eCLOSE Institute

What eCLOSE Institute does

eCLOSE Institute is a Philadelphia-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit (EIN 83-4303157) founded in 2019 by Dara Ruiz-Whalen and Alana O'Reilly that operates citizen-science programs using Drosophila melanogaster (fruit fly) genetic screens to study cancer and diabetes. The organization delivers in-person and virtual programming — summer camps, classroom curricula, Lab@Home kits, and teacher professional-development workshops — to middle-school, high-school, and undergraduate students, as well as teachers and schools, with curricula aligned to Next Generation Science Standards. Its underlying platform combines a wet-lab pipeline (Philadelphia mailing HQ, Glenside laboratory) with remote-ready kits that enable distributed student participation and contribute data to peer-reviewed validation studies.

The business model is donation- and grant-driven: programs are delivered free or subsidized to students and schools, while operating revenue is sourced from charitable contributions, individual donations, and foundation grants. Go-to-market is community-led and event-driven, relying on school partnerships, teacher networks, volunteer engagement, and grassroots outreach rather than paid sales channels. Distribution expanded nationally during COVID-19 through virtual camps and Lab@Home kits, extending reach beyond the original Philadelphia footprint. The organization has accumulated 11 awards between 2019 and 2023 (including recognition from the Genetics Society of America) and has published validation studies in peer-reviewed journals, which together form its primary credibility assets in a niche STEM-education vertical.

Name

eCLOSE Institute

Legal name

eCLOSE Institute

Website

https://ecloseinstitute.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

eCLOSE Institute is a Philadelphia-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit that runs citizen-science programs using Drosophila genetic screening for cancer and diabetes research, serving K-12 students, undergraduates, teachers, and schools through summer camps, Lab@Home kits, and curriculum workshops.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

STEM Education and Citizen Science Research

NAICS

Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714), All Other Schools and Instruction (61169)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Science Camps & Field Programs (Nature, Space, Marine, Geology) (EDAMABAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Hands-on Science Exploration & Experiments (Lab Kits, Science Clubs) (EDAMABAA), Biology & Life Science Enrichment (Biotech, Genetics, Anatomy) (EDAMABAF)

Keywords

• Citizen science education
• Biomedical research training
• STEM curriculum programs
• Teacher professional development
• Cancer research outreach

Headquarters

HQ city

Philadelphia

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, eCLOSE relies primarily on donations from individuals, foundations, and corporate sponsors. EIN: 83-4303157. The organization accepts in-kind donations of office supplies, laboratory equipment and supplies for use in classrooms and Footlocker programs.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

eCLOSE Institute operates a citizen science platform that trains students and teachers in biomedical research using Drosophila melanogaster (fruit flies) as a model organism. Participants conduct genetic screens to identify nutrients impacting cancer signaling, generating data that feeds directly into professional cancer and diabetes research projects. Programs span classroom curricula, summer camps (in-person and virtual), undergraduate bridge programs, and teacher professional development workshops.

Product overview

eCLOSE Institute offers a unified citizen science platform focused on biomedical research education and cancer research. The core offering is the eCLOSE Citizen Science Program, which combines four iterative program levels: eCLOSE Classroom (in-school laboratories), eCLOSE Summer Camps (including Introduction to Research PLUS, RESEARCH PLUS specialty tracks in Sports Nutrition and Biochemistry/Behavior, and the Undergraduate Bridge to Research), Teacher Professional Development Workshops, and the Annual Symposium. Learning Modules covering Biology, Genetics, Chemistry, Biochemistry, and Environmental Science provide curriculum content aligned with educational standards. The Lab@Home Kit and Footlocker Laboratory Equipment Program enable hands-on research experiences at home and in classrooms.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• eCLOSE Classroom Classroom-based program where students conduct genetic screens in school laboratories, focusing on cultural relevance, cancer and health disparities, critical lab skills, hypothesis generation, and presentation of results in professional conference format. Available on learning platforms for high school Biology, Environmental Science, and Anatomy/Physiology classes with expert eCLOSE Instructors supporting teachers.
• eCLOSE Introduction to Research PLUS Summer program for students grades 6-12 in which participants become biomedical researchers conducting experiments to combat cancer and diabetes. Delivered virtually with Lab@Home Kits shipped to participants or in-person at the Glenside, PA laboratory.
• eCLOSE RESEARCH PLUS: Sports and Nutrition Specialized summer camp where student scientists examine the impact of nutrition on behavior and body chemistry related to sports using fruit flies as a model organism, exploring topics such as calories and metabolic pathways.
• eCLOSE RESEARCH PLUS: Fly into Behavior / Fly into Biochemistry Advanced summer camps testing diet effects on macromolecules or behaviors. The Biochemistry track measures how diet changes macronutrients (sugar, protein, fat), and the Behavior track explores how diet changes behavior in the Drosophila model.
• eCLOSE Undergraduate Bridge to Research Program for 11th/12th graders and undergraduates that immerses participants in laboratory-based research, conducting genetic screens to identify nutrients or antiviral compounds affecting signals important for cancer, diabetes, or chronic pain.
• Teacher Professional Development Workshops Professional development workshops for science teachers ranging from 1-2 hours to one-week intensive training, providing lectures, experimental materials, and ongoing scientific support to prepare teachers to create authentic biomedical research environments in their classrooms.
• Lab@Home Kit Fully equipped laboratory kit mailed to participants containing micropipettors, digital balance, tube racks, USB microscope, beaker, graduated cylinder, and all materials needed to complete experiments at home.

