SKIP

What SKIP does

SKIP (legally SKIP LLC, also known as SKIP Designed / SKIP DesignEd) is a St. Louis-based nonprofit think tank founded in 2017 that develops system-level solutions for education through community-based system dynamics (CBSD) research and facilitation. The organization convenes families, students, educators, school districts, charter schools, early childhood providers, foundations, and government agencies to model and redesign the feedback loops that drive inequitable outcomes in K-12 enrollment and early childhood education (ECE) access.

SKIP's core products include proprietary K-12 and ECE system dynamics simulation models built from 100+ community interviews and surveys; the STEEP (Systems Thinking for Educational Equity Partnership) curriculum and facilitation guide for educators; the "Radical Listening" community-based research methodology; and CoModel.io, a collaborative systems mapping tool augmented with AI to make systems modeling accessible to non-technical community users. Its technology stack centers on computational simulation modeling and participatory research workflows rather than commercial software.

The business model is grant-and-contract funded rather than commercially sold. Revenue derives from foundation grants (including a small founding family foundation with St. Louis roots and the St. Louis County Children's Services Fund), public-sector contracts, and research-practice partnerships with school districts, charter collaboratives, and regional coordinating bodies. SKIP operates as a backbone facilitator for the St. Louis School Leaders Collaborative, the Gateway Early Childhood Alliance, and the St. Louis Research-Practice Collaborative, with no publicly disclosed pricing and no direct sales to individual consumers. In summer 2025, SKIP transitioned its research activities to Washington University in St. Louis to deepen its institutional partnership, signaling a shift from independent research execution toward embedded academic hosting while retaining its convening and facilitation role.

Name

SKIP

Legal name

SKIP LLC

Website

https://skipdesigned.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

SKIP is a St. Louis-based nonprofit think tank founded in 2017 that applies community-based system dynamics modeling and research-practice partnerships to redesign K-12 and early childhood education systems, serving school districts, ECE providers, foundations, and government agencies primarily in the St. Louis region.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Education Research and Consulting

NAICS

Educational Services (61), Child and Youth Services (62411), Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYEDACAFAK

Service Coordination / Case Management (IDEA Part C)

Education/Early Childhood Education/Early Intervention & Developmental Services (0–5)

SECONDARYEDACALAB

Family Engagement & Home–School Partnership Programs

Education/Early Childhood Education/Parent Education & Family Engagement Programs

SECONDARYEDAJAEAD

Dropout Prevention, Re-Engagement & Truancy Intervention Programs

Education/K–12 / Primary & Secondary Education/Alternative & At-Risk K–12 Education (Continuation, Recovery, Juvenile)

Keywords

• Education systems consulting
• System dynamics modeling
• Community based research
• Early childhood education
• K-12 systems change

Headquarters

HQ city

St Louis

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Foundation Grants and Contracts: SKIP was launched with support from a small family foundation with roots in St. Louis. Ongoing work is funded through contracts with public entities (e.g., St. Louis County Children's Services Fund) and grants from foundations engaged in education and child welfare.
2. Research and Facilitation Contracts: SKIP conducts contracted research, facilitation, and systems design work for school districts, charter school collaboratives, and regional ECE coordinating bodies, providing backbone support and analytical services.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

SKIP conducts community-based system dynamics (CBSD) research and facilitation services for K-12 and early childhood education systems, developing computer simulation models of feedback loops and convening coalitions of educators, families, and community organizations. It also produces the CoModel.io collaborative systems mapping tool and the STEEP Curriculum and Facilitation Guide for educators, operating as a backbone organization for partnerships such as the Gateway Early Childhood Alliance and the St. Louis School Leaders Collaborative.

Product overview

SKIP is a non-traditional think tank that develops system-level solutions for education, operating primarily as a research and consulting organization rather than a commercial software company. Their core offerings include community-based system dynamics (CBSD) research services, facilitation of collaborative problem-solving with educational stakeholders, and the development of technology tools like CoModel.io for collaborative systems mapping. SKIP works at the intersection of research and implementation, engaging families, students, educators, foundations, and community organizations to drive systemic change in early childhood education (ECE) and K-12 systems in St. Louis and nationally.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• CoModel.io: Systems mapping tools made more collaborative and augmentable using AI technology, developed by SKIP.

Products and services

• CoModel.io A collaborative systems mapping tool augmented with AI technology that enables communities to build and interact with system dynamics models for education and social systems change. It is being developed to make systems modeling more accessible for community engagement and solution-finding.
• STEEP Curriculum and Facilitation Guide Training curriculum and facilitation guide that incorporates Community-Based System Dynamics into conversations about educational equity with K-12 educators. Designed to enable teachers to lead systems-thinking conversations about equity in their schools and districts.
• Community-Based System Dynamics Research Services Contracted research and systems modeling services applying community-based system dynamics to K-12 and ECE challenges, including the development of computer simulation models of feedback loops driving enrollment decline, funding constraints, and educational capabilities. Delivered to school districts, charter school collaboratives, foundations, and government agencies.
• Facilitation and Backbone Support Services Backbone facilitation, design, project management, and coordination support for education coalitions and regional coordinating entities, including the Gateway Early Childhood Alliance and the St. Louis School Leaders Collaborative. Engages families, students, educators, foundations, and community organizations in collaborative problem-solving.

