The Chicago Public Education Fund

What The Chicago Public Education Fund does

The Chicago Public Education Fund is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2000 and headquartered in Chicago that invests in the educators who lead Chicago's public schools. Its portfolio of programs includes the Chicago Principals Fellowship (delivered in partnership with Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management and The Crown Family), the Summer Design Program, Professional Learning Communities, the Cahn Fellows Program, Breakthrough Schools: Chicago, Local School Council support, the Principal Quality Database, and the Principal Appreciation Campaign, alongside recurring engagement surveys and policy research. Programs are delivered at no cost to school leaders and are funded by philanthropic donations and grants from individual donors, foundations, and corporate partners; the organization reports more than $2 million invested annually and over $100 million cumulatively since founding, reaching 83% of Chicago's public schools and serving more than 450 school leaders, parents, and partners in 2025-26.

The Fund is governed by a Board of Directors and a Leadership Council, with an Educator Advisory Committee providing field input, and operates under the leadership of President and CEO Dr. Heather Y. Anichini. Its 2025 strategic priorities include the Chicago Leads $50 million campaign to ensure all Chicago students have access to strong, stable school leadership, a new Chief, Innovation and Continuous Improvement function, and continued policy and advocacy work including testimony before the Illinois State Board of Education and the Chicago Board of Education. The organization has no proprietary technology products; its primary data assets are the Principal Quality Database and annual Principal and LSC Engagement Surveys, which also serve as inputs to its policy research output.

The revenue model is donations-based: the organization raises funds from individuals, foundations, and corporate partners and reinvests them into programs for Chicago's public school leaders. The distribution model is direct program delivery in partnership with Chicago Public Schools district offices, charter school networks, and community organizations. There is no direct monetization of beneficiaries; the constituency served is non-paying, and the "paying" constituencies are philanthropic donors whose giving supports free program delivery.

Name

The Chicago Public Education Fund

Legal name

The Chicago Public Education Fund

Website

https://thefundchicago.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Chicago Public Education Fund is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2000 that invests philanthropic funds in Chicago's public school leaders through professional development programs, fellowships, surveys, and policy research. It serves principals, assistant principals, local school councils, and community partners across 83% of Chicago's public schools.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Education Nonprofit / School Leadership Development

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Education Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Private Foundations (BPAGAKAA), K–12 Support & School Improvement Nonprofits (BPAGADAB), Grantmaking & Philanthropic Funds (Institutional Donors) (BPADAOAB)

Keywords

• Education nonprofit programs
• School leadership development
• Principal professional development
• Education policy research
• Philanthropic education funding

Headquarters

HQ city

Chicago

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. Philanthropic Donations and Grants: The Chicago Public Education Fund operates as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that raises funds from individual donors, foundations, and corporate partners to invest in programs for Chicago public school leaders. Annual investments exceed $2 million in programs serving hundreds of school leaders citywide. The organization has invested $100M+ total since its founding to improve Chicago's public schools.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Chicago Public Education Fund is a nonprofit organization that invests in the leadership capacity of Chicago's public school principals, assistant principals, and aspiring leaders through professional development programs, fellowships, peer learning networks, and policy research. The organization operates signature programs such as the Summer Design Program, Chicago Principals Fellowship, Professional Learning Communities, Cahn Fellows Program, Breakthrough Schools: Chicago, and Local School Council support initiatives. The Fund's work is funded by philanthropic donations and grants, with total investments exceeding $100 million since founding and annual program investments of more than $2 million.

Product overview

The Chicago Public Education Fund is a nonprofit organization that operates as a program-focused entity rather than a technology product company. Its offerings consist of professional development programs for school leaders, research and policy publications, and survey tools. The core programs include Chicago Leads (a $50 million campaign), the Summer Design Program, Chicago Principals Fellowship, Professional Learning Communities, Cahn Fellows Program, and Breakthrough Schools: Chicago. Supporting offerings include the Principal Quality Database, Local School Council support programs, LSC Engagement Surveys, School Leader Engagement Surveys, and the Principal Appreciation Campaign. These programs work together to develop, support, and retain strong school leadership across Chicago's public schools.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Chicago Leads: A $50 million campaign to ensure that all of Chicago's students have access to strong, stable school leadership.
• Summer Design Program (SDP)

Products and services

• Chicago Leads An ambitious $50 million campaign to ensure all Chicago students have access to strong, stable school leadership.
• Summer Design Program (SDP) Partners with expert local and national organizations to deliver high-impact professional development that helps principals and their teams lead change in their schools. Since 2013, SDP has helped more than 200 school teams leverage time, talent and technology.
• Chicago Principals Fellowship A professional development program providing high-performing principals with opportunities for advanced leadership training, including partnerships with Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management.
• Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) Professional learning communities supporting principals and school leaders in collaborative problem-solving and best practice sharing.
• Cahn Fellows Program Fellowship program for distinguished school principals providing advanced leadership development.
• Principal Quality Database A single source of information about principal quality designed to help drive improvements across the principal continuum. The Fund invested $1,290,000 to build the principal quality database.
• Breakthrough Schools: Chicago Initiative recognizing and supporting innovative school models that employ 21st Century learning skills and personalized learning approaches.
• Local School Councils (LSC) Support Programs including the LSC Working Group, LSC Mentorship Program, and LSC Election Accelerator Series to strengthen LSC effectiveness and relationships between principals and their councils.
• Principal Appreciation Campaign Citywide effort led by The Fund celebrating school leaders every October, including the annual Principal Storytelling Evening and Growth Leader Awards.
• Programs for Principals and Aspiring Principals Professional development and support programs designed to develop and retain school leaders in Chicago's public schools.