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• University of Kentucky, ACTION ProgramminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Collaboration with Nathan Vanderford, PhD at University of Kentucky on the ACTION (Appalachian Career Training in Oncology) Program. The Use of Virtual Research Experiences for ACTION Program High School Participants During the COVID-19 Pandemic was published in J. STEM Outreach in 2022.
• Community Innovation Collaboration (CIC)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020CIC recognized eCLOSE with the Community Innovation Collaboration award in 2020, indicating an ongoing collaborative relationship supporting community-based innovation in science education.
• Reimagine EducationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020Reimagine Education awarded eCLOSE a Bronze Award for Presence Learning in 2020, recognizing excellence in educational innovation on a global scale.
• Host Colleges and Universities (Penn, MCCC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with colleges and universities to host eCLOSE summer camps, including University of Pennsylvania and Montgomery County Community College. Students attend programs at host institutions gaining advanced experimental skills.
• Give LivelyminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorGive Lively provides the donation platform infrastructure for eCLOSE's charitable contribution processing at secure.givelively.org.
• JumbulaminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorJumbula provides the program registration platform for eCLOSE summer programs enrollment, enabling online registration for nationwide participants.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Science Buddies: Nonprofit providing free K-12 STEM project guidance, lesson plans, and teacher resources including biology/genetics experiments. Comparable in mission of making authentic science accessible to students and teachers, especially through teacher support.
• Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory DNA Learning Center: Long-running educational nonprofit offering hands-on genetics and molecular biology lab programs for students and teachers, including summer camps and teacher workshops. It is one of the most established citizen-science-style lab education providers in the U.S. and overlaps directly with eCLOSE's Drosophila genetic screening and teacher training focus.
• Science from Scientists: Nonprofit that places scientists in K-12 classrooms to deliver hands-on STEM modules and teacher support. Comparable to eCLOSE's model of integrating professional scientists and authentic lab work into school curricula.
• BioBuilder Educational Foundation: Nonprofit that brings hands-on synthetic biology and laboratory research experiences into high school classrooms, mirroring eCLOSE's mission of delivering authentic lab training to secondary students. Both organizations provide teacher professional development, lab kits, and curricular content aligned with NGSS.

Broad incumbents

• SciStarter: A large citizen-science project registry and community platform connecting the public to research participation opportunities. It is an ecosystem-level peer rather than a direct competitor, but represents the broader citizen-science movement eCLOSE is part of.
• Project Lead The Way: A large national nonprofit providing STEM curricula and teacher training to K-12 schools, with particular strength in biomedical science pathways. Represents a much larger incumbent in the same STEM-education-for-schools category that eCLOSE serves.
• Zooniverse: The largest online citizen-science platform, hosting crowdsourced research across dozens of disciplines. Zooniverse is a broader incumbent in the citizen-science category that eCLOSE operates in, though it lacks eCLOSE's hands-on wet-lab and educational programming focus.

Others

• modENCODE / FlyBase (Drosophila research community resources): Major open Drosophila research data resources and consortia used by professional scientists. They are adjacent enabling resources in the same Drosophila research domain eCLOSE contributes to, rather than direct competitors, but they illustrate the established research ecosystem eCLOSE plugs into.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/ecloseinstitute
• Xx.com/EcloseI

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about eCLOSE Institute