Innovation Center of St. Vrain Valley Schools

What Innovation Center of St. Vrain Valley Schools does

The Innovation Center of St. Vrain Valley Schools is a public K-12 educational facility operated as a program within the St. Vrain Valley Schools district in Longmont, Colorado. Founded in 2014 and seeded by a 2012 U.S. Department of Education Race to the Top grant of $16.6 million, the Center occupies a 50,000 sq ft facility designed in partnership with IDEO and Anderson Mason Dale, with capacity for 750 students. It delivers experiential, work-based learning to district high school students across 13 focus areas — including aeronautics, artificial intelligence, bioscience, cybersecurity, design, entrepreneurship, game development, music innovation, robotics, and video arts — through 19 advanced courses, 25+ student project teams, and 100+ paid student designers working on real client projects. The technology stack spans drones and LIDAR, bioscience labs with VR anatomy and genetic/biotech equipment, VEX robotics, underwater ROVs, CyberPatriot ethical hacking labs, Unreal Engine game development, TriCaster/ATEM broadcast systems, 3D/laser printing, AR/VR, and AI/ML tools including IBM Watson, AWS Lex, and AMD-PYNQ.

The Center's business model is a hybrid of public education funding and diversified program revenue. Core operations are funded through district appropriations and a 2024 voter-approved bond measure (passed by ~75% of voters) financing an expansion that topped out in January 2026. Incremental revenue streams include summer camp registration fees ($175–$375 per camp, tiered with 40–50% discounts for free/reduced-lunch students), grants such as the $25,000 OtterCares Foundation grant (May 2026), and partner-funded paid student work delivered through project teams serving organizations including NASA HUNCH, UCHealth, Boulder County Parks and Open Space, Denver Zoo, Firefly Drone Systems, IBM, AWS, AMD, and Northrop Grumman. Student project team output is the Center's primary commercial interface, providing client-commissioned solutions (VR prototypes, conservation data, QA testing, drone shows, curriculum design) under industry mentorship. The Center also operates a LIFTED Leadership Institute and monthly facility tours to export its model to other districts and partners.

Name

Innovation Center of St. Vrain Valley Schools

Legal name

Innovation Center of St. Vrain Valley Schools

Website

https://innovation.svvsd.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Short description

The Innovation Center of St. Vrain Valley Schools is a public K-12 experiential learning hub in Longmont, Colorado, serving district high school students through 19 advanced STEM courses, 25+ paid project teams, and industry certifications in partnership with NASA, UCHealth, IBM, AMD, and other employers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Longmont

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, Others

Revenue model

1. Public Education Funding: The Innovation Center is funded through St. Vrain Valley Schools district funding and a 2012 Race to the Top Grant ($16.6 million supplemental). No direct tuition is charged for district students; courses are free as part of the school day.
2. Summer Camp Fees: The center generates revenue through summer camp registration fees for students (including non-district), with tiered pricing per camp session and discounts for students qualifying for free/reduced lunch (40-50% discounts).
3. Student Employment (Real Work for Real Pay): Over 100 student designers are paid for after-school work developing technology solutions for industry and community partners, funded through district budget and partner contributions.
4. Grants and Philanthropy: The center receives grants such as the $25,000 OtterCares Foundation grant. Funded through the 2024 bond approved by nearly three-quarters of voters, plus corporate sponsorship.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

The Innovation Center operates as a 50,000 sq ft public education facility that delivers advanced high school courses, paid student project teams, and STEAM summer camps across 13 focus areas (aeronautics, AI, bioscience, cybersecurity, design, entrepreneurship, music innovation, robotics, video arts, STEM, work-based learning, game development, and pathways to teaching). The center employs over 100 paid student designers to develop technology solutions for industry partners and offers embedded industry certifications and dual-enrollment college credits. Free to district students during the school day, the program serves approximately 750 students at capacity from five high schools and two middle schools across the St. Vrain Valley Schools district.

