Ball/Frost Group

What Ball/Frost Group does

Ball/Frost Group is a Sacramento-based strategic consulting and legislative advocacy firm serving the California public education sector. The firm traces its origins to 1987, when Dr. Jeff Frost founded Frost Davis & Donnelly as a Sacramento legislative advocacy practice specializing in education. The current partnership, Ball/Frost Group, LLC, is led by Andrea Ball (President and Advocate) and Jeff Frost (Chair and Advocate), supported by Senior Directors Laura Wasco (Legislative Affairs) and Khieem Jackson (Government Affairs), plus a two-member advisory committee.

The firm sells two core professional services: strategic consulting to help education stakeholders understand and anticipate California's policy and budget developments, and lobbying services to advance legislative, budget, and administrative proposals before the California Legislature, Governor's office, and agencies including the California Department of Education, State Board of Education, California Commission on Teacher Credentialing, and Department of Finance. Service modules are organized around vertical practice areas including science education advocacy (notably for the California Association of Science Educators), MTSS/school climate support (California Association of School Psychologists), and juvenile court school education (Orange County Department of Education).

Revenue is generated through direct client engagements with California school districts, county offices of education, statewide education associations, nonprofits, and philanthropic organizations. Pricing is not publicly disclosed. The firm operates from a single Sacramento office (1029 J Street, Suite 310) with a 1–10 employee footprint, reaching clients through direct engagement, industry referrals, advisory committee networks, content marketing (case studies, team biographies, the "Schools on the Front Lines" podcast), and participation in events such as the CSBA Annual Education Conference.

Name

Ball/Frost Group

Legal name

Ball/Frost Group, LLC

Website

https://ballfrostgroup.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1987

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Ball/Frost Group is a Sacramento-based strategic consulting and legislative advocacy firm that helps California public education leaders — school districts, county offices, associations, and nonprofits — navigate state legislative, budget, and administrative processes.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Education Policy Consulting

NAICS

Social Advocacy Organizations (8133)

akta.pro primary industry

Education Sector Coordination, Clusters & Working Groups (EDADALAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Think Tanks, Policy Research & Public Policy Institutes (BPAGAFAO), Intergovernmental Affairs & Federal Grants Administration (BPAIAAAC)

Keywords

• Education policy consulting
• Legislative advocacy services
• Government affairs consulting
• K-12 education lobbying
• California education policy

Headquarters

HQ city

Sacramento

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. Strategic Consulting Services: Ball/Frost Group provides consulting services to education stakeholders who want insights on the latest policy development. They help clients understand, anticipate, act, and succeed in navigating California's legislative and administrative process.
2. Lobbying Services: The firm provides lobbying services to clients who want to advance legislative, budget, and administrative proposals. Services include advocacy before the California Legislature, Governor's office, state agencies, and State Board of Education.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Ball/Frost Group is a Sacramento-based strategic consulting and legislative services firm that provides policy guidance, lobbying, and coalition-building support to California public education stakeholders. The firm helps school districts, county offices of education, statewide associations, nonprofits, and state-level partners understand, anticipate, and act on California's legislative, budget, and administrative processes. Core deliverables include policy and budget consulting, legislative advocacy before the California Legislature, Governor's office, and state agencies, and stakeholder coalition building.

Product overview

Ball/Frost Group is a strategic consulting and legislative services firm providing policy and advocacy support to California public education stakeholders. The firm operates as a single-service consulting practice rather than a software platform. Core offerings include strategic consulting and legislative/lobbying services to help school districts, county offices of education, associations, nonprofits, and state-level partners navigate California's legislative and administrative processes. Service modules encompass science education advocacy (CASE partnership), school climate and MTSS support (CASP partnership), and juvenile court school education reform (OCDE partnership).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Strategic Consulting Services Strategic consulting supporting California public education leaders in navigating policy, legislative, and administrative processes. Clients include school districts, county offices of education, associations, nonprofits, and state-level partners.
• Legislative Services (Lobbying) Lobbying and advocacy services that advance legislative, budget, and administrative proposals on behalf of education stakeholders before the California Legislature, Governor's office, state agencies, and the State Board of Education.

