Parents Forum
Parents Forum is a Cambridge, MA-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1991 that delivers peer-facilitated workshops and a licensing curriculum (the 'Where the Heart Listens' eight-question framework) to help parents, caregivers, and community organizations improve communication and emotional awareness skills.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1991
- HeadquartersCambridge, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Parents Forum does
Parents Forum is a Cambridge, Massachusetts-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1991 by Eve Sullivan that delivers peer-facilitated workshop programs to help adults develop emotional awareness, conflict management, and communication skills applicable at home and at work. Its core product is the Parents Forum Workshop, built around an eight-question curriculum documented in the 'Where the Heart Listens' handbook and operationalized through the conversational formula 'I feel ___ about ___ because ___' together with a 'Tools of the Trade' wallet-sized reference card. A free 30-minute 'Mini-Workshop' titled 'How To Tell Somebody Something They'd Rather Not Hear' is offered via Zoom and serves as a low-friction entry point, while adapted versions such as 'Spotlight on Conversation' (young adults 15+) and 'Learning What We Live' (middle schoolers) extend the curriculum to other audiences; supporting materials are available in English, Spanish, French, Arabic, and Portuguese.
The business model is donation- and grant-funded rather than commercial: mini-workshops are free, full workshop pricing is not publicly disclosed, and inquiries for both individual participation and organizational licensing of the curriculum go through [email protected]. Revenue comes from individual donations, an annual 'Love and Luck' fundraiser, and grants from foundations including Eastern Bank Foundation, Gannett, The Baker Foundation, the Leveen Family Fund, and LDB Peace Institute. Distribution is multi-channel: direct-to-participant Zoom sessions, licensed local chapters run by partner organizations (e.g., Alta Head Start in Youngstown, Dimock Early Education and Care Center in Roxbury, The Confess Project in Little Rock, SARP in Algiers), planned in-person workshops in the Boston area from Fall 2025, and coalition-level reach via the Listen First Coalition and UN ECOSOC consultative status.
The organization is volunteer-run with 1-10 personnel total and is governed by a board chaired by founder Eve Sullivan. Recent governance changes include the January 2026 appointment of Djamel Bekkai as Executive Director, the March 2026 appointment of Professor Sarah Schoppe-Sullivan (Ohio State University) as Advisor Chair, and a broader advisor bench spanning family research, education, finance, and industrial design. Operationally, Parents Forum is shifting from a purely volunteer model toward a lightly staffed structure, pursuing expansion to ten new sites domestically through the Love and Luck campaign while maintaining a small international footprint.
Parents Forum firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Parents Forum
- Legal name
- Parents Forum
- Website
- https://parentsforum.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1991
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Parents Forum is a Cambridge, MA-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1991 that delivers peer-facilitated workshops and a licensing curriculum (the 'Where the Heart Listens' eight-question framework) to help parents, caregivers, and community organizations improve communication and emotional awareness skills.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Parents Forum industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Parenting Education Services
- akta.pro primary industry
- Family & Parenting Education (Family Literacy, Parenting Skills) (EDAAAFAF)
Keywords
Where Parents Forum is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Cambridge
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices4 records
Markets served
Parents Forum business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Donations and Grants: Parents Forum is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that relies on donations from supporters and grants from foundations. The organization runs an annual 'Love and Luck' fundraiser and accepts tax-deductible donations.
- Curriculum Licensing: Organizations may license the peer support curriculum to create local chapters. Parents and community leaders in various sectors (government, social services, health care, education, business, corrections) can inquire about licensing the program.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | One-time | Free Mini-Workshop - Introduction to Parents Forum approach |
| Other | Multi-year contract | Full Workshop Program - for parents and families |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels6 records
Parents Forum product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Parents Forum delivers peer-facilitated workshop programs that teach adults practical communication and conflict-management skills using a structured curriculum based on eight original questions about family life and the conversational formula 'I feel ___ about ___ because ___.' It offers a free 30-minute online Mini-Workshop as an introduction and a more comprehensive Parents Forum Workshop, with the curriculum also available for licensing to organizations and community leaders who want to run local chapters.
Product overview
Parents Forum is a nonprofit organization offering workshop-style programs focused on emotional awareness and communication skills to help adults manage conflict and improve relationships at home and at work. The core offerings consist of the free Mini-Workshop (a 30-minute introductory session on 'How To Tell Somebody Something They'd Rather Not Hear') and the comprehensive Parents Forum Workshop (focused on families and parenting skills). Both programs are grounded in the 'Where the Heart Listens' curriculum, explained in the handbook written by founder Eve Sullivan. The portfolio is supplemented by the Voices of Parents Forum Newsletter, the 'Tools of the Trade' wallet-sized reference card, and the 'What support do you have as a parent?' flyer resource.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Mini-Workshop ('How To Tell Somebody Something They'd Rather Not Hear') A free 30-minute online Zoom workshop that teaches the Parents Forum formula for managing difficult conversations. Open to anyone, it serves as the introductory product designed to recruit participants into the broader workshop program.
- Parents Forum Full Workshop A comprehensive workshop (online and planned in-person Boston sessions) focusing on families and parenting skills, where participants learn emotional awareness and conflict-management skills to foster better communication within their families.
- Where the Heart Listens (handbook) The Parents Forum program handbook written by founder Eve Sullivan, describing the curriculum based on eight questions about family life issues. Functions as a 'workshop in your pocket' for improving family communication.
