What Hood River County Education Foundation does

Hood River County Education Foundation (HRCEF) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 1991 that provides educational financial support for students, families, and educators of the Hood River County School District (HRCSD) in Oregon. The foundation's core product is a portfolio of 55+ scholarship funds that award graduating high school seniors and current college students $250-$5,000 per scholarship for trade, two-year, and four-year degree programs; cumulative disbursements exceed $2.9 million to more than 1,100 graduates over 25+ years. Complementary programs include the Impact Teaching Grant Program (which has distributed $193,000+ to teachers for classroom innovation), the Opportunity Fund (flexible support for families with financial need covering extracurricular fees, field trips, and swim lessons), and the Small Steps – Big Dreams 529 Savings Plan (administered for all district kindergarteners).

HRCEF's operational technology centers on the eschol.hrcef.org online scholarship platform, which administers applications for HRCEF's own 55+ funds and additionally serves 26 other local scholarship-awarding organizations. The foundation runs on an exceptionally lean operating model — 1.4 full-time equivalents comprising a full-time Program Manager (Alex Fleming) and a part-time Executive Director (Michael McElwee), with a 21-member volunteer board of directors (chaired by Aspen McKenna) serving two-year terms and contributing both funding and labor such as scholarship scoring and grant review. 2026 was a record-breaking year: $500,000+ in scholarship awards at the Hood River Valley High School (HRVHS) ceremony across 212 individual scholarships from 89 distinct funds, including $354,500 to 109 HRVHS seniors and alumni.

HRCEF's revenue model is community-led and donation-driven, with no fees charged to students or recipients. Income derives from tax-deductible donations by individuals and businesses (Federal EIN 93-1093479) supplemented by annual fundraising events including the Columbia Gorge Wine & Art Festival (third annual, May 9, 2026, at Best Western Plus Hood River Inn) and benefit concerts (Jennifer Batten and Full Steam at The Ruins, July 23, 2026). Scholarships are disbursed directly to students' enrolled schools upon receipt of a Proof of Enrollment form and thank-you note. Distribution runs through the HRVHS counseling team and the eschol.hrcef.org platform, with no commercial sales motion.

Name

Hood River County Education Foundation

Legal name

Hood River County Education Foundation

Website

https://hrcef.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1991

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Hood River County Education Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that administers 55+ scholarship funds, teacher grants, and family support programs for Hood River County School District students and educators, powered by its eschol.hrcef.org online platform.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Educational Grantmaking and Scholarship Administration

NAICS

Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813)

akta.pro primary industry

Education Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

College Access, Scholarships & Student Success Nonprofits (BPAGADAE), Scholarship & Fellowship Foundations and Trusts (EDADAHAC)

Keywords

• Educational scholarships
• Teaching grants
• Nonprofit education funding
• Scholarship administration
• Community education support

Headquarters

HQ city

Hood River

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Fundraising: HRCEF raises funds through donations from local families, organizations, and businesses, as well as fundraising events such as the Columbia Gorge Wine Festival and benefit concerts like the Jennifer Batten event.
2. Individual and Corporate Donations: Tax-deductible donations from individuals and businesses supporting education in Hood River County, with Federal EIN 93-1093479 for donation verification.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Hood River County Education Foundation administers 55+ scholarship funds, Impact Teaching Grants, the Opportunity Fund, and a 529 Savings Plan ('Small Steps – Big Dreams') that provide financial support to Hood River County School District students, families, and educators. It runs scholarship applications and fund administration through the proprietary eschol.hrcef.org online platform, which also serves 26 other local scholarship organizations. The foundation is funded through individual and corporate donations and annual fundraising events.