Quantifiable outcome

• 83% of Chicago's public schools served by Fund investments and programs
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers14 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered major, core and minor.

• LEAP InnovationsmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 8 December 2014The Fund announced a $750K multi-year investment in LEAP Innovations to support personalized learning initiatives in Chicago schools.
• Northwestern University Kellogg School of ManagementmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2014Chicago Principals Fellowship program provides high-performing principals professional development at Northwestern's Kellogg School of Management, exposing them to business management perspectives.
• Chicago Public Schools (CPS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Chicago Public Education Fund operates as a trusted partner with CPS district leadership, charter schools, philanthropic partners, and civic communities. Programs are delivered in collaboration with CPS Office of Network Support and Department of Principal Quality. The Fund conducts engagement surveys in partnership with CPS Office of Local School Council Relations.
• Illinois Principals Association (IPA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint report 'The Illinois Principal: Their Work, Their Challenges, Their Impact' co-produced with IPA to highlight factors common to principal roles across the state and foster conditions for effective educational leadership.
• TegymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational school design firm partnering with The Fund's Summer Design Program to teach school teams effective scheduling practices; served up to 108 principal-led teams and 13 network teams in 2020-21.
• Fulcrum Education SolutionsmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerChicago-based leadership development organization focused on helping school teams adapt instructional routines and redesign distributed leadership systems; served 18 principal-led teams.
• National SAM Innovation Project (NSIP)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational organization helping principals understand and leverage their time to advance teaching and learning; focused on giving principals tools to track time, set goals, and improve; served 17 principal-led teams.
• Mikva ChallengeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with student group through Mikva Challenge to develop communications tools and start discussions about how Chicagoans see the role of the school board in governance of their schools.
• Aon, BMO, Field Museum, Griffin Museum of Science and Industry, Intersection, Northern Trust, William BlairminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate partners supporting the annual Principal Appreciation Campaign, a collaborative citywide effort in October celebrating school leaders.
• Luminary CollectiveminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization providing video resources on effective communication, stakeholder mapping, and managing conflict for LSC support.
• Local Black-owned Salons (Chicago)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity partnership providing hands-on training for after-school nail technician program at Collins High School, creating pathways to professional licensure.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• The Wallace Foundation: The Wallace Foundation is one of the largest U.S. national funders explicitly focused on school leadership and principal effectiveness, making it the closest large-scale analogue to The Fund's leadership-investment thesis. It is comparable because both organizations concentrate philanthropic capital on developing and supporting school leaders, anchored by extensive research and policy advocacy.
• Crown Family Philanthropies: Crown Family Philanthropies is a major Chicago-based family foundation with a long-standing focus on education in Chicago. It is a peer because it is a co-sponsor of The Fund's Chicago Principals Fellowship and shares the same donor pool and Chicago education-improvement mandate as a regional family funder.
• NewSchools Venture Fund: NewSchools Venture Fund is a national philanthropic venture fund that invests in education entrepreneurs, school leaders, and innovative school models. It is a peer because its portfolio strategy—funding leaders and innovative school designs to improve student outcomes—overlaps directly with The Fund's Breakthrough Schools and Summer Design Program theses.
• Chicago Community Trust: The Chicago Community Trust is Chicago's largest community foundation, distributing philanthropic capital across education, health, and economic opportunity. It is a broad incumbent peer because, like The Fund, it channels local donor dollars into Chicago education initiatives but operates at vastly greater scale and across many issue areas beyond school leadership.

Emerging players

• LEAP Innovations: LEAP Innovations is a Chicago-based nonprofit focused on personalized and innovative learning in schools and is an existing direct grantee of The Fund ($750K multi-year investment). It is a peer because it shares The Fund's Chicago K-12 innovation mandate, has overlapping funder relationships, and operates as a downstream partner-protégé in personalized learning.
• National SAM Innovation Project (NSIP): NSIP is a national organization that helps school principals manage time, set goals, and improve instructional leadership, and is an existing program partner serving 17 principal-led teams in The Fund's Summer Design Program. It is a peer because it competes for the same principal-leadership development dollars and serves overlapping district customers in school-leadership practice change.

Direct peers

• The Joyce Foundation: The Joyce Foundation is a Chicago-based regional foundation with deep investments in Illinois education, workforce, and equity. It is a direct peer because The Fund's own board includes the Joyce Foundation's president/CEO, and both organizations fund education-improvement work in the same Chicago ecosystem with overlapping donor networks.
• Fund for Public Schools (NYC): The Fund for Public Schools is the New York City analogue to The Chicago Public Education Fund, raising private philanthropic dollars to invest in programs that strengthen the city's public schools and their leaders. It is a direct peer because both organizations operate the same playbook—private fundraising funneled into district-aligned leadership and program initiatives—in another major U.S. urban school system.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/TheFundChicago
• Facebookfacebook.com/thefundchicago
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-chicago-public-education-fund
• Pinterestpinterest.com/thefundchicago

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 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 The Chicago Public Education Fund