travel programs using a 'disconnect, decenter, and re-envision' approach; students live and work alongside rural host communities in 17+ countries on global issues and leadership development. Sold to K-12 schools as their primary purpose-driven global education offering.
• Educator Development Travel Programs Professional development journeys for teachers focused on Project-Based Learning and student-driven approaches, including international travel components. Sold to K-12 schools as faculty development engagements.
• In-Service Workshops Faculty workshops on Project-Based Learning, global education, and purpose-based learning delivered on-site to school groups. Sold to K-12 schools for faculty development.
• Virtual Coaching Institute One-on-one virtual coaching to help educators design and deliver Project-Based Learning and purpose-based learning experiences. Sold to K-12 schools and individual educators.
• Trip Leader Trainings Training programs that prepare faculty to lead safe and meaningful student travel, including risk-management skills. Sold to K-12 schools and trip leaders.
• School Consulting Strategic consulting to help schools build global education programs, including global diploma certificates, classroom curriculum, travel programs, faculty training, and strategic planning. Sold to K-12 schools as multi-year engagements.
• Risk Management Consulting Workshops and consulting on the building blocks of risk management for off-campus experiential learning programs. Sold to K-12 schools running or scaling student travel.
• K12 Change Lab 18-month change management program that supports K-12 school teams in operationalizing strategic plans via unlimited virtual coaching, a 3-day learning conference, and two on-site school visits across cohorts. Grant funding is available for smaller independent and international schools.
• Virtual Immersion Programs Online immersive experiences that allow students and educators to engage virtually with global communities and cultures. Sold to K-12 schools as an alternative or complement to in-person travel.
• empowHER Program focused on empowering young women through immersive travel and leadership experiences. Sold to K-12 schools serving female students.
• Salmon River Program for School Heads Leadership development program for school heads involving whitewater rafting experiences on the Salmon River. Sold to K-12 school leadership teams.
• Youth Purpose Summits Accelerator program for youth focused on purpose discovery and leadership development. Sold to K-12 schools and student cohorts.
• Reimagine Advisory Advisory services for schools looking to reimagine their educational approach and programs. Sold to K-12 school leadership teams.

Quantifiable outcome

• 97% of students are more interested in investigating the world after WLS programs
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers24 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• K12 Change LabcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 April 2026K12 Change Lab is a nonprofit initiative from World Leadership School that supports schools in operationalizing strategic plans over 18 months through unlimited virtual coaching, a 3-day learning conference, and two on-site school visits. The second cohort launches April 2026. This initiative extends WLS's reach from experiential programs into institutional change management.
• TeachUNITEDcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020TeachUNITED is an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit that grew out of World Leadership Foundation (WLS's sister nonprofit) and became independent in 2020. It works with rural schools throughout Africa and Latin America and supports hundreds of schools and 100,000+ students globally. WLS founder Ross Wehner continues to spend considerable time with TeachUNITED, deepening school-to-school partnerships. TeachUNITED was incubated by WLS's ecosystem.
• World Leadership FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWLS's sister nonprofit foundation, established in 2009, relies on grants and donations to drive change in rural schools. It has invested over $1 million of student donations into school infrastructure projects over the last decade. It also incubated TeachUNITED.
• ICAISA (International Council Advancing Independent School Accreditation)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerK12 Change Lab, WLS's nonprofit initiative, is an Associate Member of ICAISA. ICAISA is the umbrella organization for dozens of accrediting associations serving 3,500 independent schools serving nearly 2 million students. WLS contributes to conversations about evolving accreditation standards for purpose-driven learning.
• Buckingham Browne & Nichols SchoolminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOne of 100+ independent and charter school partners that purchase WLS programs (student travel, educator development, consulting) as part of their global education offerings.
• Parish Episcopal SchoolminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorWLS provides comprehensive consulting to ParishAbroad, Parish Episcopal School's global education program, including program logistics, risk management, marketing, and curriculum support.
• La Jolla Country Day SchoolminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorLong-standing partner school for student travel programs (Belize) and educator professional development. Assistant Head of School Colleen O'Boyle serves as a reference for WLS's impact.
• Awamaki (Peru)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPeruvian nonprofit that works with women's cooperatives in rural Peru. WLS students on Peru programs engage with Awamaki weavers, learning traditional crafts and supporting economic opportunity. Featured as a program highlight and meaningful community connection.
• Chilamate Rainforest Eco Retreat (Costa Rica)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFamily-run conservation and sustainable tourism project in Chilamate, Sarapiqui, Costa Rica, co-founded by Meghan Casey (WLS Costa Rica Coordinator). Serves as the host community base for WLS Costa Rica programs and exemplifies WLS's commitment to community-led conservation.
• Reality Gives (India)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndian NGO that partners with WLS for India programs. WLS India Coordinator Krishna Pujari works with Reality Gives in the Dharavi slum, where students engage in service projects and cultural immersion. This partnership exemplifies WLS's deep community engagement model.
• One Planet Conservation Awareness (Belize)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGrassroots conservation platform founded by Jordan Gledhill (WLS Belize coordinator/instructor) that supports marine and terrestrial conservation through education and media. Students on Belize programs engage with conservation projects through this organization.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Carpe Diem Education: Carpe Diem Education organizes gap year and high school immersion programs with a strong experiential and leadership focus, competing for the same purpose-driven school-leader buyer as WLS.
• Rustic Pathways: Rustic Pathways runs high school and middle school service-learning travel programs in more than a dozen countries, directly competing with WLS's Collaborative Leadership Programs for the same independent and charter school customers.
• Where There Be Dragons: Where There Be Dragons designs immersive, experiential education programs for high schoolers in Asia, Africa, and the Americas with a strong leadership and cultural-immersion curriculum, overlapping directly with WLS's school-group travel model.
• Global Routes: Global Routes is a nonprofit that runs high school cross-cultural service and immersion programs with homestays and community partnerships, mirroring WLS's collaborative leadership model in rural host communities.
• The Road Less Traveled: The Road Less Traveled runs international service-learning and wilderness expeditions for high school students, and is notably the previous employer of WLS Executive Director Erin Hawk, indicating direct overlap in program design and target customer.

Emerging players

• National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS): NOLS provides wilderness and leadership education with school partnerships and is listed in WLS's own team bios as a place where the medical director taught; it overlaps with WLS on educator development and risk-management training for outdoor programs.
• Global Citizen Year: Global Citizen Year runs immersive bridge-year and gap-year programs for high school graduates with a purpose-driven, leadership-development framing; it targets a slightly older student but competes for the same mission-aligned school referral channel.
• Soliya: Soliya runs virtual cross-cultural exchange programs for university and high school students, overlapping with WLS's Virtual Immersion Programs and educator-facing global competency content.

Broad incumbents

• EF Education First: EF Education First is a global incumbent in educational travel and language programs; while it operates at much greater scale across many segments, it overlaps with WLS in K-12 group travel and cultural immersion offerings.
• Outward Bound: Outward Bound is an established experiential education provider with K-12 outdoor leadership programs; it competes for the same school budget line items as WLS, but with a primarily outdoor rather than international immersion focus.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/pages/World-Leadership-School/157725137594517
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/5195481
• Instagraminstagram.com/worldleadershipschool
• Xx.com/wrldleadership

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Subsidiaries1 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 World Leadership School