Product overview

The Innovation Center of St. Vrain Valley Schools is a 50,000 sq ft educational facility offering experiential learning through three core program areas: Student Project Teams (paid work-based learning in robotics, AI, cybersecurity, aeronautics, bioscience, design, and entrepreneurship), Courses (advanced high school coursework with industry certifications), and Summer Programs (camps for grades 1-12). The center also provides LevelUp Webinars connecting students with industry professionals, the VEX Robotics competitive program, Opportunity CLIMB tech certification pathways, and facility tours. Operating since 2014 with ongoing expansion, the center serves 750 students and pays over 100 student designers for their work, offering real-world experience through partnerships with industry, higher education, and community organizations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Student Project Teams Paid, work-based learning opportunities where high school students develop technology solutions for businesses, nonprofits, and government agencies under industry mentor guidance across diverse focus areas including robotics, AI, cybersecurity, aeronautics, bioscience, design, entrepreneurship, and music innovation.
• Advanced High School Course Catalog Advanced high school courses spanning aeronautics, AI, bioscience, cybersecurity, game development, design, entrepreneurship, robotics, video arts, music innovation, and sustainability, many offering industry certifications and college dual-enrollment credits through Aims Community College, Colorado State University, and CU Denver.
• Summer Camps Innovative, hands-on STEAM learning experiences for students in grades 1-12, taught by student designers and teachers, featuring activities in robotics, AI, game development, drones, music innovation, cybersecurity, and space. Open to all students including non-district, with tiered pricing ($175 to $375) and income-based discounts.
• LevelUp Webinars Live weekly webinar series connecting industry professionals with students to enhance work-based learning across computer science, biosciences, robotics, AI/cybersecurity, aeronautics, and entrepreneurship, with recordings archived in a Vimeo library.
• Opportunity CLIMB IT/Tech Certification Pathway IT/Tech certification pathway offering courses and industry certifications in Python, Microsoft, AWS, Cisco, and Salesforce, with intensive mentoring support for career exploration in technology fields.
• VEX Robotics Program Competitive robotics experiences through VEX Robotics competitions for students of all ages, with support for elementary through high school including tournament hosting and teacher professional development across the district.
• Facility Use & Tours 90-minute monthly tours for business partners, visiting school districts, and community members, plus facility use requests for district members and the LIFTED Leadership Institute for education leaders.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 100 student designers paid for after-school work on real client projects
• +9 more outcomes

Named customers13 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability11 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

27 partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and flagship.

• Space FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 May 2026Hosted 'An Audience with an Astronaut' featuring former NASA astronaut Duane 'Digger' Carey (STS-109 pilot). Partnership for inspiring students about space careers and aeronautics through real astronaut experiences.
• Longmont Senior CenterminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCyber Tech Team works with Longmont Senior Center's lead senior tech instructors to create cybersecurity curriculum and activities to help protect senior citizens from online security issues.
• Surf WiselyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational company working with the Cyber Tech Team to provide feedback on curriculum and create activities for a middle school cyber literacy program.
• Firefly Drone SystemscoreTechnology or IntegrationIndustry partner providing expertise and support for the world's first high school student-led outdoor drone show team. Partnership enables students to design and execute nighttime drone shows using up to 300 drones.
• UCHealthcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTwo-year partnership focused on using virtual reality to build joy, empathy, and connection among high school peer groups. UCHealth experts mentor students on neuroscience, mindfulness, and VR content design.
• RendevercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSocial VR firm providing mentorship to the UCHealth VR Neuroscience Team. Committed to making high tech simple and accessible for building mentally healthy relationships.
• Butterfly PavilionminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner with the Neuroscience Team for community events focused on mindfulness and neuroscience exploration with students.
• Boulder County Open SpacecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerConservation Data Science partner for water quality monitoring, Northern Redbelly Dace recovery program, and Northern Leopard Frog conservation. Students collect field data and provide analysis.
• Ocean First InstitutecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Northern Redbelly Dace Recovery program and Northern Leopard Frog conservation. Joint fish release events and data collection systems.
• Colorado Parks and WildlifecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerConservation partner for Northern Redbelly Dace recovery program and Northern Leopard Frog species-of-concern monitoring along Colorado's Front Range.
• Denver ZoocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Northern Redbelly Dace Recovery program, providing expertise and support for conservation data science efforts.
• City of Boulder Open Space & Mountain ParkscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Northern Leopard Frog conservation project monitoring species of concern along the Front Range of Colorado.
• U.S. Fish and Wildlife ServicecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Northern Leopard Frog conservation project for this species of concern along Colorado's Front Range.
• IBM WatsoncoreTechnology or IntegrationBusiness AI Team uses IBM's Watson technology to develop and deploy custom chatbots for active clients, applying NLP and speech-to-text conversion.
• AWS LexcoreTechnology or IntegrationBusiness AI Team uses AWS's Lex platform alongside IBM Watson to develop custom chatbots for clients, utilizing AWS's natural language processing capabilities.
• Northrop GrummancoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNorthrop Grumman sponsors week-long cybersecurity and robotics summer camps (Fundamentals of Cybersecurity, Advanced Cybersecurity, Beep Beep R2 Robots) for grades 6-12. Camps held at Trail Ridge Middle School.
• AMD (Advanced Micro Devices)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAMD professionals lead the Physical AI Using AMD-PYNQ Bootcamp, a 4-day summer course introducing AI and robotics using AMD technology platforms. Additional advanced learning for returning camp members.
• AnarkcoreTechnology or IntegrationStudent QA engineers (Anark interns) develop and apply test plans for Anark's monthly software releases, learning to automate testing through Javascript-based test plans.
• NASA HUNCHflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerNASA HUNCH (High Schools United with NASA to Create Hardware) is a nationally recognized workforce development program. Students design and fabricate real products used by NASA engineers and astronauts, contributing to ISS and Moon to Mars initiatives.
• Firefly Drone SystemscoreTechnology or IntegrationDanny Hernandez (UAS Drone Instructor) partners with Firefly Drone Systems to provide students with expertise in designing and executing elaborate nighttime drone shows using up to 300 drones.
• Aims Community CollegecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAviation Meteorology course requires concurrent enrollment with Aims Community College. Students earn 4 college credits upon successful completion of the AVT1005 Aviation Meteorology course.
• Colorado State University (CSU)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCSU provides Virtual Reality program for Anatomical Case Studies VR class and mentors students in the Bioscience pathway. Dual enrollment courses: CSU ENGR 111 (Biomedical Engineering, 3 credits) and CSU BIOM 114 (Biotechnology Capstone).
• CU DenvercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCU MTED 3040 Math Elementary Teacher concurrent enrollment course offered through CU Denver (3 college credits) for students in the Pathways to Teaching (P-TEACH) program.
• Front Range Instrument RepairminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Symphonation Team for musical instrument repair project team and course offerings.
• Boulder ChambercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-hosts Technology Careers Family Night with Opportunity CLIMB to connect students with technology professionals and explore tech career pathways.
• IDEOflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerDesign firm for the Innovation Center. Hosted a two-day workshop with stakeholders (students, educators, community members, board members, professional partners) to design the facility and sharpen programming.
• Anderson Mason DaleflagshipImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerDenver-based architecture firm that refined IDEO's vision and developed the professional space now occupied by the Innovation Center community.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Code.org: Code.org is a nonprofit promoting K-12 computer science education through curriculum, teacher training, and the Hour of Code. While primarily curriculum-distribution-focused rather than facility-based, Code.org competes for the same K-12 computer science pathway mindshare and district adoption that the Innovation Center's AI, cybersecurity, and game development pathways address.

