UC|CSU Collaborative for Neuroscience, Diversity, and Learning

What UC|CSU Collaborative for Neuroscience, Diversity, and Learning does

The UC|CSU Collaborative for Neuroscience, Diversity, and Learning is a California state-funded, non-profit intersegmental initiative established in 2019 through the California Budget Act and housed at UCLA, which serves as fiscal agent. It operates as a coalition of faculty and system leaders drawn from all 10 University of California campuses and all 23 California State University campuses, working to translate neuroscience and learning research into evidence-based resources for educators serving neurodiverse and diverse learners. The organization is not a revenue-generating enterprise: all products and resources are provided free of charge, with operating support drawn from the state budget appropriation.

The Collaborative's core product is Arraya Learning, a centralized learning management system vetted by UC and CSU experts that delivers standards-aligned e-learning modules, searchable resource libraries, and professional development content tied to California Teacher Performance Expectations, California Standards for the Teaching Profession, and California Dyslexia Guidelines. The product portfolio also includes the Standing Together Toolkit for bullying prevention under California Senate Bill 939, a Language, Literacy, and Dyslexia Series, High Quality IEP and Administrative Designee Toolkits, plus four recurring programs: the Senior Fellows Program for policy engagement, the Student Ambassador Program for high school leadership, the Education Policy Initiative Internship for UCLA undergraduates, and an annual Neuroscience, Diversity, and Learning Summit. Distribution occurs through direct integration with UC and CSU educator preparation programs, partnerships with the California Department of Education and local education agencies, and self-serve access via the Arraya Learning platform.

The business model is grant-funded rather than commercial: there is no pricing model, no paid tiers, and no transactional revenue. Reach is statewide but geographically restricted to California, and the user base spans pre-service educators, in-service TK-12 teachers and administrators, teacher educators, policymakers, families of neurodiverse learners, and high school student ambassadors. Named institutional customers are exclusively California public higher education systems, indicating that the funder and customer bases are structurally intertwined with state appropriations.

Name

UC|CSU Collaborative for Neuroscience, Diversity, and Learning

Legal name

UC|CSU Collaborative for Neuroscience, Diversity, and Learning

Website

https://ca-diverse-learning.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The UC|CSU Collaborative for Neuroscience, Diversity, and Learning is a California state-funded non-profit, established in 2019 and housed at UCLA, that translates neuroscience research into free, standards-aligned professional development resources for educators, teacher educators, policymakers, and families across California via its Arraya Learning platform.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Education Professional Development

NAICS

Educational Services (611), Educational Support Services (611710), Business Schools and Computer and Management Training (6114)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Core LMS Platforms (Academic & Corporate) (EDAFAAAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Social Learning & Community-Enabled LMS (EDAFAAAH), Higher Education Digital Courseware & Modules (EDAGAEAB), Online/Hybrid Lifelong Learning Platforms & Open Enrollment Programs (EDAAAEAL)

Keywords

• Professional development training
• Educational resource publishing
• Learning management system
• Neuroscience educator training
• Diversity inclusion curriculum

Headquarters

HQ city

Los Angeles

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

Revenue model

1. State of California Funding: Established through the California Budget Act of 2019, the Collaborative receives support from the State of California to develop and provide free professional development resources and programming.
2. Free Educational Resources: Arraya Learning and all toolkits, modules, and resources are provided free of charge to educators, families, and students. No direct revenue is generated from these offerings.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Collaborative delivers free, evidence-based neuroscience- and diversity-grounded professional development to educators across California's public university systems. Its flagship product is the Arraya Learning LMS — a centralized platform hosting curated modules, toolkits (e.g., Standing Together bullying-prevention, IEP toolkits, Language Literacy and Dyslexia Series), and structured programs including Student Ambassadors, Senior Fellows, and the Education Policy Initiative Internship.

Product overview

The UC|CSU Collaborative for Neuroscience, Diversity, and Learning operates a multi-product ecosystem centered on Arraya Learning, their primary learning management system and evidence-based resource hub. This core platform is complemented by targeted program offerings including the Standing Together Toolkit (bullying prevention per SB 939), the Language, Literacy, and Dyslexia Series of e-learning modules, and the High Quality IEP and Toolkit resources for special educators. Additional programs include the Senior Fellows Program (policy engagement), Student Ambassador Program (youth leadership), and Education Policy Initiative Internship. The organization also produces research briefs, professional learning webinar series, and resource collections on inclusive practices, collectively serving educators, teacher educators, policymakers, and students across California.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Arraya Learning LMS Centralized, evidence-based learning management system that hosts and sequences neuroscience- and diversity-grounded professional development modules for educators across the UC and CSU systems.
• Student Ambassador Program Structured ambassador program engaging students to support the collaborative's neuroscience, diversity, and learning initiatives across UC and CSU campuses.
• Senior Fellows Program Fellowship cohort for senior educators and scholars contributing expertise to the collaborative's evidence-based content and research-to-practice translation work.
• Education Policy Initiative Internship Internship program placing participants into education policy workstreams tied to the collaborative's neuroscience, diversity, and learning priorities.
• Standing Together Toolkit Educator toolkit focused on bullying prevention and inclusive school climate, available free through the Arraya Learning platform.
• Individualized Education Program (IEP) Toolkits Toolkit resources supporting educators in developing and implementing Individualized Education Programs for students with disabilities.
• Language Literacy and Dyslexia Series Multi-part educational series addressing language literacy development and dyslexia instruction for educators.