Named customers10 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Ball/Frost Group hosted an event with Tani Cantil-Sakauye, President and CEO of PPIC and former Chief Justice of California Supreme Court, discussing civic education initiatives. PPIC is conducting research on Californians and civic education.
• California Partnership for Math and Science EducationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Strategic partner in the science education coalition advocating for dedicated state funding for science teacher professional development aligned to CA NGSS standards, working alongside Ball/Frost Group and its client CASE.
• Education Trust-WestcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Partnered with Ball/Frost Group and the science education coalition to advocate for equitable STEM instruction funding, bringing equity-focused advocacy perspective to the coalition.
• ExploratoriumcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Partner in the science education coalition working to secure dedicated funding for science teacher professional development aligned to CA NGSS standards in California's 2022-23 state budget.
• California State Board of EducationcoreOthers · 1 January 2022Ball/Frost Group worked with the State Board of Education to advocate for inclusion of a science indicator on the California School Dashboard, achieving approval in September 2022.
• California Department of EducationcoreOthers · 1 January 2022Ball/Frost Group collaborated with CDE as part of the science education coalition and has historical relationships with CDE on various education policy initiatives including MTSS funding and foster youth education.
• Linchpin StrategiesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as a strategic partner in the Resources section of Ball/Frost Group's website, indicating a collaborative relationship in the California education policy space.
• ALZA StrategiesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as a strategic partner in the Resources section, suggesting collaboration on education policy and advocacy efforts.
• Riverside County Office of Education (RCOE)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBall/Frost Group partnered with RCOE to co-sponsor legislation addressing juvenile court school students' ability to continue education coursework and meet high school graduation requirements. This partnership enabled access to a greater number of legislators and brought stronger focus to the legislative effort.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• KP Public Affairs: Sacramento-based public affairs and government relations firm. Comparable to Ball/Frost Group in Sacramento Capitol focus, association and public-sector client base, and California legislative advocacy services.
• Hurst Brooks Espinosa: Sacramento-based government relations and lobbying firm representing clients before the California Legislature and state agencies. Direct comparable to Ball/Frost Group in California-centric lobbying with similar professional services model and Sacramento Capitol focus.
• Sloat Higgins Jensen & Associates: California government relations and lobbying firm based in Sacramento with extensive practice before the California Legislature. Comparable to Ball/Frost Group as a long-standing Sacramento-based advocacy firm serving associations and public-sector clients on legislative and budget matters.
• California Strategies: Sacramento-based lobbying and government relations firm. Comparable to Ball/Frost Group in operating model (boutique Sacramento GR firm), geographic focus (California), and client base (organizations needing legislative and administrative advocacy).
• Lang Hansen O'Malley & Miller: California government relations and lobbying firm representing associations, corporations, and public agencies. Direct comparable to Ball/Frost Group in California-focused legislative advocacy and association representation.

Emerging players

• Bellwether Education Partners: National education-focused consulting and policy organization serving K-12 and higher education clients. Comparable to Ball/Frost Group in education policy advisory services, but operates nationally and as a nonprofit with broader consulting scope.

Broad incumbents

• Mercury Public Affairs: National bipartisan public affairs and government relations firm with offices across the U.S. including California. Comparable as a government affairs services provider but at a much larger scale, with broader sector coverage beyond K-12 education.
• Nielsen Merksamer Parrinello Gross & Leoni: California law and government relations firm with a dominant Sacramento lobbying practice. Comparable to Ball/Frost Group in California legislative and regulatory advocacy but operates as a law firm with broader portfolio and larger headcount.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ball-frost-group-llc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 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 Ball/Frost Group