Product overview

The Hood River County Education Foundation (HRCEF) operates as a single unified non-profit offering rather than a platform-plus-modules architecture. Its core services include a scholarship program managing 55+ scholarship funds for high school seniors and college students (with awards from $1,000 to $5,000), the Impact Teaching Grant Program supporting classroom innovation, the Opportunity Fund for flexible student/family support, and the Small Steps – Big Dreams 529 Savings Plan for district kindergarteners. HRCEF also organizes the Columbia Gorge Wine & Art Festival as an annual fundraiser. The scholarship infrastructure is powered by the eschol.hrcef.org online platform for applications and administration. High School Scholarships, College Scholarships, and Continuing Scholarships form the three-part scholarship portfolio, while Impact Teaching Grants and the Opportunity Fund provide supplementary educational support.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• HRCEF Scholarship Program Manages over 55 scholarship funds that provide awards to graduating HRVHS seniors and current college students pursuing two-year, four-year, or trade/vocational degrees. Awards range from $1,000 to $5,000.
• Impact Teaching Grant Program

Quantifiable outcome

• Over $2.9 million awarded to more than 1,100 graduates over 25+ years
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers6 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

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Hood River Valley High School Counseling TeamcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026HRVHS Counseling Team organizes and executes the scholarship cycle and annual scholarship award ceremony. Serves as the direct link between students and generous donors, working tirelessly to recognize student achievements and connect them with scholarship opportunities.
• Hood River County School District (HRCSD)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1991Primary organizational partner. HRCEF supports HRCSD students, families, and educators through scholarships and grants. The foundation works to enhance education by providing financial support for programs, services, and scholarships, developing a community that values education where students succeed and teachers are supported.
• 30 Local Organizations and GrantorscoreGTM or Marketing PartnerApproximately 30 local organizations and grantors participate in the scholarship ecosystem, providing 212 individual scholarships from 89 distinct funds. These community partners have collectively contributed over $500,000 in awards to support student success.
• Columbia Gorge NewsminorGTM or Marketing PartnerLocal news outlet providing coverage of HRCEF events and scholarship announcements. Article republished on HRCEF website regarding record-breaking scholarship night.
• Best Western Plus Hood River InnminorGTM or Marketing PartnerVenue host for Columbia Gorge Wine Festival event. Special discounted group rates offered for event attendees. Presents third annual Columbia Gorge Wine & Art Festival.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• DonorsChoose: National nonprofit platform channeling donor funds directly to public school teachers for classroom projects. Comparable to HRCEF's Impact Teaching Grant program at much greater scale, serving teachers nationwide rather than a single district.
• Meyer Memorial Trust: Large Oregon-based foundation funding education, housing, and community-building initiatives statewide. Comparable as an Oregon education grantmaker, but with a much broader mission and significantly larger asset base than HRCEF.

Regional players

• The Ford Family Foundation: Large Oregon-based private foundation headquartered in Roseburg with a rural Oregon education and child-wellbeing focus. Comparable mission around educational opportunity in rural Oregon, but operates regionally across the state rather than a single county.

Direct peers

• Scholarship America: Large national nonprofit administering scholarships for students across the U.S. Directly comparable in mission and core scholarship-administration activity to HRCEF, but operating at national scale rather than a single rural county.
• Oregon Community Foundation: Statewide community foundation in Oregon that manages donor-advised funds and education grantmaking. Closely comparable in being an Oregon-based grantmaking entity with a strong education mission, though it operates at much larger scale than HRCEF.
• Latino Community Association: Hood River-based nonprofit providing family services and education access support to the local Latino community. Directly comparable given shared Hood River service area and overlapping educational-support mission for local students and families.

Others

• SmarterSelect: Scholarship and grant management SaaS provider serving community foundations and universities. A direct commercial alternative to eschol for organizations administering scholarship portfolios.
• AwardSpring: Commercial SaaS platform used by colleges, foundations, and community organizations to manage scholarship applications and awarding. Directly comparable as an alternative technology stack to HRCEF's in-house eschol platform.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/HRCEF
• Facebookfacebook.com/hrcef
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/hood-river-county-education-foundation

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 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 Hood River County Education Foundation