Quantifiable outcome

• 35 students served through Education Policy Initiative across 3 cohorts since fall 2023
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered major, core and supporting.

• California Center for Inclusive CollegesmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Co-developed a three-part professional learning webinar series on inclusive higher education addressing ableism, disability awareness, and inclusive instructional practices.
• CEEDAR Center CaliforniamajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Co-developed Community of Practice video series integrating high-leverage practices in literacy with positive behavioral supports, focused on self-regulation, SEL, and trauma-informed approaches.
• UCLA Center for the Transformation of SchoolsmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Partnered to produce research brief on Strengthening Cellphone Policies to Support Student Learning and Well-Being, translating developmental science into policy recommendations.
• California Department of EducationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Partnership to develop SB 939 resources including age-appropriate training videos and materials for TK-12 schools addressing bullying prevention for neurodiverse students.
• University of California SystemcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Founding partner in the Collaborative. UC system provides research expertise, faculty contributions, and infrastructure including UCLA as fiscal agent. All 10 UC campuses participate.
• California State University SystemcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Founding partner providing educator preparation expertise across 23 CSU campuses. Liaisons from multiple CSU campuses contribute to program development and implementation.
• UCLA School of Education and Information StudiescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Serves as fiscal agent and primary operational host for the Collaborative. Provides leadership including Executive Director Alison Yoshimoto-Towery and Faculty Director Jennie Grammer.
• California State University, Dominguez HillsmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019CSU campus partner providing leadership including M.C. Kate Esposito (Chair of Special Education) and Michael Spagna (Provost). Hosts multiple CSU liaisons.
• California State University, NorthridgemajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019CSU campus partner with expertise in literacy and dyslexia. Sue Sears (Professor Emerita) serves as Co-Faculty Director of the Literacy & Dyslexia Team.
• UCLA Center for Dyslexia, Diverse Learners, and Social JusticecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Maryanne Wolf serves as Director of this center and Co-Faculty Director of the Dyslexia Team. Center provides research leadership on reading brain science.
• California State University, Los AngelesmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019CSU campus partner contributing faculty including Ya-Chih Chang, Anna Osipova, and Bryan Thornton to the CSU Liaisons team.
• UCSF Dyslexia CentermajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019UC San Francisco partner providing expertise on dyslexia assessment tools including Multitudes diagnostic tool for early identification of reading issues.
• California Council on Teacher EducationmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Professional organization partner contributing to research monographs and supporting teacher education across California.
• UCSB Gevirtz Graduate School of EducationsupportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019UC Santa Barbara campus partner contributing to the Collaborative's network of educators and researchers.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• CAST (Center for Applied Special Technology): Non-profit organization that pioneered Universal Design for Learning (UDL) framework and develops free educator resources, professional learning, and tools for inclusive education. Highly comparable mission to the Collaborative's inclusive-practices focus, with similar content library approach and educator training orientation.
• IRIS Center (Vanderbilt Peabody): Vanderbilt University's federally funded center providing free online modules, case studies, and resources for educators serving students with disabilities. Closely comparable to the Collaborative's evidence-based e-learning modules and free resource distribution model for pre-service and in-service educator training.
• CEEDAR Center: University of Florida-based federally funded center providing professional learning, resources, and technical assistance on evidence-based practices for educators of students with disabilities. Already a documented Collaborative partner, with directly comparable content focus on UDL, literacy, and inclusive practices for educator preparation programs.
• International Dyslexia Association: Non-profit organization providing resources, professional development, and advocacy around dyslexia, with similar literacy and dyslexia focus to the Collaborative's Language, Literacy, and Dyslexia Series. Both organizations develop educator-facing content grounded in reading science research.
• Reading Rockets: Public television/WETA-funded national initiative providing free evidence-based resources on teaching reading, including articles, videos, and classroom strategies. Comparable to the Collaborative in mission and free delivery model for educator-facing literacy content, though at broader national scope.
• Council for Exceptional Children: Non-profit professional association for special educators providing resources, standards, and professional development. Comparable in serving the special education and IEP-related educator segments with research-backed content, including High Quality IEP resources that overlap with the Collaborative's IEP Toolkit offerings.

Broad incumbents

• Understood.org: Non-profit resource platform serving families and educators of children with learning differences and neurodiverse learners. Overlaps with the Collaborative's families/neurodiverse learner segment and inclusive practices focus, but operates nationally with broader media content offerings.
• Learning Forward: National non-profit professional association focused on educator professional learning standards and advocacy, serving a similar audience of in-service educators and school leaders. Operates at broader national scale with membership-based content offerings versus the Collaborative's free, California-scoped model.

Regional players

• WIDA Consortium: University of Wisconsin-hosted consortium providing multilingual learner resources, professional learning, and standards. Comparable structure as a university-based collaborative developing educator resources, though focused on multilingual rather than neurodiversity, and operating across member states rather than California-only.

Others

• EdSurge: EdTech industry information platform serving educators and EdTool purchasers with product research, reviews, and community resources. Comparable as an ecosystem participant in educator-facing resource distribution, though operating as a commercial media/information service rather than direct content provider.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

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• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/uc-csu-collaborative-for-neuroscience-diversity-and-learning
• Instagraminstagram.com/uccsucollab

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about UC|CSU Collaborative for Neuroscience, Diversity, and Learning