Child Aid
Child Aid is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that partners with over 150 rural indigenous primary schools in Guatemala to deliver a three-year Reading for Life teacher training program and has delivered more than one million Spanish-language books since 1987.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1990
- HeadquartersLake Oswego, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Child Aid does
Child Aid is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization headquartered in Lake Oswego, Oregon, that operates literacy programs targeting rural, indigenous communities in the western highlands of central Guatemala. Founded in 1987 (originally as The Harry Press Memorial Foundation) by Nancy Press, PhD and Richard Carroll, the organization partners with over 150 local public primary schools annually and maintains four regional offices across the Sololá, Chimaltenango, Totonicapán, and Quiché regions. The organization is co-led by Co-CEOs Nancy Press and Graciela Landa Pichiyá, the latter an indigenous Mayan (Kaqchikel) woman promoted from Country Director to Co-CEO in 2023.
The organization's core product is the Reading for Life program, a three-year teacher training curriculum built on science of reading best practices. Year 1 focuses on reading comprehension (read-aloud, levels of learning), Year 2 on critical reading (strategies, nonfiction), and Year 3 on the writing process. The curriculum integrates with Guatemala's National Curriculum (CNB) and is updated every two years based on teacher and principal feedback. Program delivery combines teacher training workshops, one-on-one in-classroom coaching throughout the school year, and classroom development including reading corners, writing corners, and book donations. Through a strategic partnership with Scholastic Books, Child Aid has delivered over 1 million Spanish-language books cumulatively, with shipments of approximately 70,000 books per cycle. The organization also operates a Girls Program as a special initiative to support female students.
Child Aid is funded through individual donations, foundation grants (Tinker, Henry Niles Foundation, Shumaker Family Foundation, Ward Foundation, Fredy Rosenbaum Foundation, Project Redwood), and corporate partnerships (Microsoft, Kraft Heinz, Menarini Group, Fremont Group, several coffee companies). The organization states that 100% of donations are directed to programs, with administrative and fundraising expenses covered separately by the Board of Directors. It has held Charity Navigator's four-star rating for six consecutive years. The go-to-market model is community-led: Child Aid acquires schools and districts through direct relationship-building with district leaders, school principals, and the Ministry of Education, committing to work with every school and teacher in a participating district.
Child Aid firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Child Aid
- Legal name
- Child Aid
- Website
- https://child-aid.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1990
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Child Aid is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that partners with over 150 rural indigenous primary schools in Guatemala to deliver a three-year Reading for Life teacher training program and has delivered more than one million Spanish-language books since 1987.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Child Aid industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Literacy Education Services
- NAICS
- Educational Support Services (611710)
- SIC
- Services-Educational Services (8200)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Literacy & Numeracy Intervention (Reading/Math Support) (EDAJALAD)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- NGO/Nonprofit Education Programs & Service Delivery (EDADALAC)
Keywords
Where Child Aid is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Lake Oswego
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
Child Aid business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Individual Donations: One hundred percent of donations directly support Child Aid literacy programs. Administrative and fundraising expenses are funded separately by the Board of Directors.
- Foundation and Corporate Grants: Support from foundations including Tinker, Henry Niles Foundation, Shumaker Family Foundation, Ward Foundation, and corporate partners like Microsoft, Kraft Heinz, and coffee companies.
- Special Campaigns: Campaigns such as the One Millionth Book Campaign and school sponsorship programs where donors can sponsor specific schools or teachers.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels7 records
Child Aid product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Child Aid is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that delivers literacy programming to rural indigenous primary schools in Guatemala through a three-year teacher training curriculum (Reading for Life), hands-on workshops, in-classroom one-on-one coaching, classroom development (reading corners, books, and supplies), and the delivery of Spanish-language books. Programs are delivered through four regional offices by locally hired indigenous literacy trainers who work in partnership with school principals, district supervisors, and the Guatemalan Ministry of Education.
Product overview
Child Aid is a nonprofit literacy organization offering the "Reading for Life" program, a comprehensive three-year teacher training curriculum focused on teaching reading, comprehension, and critical thinking skills. The program consists of Teacher Training Workshops (hands-on sessions teaching interactive classroom techniques), One-on-One Coaching (in-classroom guidance for teachers throughout the school year), Classroom Development (providing reading corners, writing corners, and books to create engaging learning environments), and a Book Donation Program (delivering Spanish-language books to schools). Special initiatives include the Girls Program designed to support female students. The organization works primarily in rural Guatemala, partnering with local schools to improve literacy outcomes.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Reading for Life Teacher Training Program A three-year immersive teacher training curriculum based on the science of reading, delivered to primary school teachers in rural Guatemala. Year 1 covers Reading with Comprehension, Year 2 covers Reading Critically (strategies, nonfiction), and Year 3 covers the Writing Process, balancing reading mechanics (phonics, sounding out letters) with linguistics (comprehension, critical thinking, context clues).