Direct peers

• iD Tech: iD Tech operates STEM summer camps and after-school programs for K-12 students in coding, AI, robotics, and game development. The Innovation Center's Northrop Grumman and AMD summer camps, plus its broader camp catalog, directly compete with iD Tech for the same K-12 STEAM-camp market, including out-of-district registrants.
• Destination Imagination: Destination Imagination is a nonprofit running project-based learning competitions for K-12 students in STEM, arts, and service learning. The Innovation Center's 25+ student project teams share the same student-led, mentor-supported, project-deliverable model that Destination Imagination operates at national scale.
• Da Vinci Schools: Da Vinci Schools is a California public school network combining rigorous academics with real-world industry projects and dual enrollment. Both serve public K-12 students through industry-partner-driven project teams, with Da Vinci providing a comparable model for career-connected learning and credential pathways outside the traditional classroom.
• High Tech High (HTH): High Tech High is a San Diego-area public charter school network known for project-based, work-connected learning. Both operate as public K-12 programs that integrate industry partnerships, project-based learning, and credentialing; HTH provides a comparable model for evaluating the Innovation Center's pedagogical and partnership approach at scale.
• P-TECH Network (P-TECH schools nationwide): P-TECH is a national network of public schools pairing high school with early college and career-connected learning. The Innovation Center's FalconTech P-TECH offering, CSU/CU dual-enrollment courses, and Associate-degree pathways are directly aligned with the P-TECH model, serving the same student demographic with the same industry-partner-anchored workforce development mission.
• CyberPatriot (Air Force Association): CyberPatriot is AFA's nationwide K-12 cybersecurity competition — the Innovation Center's cybersecurity pathway is built around CyberPatriot teams across 5 high schools and 2 middle schools. Both organizations target the same student talent and compete for the same cybersecurity talent pipeline into industry and government.
• FIRST (FIRST Robotics / FIRST Inspires): FIRST runs K-12 robotics competitions (FIRST LEGO League, FIRST Tech Challenge, FIRST Robotics Competition) that overlap with the Innovation Center's VEX Robotics and competitive robotics programs. Both develop student engineering skills through mentor-driven team competitions, sharing the same talent pipeline and STEM-career connection goals.

Broad incumbents

• Project Lead the Way (PLTW): PLTW is the largest U.S. provider of STEM curricula for K-12 schools, offering structured pathways in computer science, engineering, and biomedical science. While broader and curriculum-distribution-focused rather than facility-based, PLTW competes for the same student outcomes and district adoption dollars in the same STEM-credentialing category.
• NAF (National Academy Foundation): NAF is a national network of career academies embedded in public high schools, focusing on industry-aligned career pathways in IT, healthcare, finance, and engineering. NAF's academy model overlaps with the Innovation Center's focus areas (AI, bioscience, cybersecurity, entrepreneurship) and serves the same public K-12 career-connected learning mission.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/icsvvsd
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/st--vrain-valley-school-district
• Instagraminstagram.com/innovationcentersvvsd

Compliance11 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 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 Innovation Center of St. Vrain Valley Schools