- Curriculum Licensing Program A licensing offering through which community organizations, social-service agencies, healthcare providers, schools, faith communities, and corrections facilities can run the Parents Forum peer-support workshop curriculum at their own sites.
Quantifiable outcome
- Financial returns of between $9 and $19 dollars for each $1 spent documented for investments in family life education
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Parents Forum
Customer profileNamed customers6 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Parents Forum technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Parents Forum partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- American Society for Positive Care of ChildrencorePartnership to offer free communications skills workshops suitable for all ages. American SPCC Executive Director stated that partnering with Parents Forum will help 'reach even more families, fostering safe, loving homes.'
- Global Initiative to Support Parents (GISP)coreParents Forum highlighted its partnership with GISP, a growing worldwide movement to raise awareness of parenting programs. GISP featured Parents Forum's effort to make parenting education universal in their October newsletter.
- Listen First CoalitioncoreParents Forum is part of the Listen First Coalition of over 500 organizations bringing Americans together across divides. Participates in National Week of Conversation and other coalition activities.
- Alta Head StartcoreYoungstown, Ohio partner taking administrative lead for Parents Forum Youngstown chapter. Hosted community events including 'Children in Motion' at Covelli Center.
- The Confess Project of AmericaminorLittle Rock, AR based partner in parenting education outreach. Collaboration to expand reach of parenting education programs.
- Dimock Early Education and Care CentercoreRoxbury, MA partner where Parents Forum originally offered workshops. Elizabeth Neely's story featured in Boston Globe about how the forum helped her communicate with her son.
- SARP (Société Algerienne pour Recherche en Psychologie)minorAlgeria-based partner offering Parents Forum program in Algiers. Two women from SARP brought the program to Algeria in 2021.
- National Parenting Education Network (NPEN)coreWith support from NPEN, Parents Forum proposed a stamp to the United States Postal Service honoring parenting education. Participates in National Parenting Education Day initiatives.
- Youngstown State University Human Ecology DepartmentminorFaculty will study the implementation and results of Parents Forum Youngstown over three years.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Parents Forum competitors and assessment
Company assessmentEmerging players
- Search Institute: Research organization behind developmental assets framework and Parent Further resource hub; comparable as a research- and content-driven organization advancing parenting education practice.
Direct peers
- Parent Further: Search Institute's parenting resource hub offering research-based parent education content and tools - comparable as a content-driven parent education platform.
- Active Parenting: Provider of evidence-based parenting education curricula and workshops licensed to schools, community organizations, and parents - a near-identical model to Parents Forum's workshop and curriculum-licensing approach.
- Parents Action for Children: National nonprofit focused on parenting education, child development resources, and family engagement advocacy - comparable mission to Parents Forum with similar workshop and resource offerings.
- National Parenting Education Network (NPEN): National network of parenting educators and organizations; Parents Forum is a confirmed partner. Both advance parent-education programs through community delivery, making NPEN the closest peer in mission and constituency.
- The Incredible Years: Evidence-based parenting program with structured curricula (e.g., for parents of teens and young children) licensed to organizations worldwide - directly analogous to Parents Forum's licensed curriculum model.
- Family Education: Long-running online parenting education platform offering articles, worksheets, and learning resources to parents - comparable in delivering parent education content to the same end user.
- ParentHelp123 (WithinReach): WithinReach program connecting Washington families to parenting resources and education; comparable community-based, nonprofit delivery of parenting education and family support services.
Broad incumbents
- Zero to Three: Established national nonprofit working on early childhood development and parent support; much larger scope and budget than Parents Forum but with overlapping mission of supporting parents of young children through education and resources.
- Center for Parent and Teen Communication (Children's Hospital of Philadelphia): Hospital-affiliated program providing parent-teen communication resources and workshops; comparable focus on communication skills for parents, though backed by a major medical institution.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Parents Forum social profiles
Digital presenceParents Forum financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Parents Forum leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles11 records
Parents Forum funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Parents Forum M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Parents Forum
What does Parents Forum do?
Parents Forum delivers peer-facilitated workshop programs that teach adults practical communication and conflict-management skills using a structured curriculum based on eight original questions about family life and the conversational formula 'I feel ___ about ___ because ___.' It offers a free 30-minute online Mini-Workshop as an introduction and a more comprehensive Parents Forum Workshop, with the curriculum also available for licensing to organizations and community leaders who want to run local chapters.
Is Parents Forum a public or private company?
Parents Forum is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Parents Forum founded?
Parents Forum was founded in 1991. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Parents Forum based?
Parents Forum is headquartered in Cambridge, United States, in the North America region.
How does Parents Forum make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Donations and Grants are the primary driver. The others are curriculum Licensing.
Who are Parents Forum's main competitors?
Search Institute is listed as an emerging player. Direct peers are Parent Further, Active Parenting, Parents Action for Children, National Parenting Education Network (NPEN), The Incredible Years, Family Education and ParentHelp123 (WithinReach). Broad incumbents are Zero to Three and Center for Parent and Teen Communication (Children's Hospital of Philadelphia).
Does Parents Forum have an API?
No public API is recorded for Parents Forum.
What industry is Parents Forum in?
Parents Forum's product category is Parenting Education Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAAAFAF, Family & Parenting Education (Family Literacy, Parenting Skills).