Quantifiable outcome

• SKIP helped incubate the Shared Special Education Services Cooperative (SpEd Coop) entering its second pilot year (2024-25 school year) with eight member schools.
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

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

• St. Louis County Children's Services FundcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSKIP partnered with the St. Louis County Children's Services Fund to conduct a community-based system dynamics process engaging students and educators in Rockwood and Hazelwood school districts to understand and address student mental health needs post-pandemic.
• St. Louis Research-Practice Collaborative (SRPC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerA long-term research-practice partnership between school districts and universities. SKIP helped launch it in January 2022 with an initial pilot study on student mobility. In summer 2025, SKIP transitioned its research activities to SRPC and the Center for Educational Learning to deepen the institutional partnership.
• St. Louis School Leaders Collaborative (SLSC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSKIP provides facilitation and research support for this collaborative of all St. Louis public school leaders (district and charter). The group pursues coordinated initiatives including the Shared Special Education Services Cooperative (SpEd Coop) and Learning Visits pilot.
• Gateway Early Childhood AlliancecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSKIP helped create and currently provides ongoing design, project management, and support for this regional coordinating entity for early childhood education in St. Louis.
• Social System Design Lab (Brown School, Washington University in St. Louis)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-term research partner co-conducting community-based system dynamics projects. Co-hosts the annual Changing Systems Youth Summit. Dr. Saras Chung, SKIP's Senior Advisor, is an associate professor at the Brown School and conducts research through this lab. SKIP and the lab co-developed the STEEP facilitation guide.
• First Step to Equity CollaborativemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSKIP was a founding member of the transitional collaborative that preceded the Gateway Early Childhood Alliance. SKIP's ECE modeling insights and recommendations were incorporated into the First Step to Equity Report, and SKIP led the facilitation of the new entity's launch, including steering committee formation.
• WEPOWER Tomorrow Builders FellowsmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSKIP participated in the Governance & Coordination Solution Team led by WEPOWER's Tomorrow Builder Fellows, contributing to the co-design of the regional ECE coordinating entity. SKIP's recommendations informed the WEPOWER Playbook.
• IFFminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIFF conducted a needs assessment in partnership with the First Step to Equity Collaborative, producing the 'First Step to Equity' report. SKIP's insights were incorporated into this report. IFF logo appears on the Key Takeaways partners page.
• Consortium Partnership Network (CPN, SLPS)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSKIP partnered with CPN and two elementary schools to conduct interviews with teachers and staff during COVID-19 and later partnered on a COVID-19 practices repository with the COVID-19 Regional Response Team.
• Educators for Social JusticemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSKIP partnered with Educators for Social Justice to identify the need for systems thinking training for teachers addressing educational equity. Educators for Social Justice brought their educator network to the STEEP workshops.
• EdHubSTLmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSKIP partnered with EdHubSTL to co-design STEEP curriculum and host workshops. EdHubSTL also hosted SKIP's parent voice research findings at a public Cafe Night event.
• Child Care AwareminorOthersListed as a partner on the Key Takeaways page, contributing to the ECE systems work ecosystem.
• United 4 ChildrenminorOthersListed as a partner on the Key Takeaways page, contributing to the ECE systems work ecosystem in St. Louis.
• Urban Sprouts CDCminorOthersListed as a partner on the Key Takeaways page, collaborated on the First Step to Equity report that incorporated SKIP's research.
• WEPOWERmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSKIP collaborated with WEPOWER on the ECE Playbook and co-led the Governance & Coordination Solution Team as part of the First Step to Equity initiative to design the regional ECE coordinating entity.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Child Trends: Research organization focused on children and youth, producing research on SEL, youth development, and education systems. Comparable to SKIP's research-practice focus on SEL, youth development, and ECE/K-12 systems.
• Bellwether Education Partners: National education strategy nonprofit advising leaders and organizations on systems-level education improvement. Directly comparable to SKIP's strategy and systems improvement work for school leaders and education organizations.
• StriveTogether: National cradle-to-career collective impact backbone network that convenes local partnerships across education. Directly comparable to SKIP's role convening St. Louis school leaders and ECE providers around systemic change.
• Education Resource Strategies: Nonprofit that helps school districts redesign resource use and improve outcomes. Directly comparable to SKIP's work on K-12 enrollment decline, funding constraints, and systems modeling for district leaders.
• Results for America: Evidence-based systems change nonprofit working across education and other social sectors to drive government performance and outcomes. Comparable to SKIP's evidence-based, systems-modeling approach to education reform.
• Aspen Institute Education & Society Program: Education reform thought leadership program that convenes leaders and produces research on education systems change. Comparable to SKIP's convening/research role for St. Louis school leaders and broader thought leadership.
• Promise Neighborhoods Institute: Cradle-to-career community systems backbone organization supporting place-based collective impact work. Highly comparable to SKIP's Gateway Early Childhood Alliance facilitation and broader regional coordination model.

Broad incumbents

• RAND Corporation: Major research institution with a substantial education and workforce practice conducting rigorous policy research and systems analysis. Methodology and rigor overlap with SKIP's but at a vastly larger scale and scope.
• WestEd: Large, established nonprofit education research and development organization with broad programmatic offerings across research, evaluation, and technical assistance. Overlaps with SKIP's systems change work but at much greater scale and scope.
• Urban Institute: Large economic and social policy research organization with a major education policy practice. Comparable research depth to SKIP but operating at national scale across many policy domains.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/skipdesigned
• Facebookfacebook.com/SkipDesigned
• Instagraminstagram.com/skipdesigned
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/skipnv

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 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 SKIP