Council for a Strong America

What Council for a Strong America does

Council for a Strong America (CSA) was a 501(c)(4) nonprofit advocacy organization founded in 1996 and headquartered in Washington, D.C., that operated for nearly 30 years before dissolving on September 30, 2024 due to ongoing fundraising challenges and loss of foundation support. The organization functioned as a federation of three advocacy networks — Fight Crime: Invest in Kids (police chiefs, sheriffs, prosecutors, and violence survivors), Mission: Readiness (retired admirals and generals), and ReadyNation (business executives) — that mobilized thousands of trusted community leaders across all 50 U.S. states to advocate for public investments in children's programs. CSA also previously operated two networks suspended in 2021: Shepherding the Next Generation (faith leaders) and Champions for America's Future (athletes and coaches).

The organization's core 'product' was evidence-based policy advocacy delivered through research reports (e.g., state-level economic impact studies documenting $122 billion in national infant-toddler child care costs, $5 billion in Washington, $2.4 billion in Pennsylvania), member-authored op-eds, legislative testimony, and coalition campaigns on early childhood education, child care access, juvenile justice, child nutrition, home visiting, and physical activity. There was no underlying technology platform — CSA was a human-driven advocacy organization whose 'infrastructure' consisted of six staffed state offices (Illinois, Maine, Mississippi, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Washington), a member mobilization system, and an extensive research and earned-media library (1,447 news items; 887+ child-care articles documented in source material).

The business model was foundation-dependent grant funding, with policy advocacy as the service delivered to policymakers, legislators, and the broader public. Following dissolution, mission-related intellectual property and databases were transferred to the Institute for Child Success (ICS), which now licenses the material to like-minded nonprofits through a federated network, and ReadyNation's national work continues via the National Collaborative for Infants and Toddlers.

Name

Council for a Strong America

Legal name

Council for a Strong America

Website

https://strongnation.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1996

Operating status

Closed

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Council for a Strong America was a 501(c)(4) nonprofit that, from 1996 to September 2024, federated three advocacy networks of law enforcement, retired military, and business leaders to influence U.S. children's policy across all 50 states. The national organization dissolved after foundation funding collapsed and transferred its intellectual property to the Institute for Child Success.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Public Policy Advocacy

NAICS

Human Rights Organizations (813311), Child and Youth Services (624110), Social Advocacy Organizations (8133), Other Social Advocacy Organizations (813319)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Child Protection & Child Rights (BPAGABAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Youth Mentoring & Positive Youth Development Nonprofits (BPAGADAD), Civil Society Strengthening & Civic Space (BPADAGAD)

Keywords

• Policy advocacy services
• Child welfare advocacy
• Nonprofit policy research
• Juvenile justice reform
• Early childhood education

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Foundation Grants: The organization was overwhelmingly dependent on support from foundations. Loss of foundation partner support due to changes in strategy or priorities created funding gaps that CSA could not bridge sustainably, leading to dissolution.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Council for a Strong America was a national nonprofit advocacy organization that mobilized networks of law enforcement leaders, retired military officers, and business executives to advocate for public investments and policies benefiting children and youth. Its core offerings included research reports, policy briefs, legislative advocacy, coalition building, and member-driven campaigns across early childhood education, child care, juvenile justice, child nutrition, home visiting, and physical activity.

Product overview

Council for a Strong America operated as a federation of three distinct advocacy networks—Fight Crime: Invest in Kids (law enforcement and public safety advocates), Mission: Readiness (retired military leaders), and ReadyNation (business executives)—united by the goal of promoting public investments and policies that improve outcomes for children in America. The organization published research reports, facilitated advocacy campaigns, and mobilized civic leaders across states to influence policy decisions related to early childhood education, child care, juvenile justice, nutrition, and home visiting programs. The organization dissolved as a national entity on September 30, 2024, with ongoing work transitioning to the Institute for Child Success (ICS) and state-level federated partners.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Fight Crime: Invest in Kids: Network of police chiefs, sheriffs, prosecutors, and violence survivors protecting public safety by promoting solutions that steer kids away from crime
• Mission: Readiness
• ReadyNation

Products and services

• Fight Crime: Invest in Kids An advocacy network of thousands of police chiefs, sheriffs, prosecutors, and violence survivors who promote solutions that steer children away from crime and toward successful futures, targeting public safety through investments in children.
• Mission: Readiness An advocacy network of retired admirals and generals who strengthen national security by advocating for policies ensuring children stay in school, stay fit, and stay out of trouble.
• ReadyNation An advocacy network of business executives who build a skilled workforce by promoting solutions that prepare children to succeed in education, work, and life, with a focus on early childhood economic impacts.

Quantifiable outcome

• $122 billion annual cost of infant-toddler child care crisis nationally (ReadyNation research)
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Institute for Child Success (ICS)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 31 July 2024The Institute for Child Success, an early childhood-focused nonprofit organization, took ownership of CSA's mission-related intellectual property and databases. ICS has the power to license the use of materials associated with Fight Crime: Invest in Kids, ReadyNation, and Mission: Readiness to like-minded nonprofits joining the federated network.
• National Collaborative for Infants and ToddlerscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 31 July 2024ReadyNation's national work will continue through partnership with the National Collaborative for Infants and Toddlers, allowing continued advocacy on early childhood issues.
• State Allies (Illinois, Maine, Mississippi, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Washington)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWork of former CSA staff and consultants in six states will continue as a federated network with the support and partnership of state allies, maintaining advocacy presence at state level.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• National Education Association (NEA): Large labor union and advocacy organization for public education, including early childhood education policy. Broader in scope but with overlapping ECE workforce and education policy advocacy.
• Center for American Progress: Large progressive think tank with broad policy advocacy including children's and family policy. Operates at much larger scale with a wider portfolio, but with overlapping child and family policy work.

Direct peers

• Children's Defense Fund: A national nonprofit that advocates for children, particularly poor and minority children, through policy research, lobbying, and public education. Highly comparable in mission scope (children's welfare advocacy) and policy domain.
• First Focus Campaign for Children: A bipartisan advocacy organization dedicated to making children and families a priority in federal policy and budget decisions. Closely aligned with CSA's federal-level children's advocacy work and DC-based lobbying model.
• Zero to Three: National nonprofit focused on the healthy development of infants and toddlers through policy advocacy, professional development, and public education. Directly comparable on early childhood policy and ReadyNation's infant-toddler focus.
• Voices for Children (Voices for America’s Children): A national network advocating for state-level policies affecting children, particularly low-income and at-risk youth. Comparable in coalition-based advocacy, state-focused operations, and children's policy focus.
• National Children's Alliance: National association representing Children's Advocacy Centers, focused on child abuse response and prevention. Comparable in children's welfare advocacy and network/federated structure across states.
• RESULTS (anti-poverty advocacy): Grassroots advocacy organization that mobilizes citizens to lobby policymakers on poverty, nutrition, and early childhood issues. Comparable in community-led advocacy model and policy focus areas.
• MomsRising / MamásConPoder: An advocacy organization mobilizing mothers and families on issues including child care, early learning, and family economic security. Comparable in member-driven advocacy and child care policy domain.

Others

• Annie E. Casey Foundation: Major private foundation focused on child welfare, with significant grantmaking and policy advocacy on the same issues CSA addressed (juvenile justice, early childhood, child welfare). Comparable as both potential funder and policy actor.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/strongnationUSA
• Xx.com/StrongNationUSA
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/council-for-a-strong-america

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Subsidiaries5 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 Council for a Strong America