- One-on-One Teacher Coaching In-classroom coaching service in which Child Aid trainers visit teachers throughout the school year to guide and support them as they apply literacy techniques and build confidence in the active classroom setting.
- Classroom Development Program Service that transforms classrooms with cozy, colorful reading corners and writing corners stocked with books and creative supplies, fostering interactive learning where teachers lead read-aloud sessions and students read, participate, and share ideas.
- Spanish-Language Book Donation Program Delivers tens of thousands of Spanish-language fiction and non-fiction children's books each year to primary schools in rural Guatemala through Child Aid's regional offices and partner schools.
- Girls Program Special initiative addressing the needs of young girls in Guatemala, designed to encourage female students to stay in school longer and feel more confident in the classroom.
Quantifiable outcome
- One million books delivered to Guatemala
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Child Aid
Customer profileNamed customers9 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Child Aid technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Child Aid partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- Scholastic BookscorePartnership with Scholastic Books to procure and deliver Spanish-language books to Guatemala. Through this partnership, Child Aid has been able to deliver hundreds of thousands of books, reaching the one million book milestone.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights12 records
Child Aid competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Pencils of Promise: Nonprofit building schools and supporting education programs in developing countries, including Guatemala. Comparable model of grassroots education delivery in rural Latin American communities.
- Room to Read: Global nonprofit operating literacy and teacher training programs in low-income countries, including Latin America. Direct comparison in teacher training, book distribution, and system-level literacy interventions in similar geographies.
- Common Hope: Guatemala-focused education nonprofit offering school sponsorship, teacher support, and literacy programs. Highly comparable operating geography and beneficiary population; leadership overlap (former Common Hope executive sits on Child Aid's board).
- FUNDIT: Guatemalan education and human development organization. Child Aid board member Jeff Barnes serves as Executive Director, indicating operational overlap in training teachers and supporting rural schools in Guatemala.
Broad incumbents
- Pratham: One of the largest NGOs in the world focused on quality education, including acclaimed literacy programs in India. Comparable scale of literacy operations and teacher training, though geography differs.
- ProLiteracy: Largest US adult literacy nonprofit, supporting a network of literacy programs. Comparable mission focus but operates in a different geography and beneficiary age group.
- Books for Africa: Large-scale book donation nonprofit shipping books to schools across Africa. Comparable book-distribution-centric model, though geographically distinct and not literacy-instruction focused.
Others
- Scholastic Books (Corporate Social Responsibility): Children's book publisher that is also a strategic content partner to Child Aid for sourcing Spanish-language books. Listed as a peer due to its operational and supply-chain role in Child Aid's book delivery program.
Emerging players
- Worldreader: Nonprofit delivering digital reading content to children in low-income countries. Overlaps with Child Aid in literacy outcomes and book delivery, but uses digital/tablet delivery versus Child Aid's printed book model.
- Raising A Reader: National early-literacy nonprofit rotating books to families of young children. Comparable in book-distribution-plus-parent-engagement model, though US-based and focused on younger children.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Child Aid social profiles
Digital presenceChild Aid compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Child Aid financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Child Aid leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles9 records
Child Aid funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Child Aid 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 Child Aid
What does Child Aid do?
Child Aid is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that delivers literacy programming to rural indigenous primary schools in Guatemala through a three-year teacher training curriculum (Reading for Life), hands-on workshops, in-classroom one-on-one coaching, classroom development (reading corners, books, and supplies), and the delivery of Spanish-language books. Programs are delivered through four regional offices by locally hired indigenous literacy trainers who work in partnership with school principals, district supervisors, and the Guatemalan Ministry of Education.
Is Child Aid a public or private company?
Child Aid is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Child Aid founded?
Child Aid was founded in 1990. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Child Aid based?
Child Aid is headquartered in Lake Oswego, United States, in the North America region.
How does Child Aid make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Individual Donations are the primary driver. The others are foundation and Corporate Grants and special Campaigns.
Who are Child Aid's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Pencils of Promise, Room to Read, Common Hope and FUNDIT. Broad incumbents are Pratham, ProLiteracy and Books for Africa. Scholastic Books (Corporate Social Responsibility) is listed as an others. Emerging players are Worldreader and Raising A Reader.
Does Child Aid have an API?
No public API is recorded for Child Aid.
What industry is Child Aid in?
Child Aid's product category is Literacy Education Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAJALAD, Literacy & Numeracy Intervention (Reading/Math Support), with a secondary code of EDADALAC, NGO/Nonprofit Education Programs & Service Delivery. Its NAICS code is 611710 and its SIC code is 8200.