Breakthrough Public Schools (BPS)

What Breakthrough Public Schools (BPS) does

Breakthrough Public Schools is a non-profit public charter school network operating five tuition-free K-8 campuses across Greater Cleveland, Ohio. Founded in 2010 and employing 51-100 staff at its network home office and campuses, BPS serves families seeking an alternative to district public schools through an immersive, two-teacher-per-classroom instructional model anchored on the Wit & Wisdom ELA curriculum and the i-Ready math diagnostic and benchmark platform, with student and family access unified through the Clever single-sign-on portal and PowerSchool parent portal.

The core product is the K-8 School Network, augmented by a free full-day Kindergarten Program, the Beyond Breakthrough Alumni Program (supporting 3,000+ alumni from 8th grade through college and career), after-school programming delivered through partners including YMCA Y-Club, Open Doors Academy, and the Rainey Institute, the College Credit Plus dual-enrollment pathway, and the Family Partnership Program. Charter authorization is held jointly from the Cleveland Metropolitan School District (CMSD) and the Benjamin C. Howell Foundation (BCHF), and Friends of Breakthrough operates as a separate non-profit development arm that raises private donations to close the gap between per-pupil public funding and the network's operating costs.

Revenue is generated almost entirely through per-pupil state and federal public funding under the charter agreements, supplemented by philanthropic contributions routed through Friends of Breakthrough. Tuition is not charged, and meals and full-day kindergarten are provided at no cost. Go-to-market is direct-to-consumer: families apply online, schedule campus tours, attend enrollment events, and are supported through a four-step enrollment process by a dedicated Family Experience Team, with marketing conducted through the BPS website, Instagram, email newsletter, and a "Refer Your School" word-of-mouth referral program.

Name

Breakthrough Public Schools (BPS)

Legal name

Breakthrough Public Schools

Website

https://breakthroughschools.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Breakthrough Public Schools is a non-profit charter school network operating five tuition-free K-8 campuses across Greater Cleveland. It serves K-8 scholar families with an immersive curriculum, the Beyond Breakthrough alumni program supporting 3,000+ graduates through career, and the Friends of Breakthrough development arm.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Primary Education Services

NAICS

Elementary and Secondary Schools (6111)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Charter School Networks (Multi-Site) (EDAJACAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

K–12 Support & School Improvement Nonprofits (BPAGADAB)

Keywords

• Charter school education
• K-8 education
• Public education
• Nonprofit education
• School management

Headquarters

HQ city

Cleveland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Per-Pupil Public Funding: As a public charter school network, BPS receives per-pupil funding from federal and state sources based on enrollment. This is the primary revenue stream supporting school operations.
2. Private Donations: Friends of Breakthrough, the non-profit development arm, raises private funds to close the gap in public funding and support quality education programs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Breakthrough Public Schools (BPS) operates a network of five free public K-8 charter schools in Greater Cleveland, Ohio. Founded in 2010, the non-profit organization delivers tuition-free public education to students through a charter school model, funded primarily through per-pupil public allocations supplemented by private donations.

Product overview

Breakthrough Public Schools is a network of five free, public K-8 charter school campuses serving families across Greater Cleveland. The core offering consists of the K-8 School Network with immersive, active learning curricula, complemented by the free full-day Kindergarten Program featuring two teachers per classroom. The Beyond Breakthrough Alumni Program extends support to over 3,000 graduates from 8th grade through career. Additional offerings include After-School Programming with community partnerships (YMCA Y-Club, Open Doors Academy, Rainey Institute, Sports), the College Credit Plus Program for early college credit, and the Family Partnership Program for parent engagement. All schools are tuition-free public charter schools.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Friends of Breakthrough: Non-profit development and advocacy organization responsible for closing the gap in public funding needed to provide quality education to children in Cleveland.
• Beyond Breakthrough

Products and services

• Breakthrough Public Schools Network A network of five free public K-8 charter schools in Greater Cleveland, Ohio, providing tuition-free public education to students in the Cleveland metropolitan area. Founded in 2010, BPS operates charter schools funded by per-pupil public allocations and private donations, serving families seeking public school alternatives.

Quantifiable outcome

• High family satisfaction with curriculum enrichment, teacher communication, reading practice, and school safety
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments1 record

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

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Cleveland Metropolitan School District (CMSD)coreOthersCMSD serves as the primary charter sponsor for Breakthrough Public Schools, providing oversight and authorization as required by Ohio law for charter school operations.
• Benjamin C. Howell Foundation (BCHF)coreOthersBCHF serves as a charter sponsor for Breakthrough Public Schools, providing organizational oversight and support for charter school compliance.
• Friends of BreakthroughcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFriends of Breakthrough is the non-profit development and advocacy organization responsible for closing the gap in public funding and building city-wide support for high-quality public school options in Cleveland.
• Beyond BreakthroughcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBeyond Breakthrough provides ongoing support to BPS alumni through high school and college readiness resources, networking opportunities, and special programming dedicated to alumni success.
• YMCA Y-ClubminorOthersY-Club before and after school program offered in partnership with YMCA at Breakthrough campuses.
• Open Doors AcademyminorOthersAfter-school programming partner providing extended learning opportunities for Breakthrough students.
• Rainey InstituteminorOthersArts education partner providing after-school programming and enrichment activities at Breakthrough campuses.
• OhioMeansJobsminorOthersState-supported career planning and job matching platform used by Breakthrough for student career advising and planning.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Success Academy Charter Schools: Large New York-based charter network operating K-12 campuses with strong academic outcomes focus. Comparable in multi-site operator model and outcome-driven charter mission.
• KIPP (KIPP Foundation): National non-profit network of public charter schools with a strong K-8 focus and a college-through-career alumni support model that closely mirrors Beyond Breakthrough. Comparable in mission, alumni program, and multi-site operator profile.
• Achievement First: Non-profit charter management organization running a network of K-12 public charter schools with extended alumni support into college and career. Comparable in operator profile and long-horizon scholar support model.
• IDEA Public Schools: Large non-profit charter network operating K-12 public schools across multiple states with college-readiness focus. Comparable as a scaled multi-site CMO with similar college-through-career alumni ethos.
• National Heritage Academies: Large charter management organization operating K-8 campuses across multiple states, with established Ohio presence. Comparable as a multi-site CMO serving similar grade bands under similar authorizer frameworks.
• Accel Schools: Ohio-headquartered charter management organization operating a network of K-12 campuses including in Cleveland. Comparable in multi-site operator model, sponsor structure, and Ohio per-pupil funding exposure.
• Constellation Schools: Cleveland-based non-profit charter management organization operating multiple K-8 (and some high school) campuses in the same metro. Direct competitor for Cleveland families and charter sponsor relationships.
• Uncommon Schools: Non-profit charter management organization operating a network of K-12 public charter schools with a rigorous college-prep orientation. Comparable in network model, college-readiness outcomes focus, and non-profit governance.

Others

• Friends of Breakthrough (peer set: charter school development arms): Adjacent ecosystem participant: many large charter networks operate affiliated non-profit development/fundraising arms (e.g., KIPP Foundation, Achievement First's fundraising entities) that mirror Friends of Breakthrough's role closing the per-pupil funding gap.

Broad incumbents

• Cleveland Metropolitan School District (CMSD): The traditional public school district for Cleveland and BPS's primary charter sponsor. Comparable as the incumbent K-12 operator competing for the same Cleveland families and shaping local charter policy.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/breakthroughschools
• Xx.com/breakthroughcle
• Facebookfacebook.com/BreakthroughCLE

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

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 Breakthrough Public Schools (BPS)