Citizens of the World Charter Schools

What Citizens of the World Charter Schools does

Citizens of the World Charter Schools (CWC) is a nonprofit national charter school network founded in 2010 in Hollywood, California, by Mark Gordon, Kriste Dragon, Chris Forman, and Cam Starrett. The organization operates tuition-free public charter schools serving K-8 students across three US metropolitan markets: seven schools in Los Angeles (Hollywood, Silver Lake, Mar Vista, West Valley, East Valley, plus additional campuses), one K-8 school in Kansas City launched in 2016, and one K-1 school in Cincinnati launched in 2021-22 (expanding to K-6). Total enrollment is approximately 2,750 students. CWC's defining differentiator is its intentionally diverse-by-design model, which combines rigorous academics with explicit social-emotional development and a community-led expansion approach in which parent coalitions (e.g., the Midtown Community School Initiative in Kansas City) originate new sites. Demand materially exceeds supply, with 7-10x more applicants than available seats, and CWC Hollywood ranks in the top 6% of LAUSD schools (API 912) while the LA region scores in the top 6-7% of district elementary schools on 2016-17 state ELA and math assessments.

The core academic technology is the CWC Learning Model, which integrates Harvard Project Zero's Teaching for Understanding framework with Project-Based Learning, Differentiated/Personalized Learning, Gradual Release of Responsibility, Balanced Literacy/Workshop, Cognitively Guided Instruction (CGI) for math, and Service Learning. A proprietary 11-skill Graduate Dispositions Framework organizes outcomes across three domains (self, together, world). The organization has built a two-year Leader Institute (pilot launched 2019) to develop the leadership pipeline for future replication, and a Navigating Change Learning Series (2020) for educator professional development. Instruction is delivered in small classes of 22-24 students with two adults, and community outreach is conducted through multilingual door-to-door engagement, events, and gathering-place visits.

The business model is dual-revenue: approximately 90%+ of operating funding flows from state and district per-pupil allocations that follow each enrolled student (charter schools are publicly funded but independently operated), with the balance from philanthropic donations channeled through PayPal, AmazonSmile (0.5% of eligible purchases), and foundation grants (Kauffman, Walton Family, Hall Family, NewSchools Venture Fund, Chan Zuckerberg Initiative). Pricing to families is zero (tuition-free). The organization is governed by a national Board of Directors with regional boards in each market, supported by a leadership team led by CEO Laura Furlong (formerly of The Broad Center). Strategic positioning emphasizes national replicability of a locally governed model, with each region maintaining operational autonomy while sharing the CWC academic and community model.

Name

Citizens of the World Charter Schools

Legal name

Citizens of the World Charter Schools

Website

https://citizensoftheworld.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Citizens of the World Charter Schools is a nonprofit national charter school network operating tuition-free K-8 schools in Los Angeles, Kansas City, and Cincinnati. It serves approximately 2,750 students through an intentionally diverse-by-design academic model that integrates Harvard Project Zero's Teaching for Understanding framework with social-emotional learning and community-led expansion.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

K-12 Public Charter Schools

NAICS

Elementary and Secondary Schools (611110)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Charter School Networks (Multi-Site) (EDAJACAC)

Keywords

• Public charter schools
• K-8 education
• Diverse learning communities
• Social-emotional learning
• Project-based learning

Headquarters

HQ city

Los Angeles, California

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Per-Pupil State and District Funding: CWC Schools are public charter schools funded by the district and state according to the number of students attending, receiving per-pupil funding that follows the student.
2. Philanthropic Donations: Tax-deductible donations accepted through PayPal and AmazonSmile (0.5% of purchases donated). Support from National Board Members and various foundations.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Citizens of the World Charter Schools (CWC Schools) operates a national nonprofit network of tuition-free public charter schools serving K-8 students in Los Angeles, Kansas City, and Cincinnati. The network delivers academically rigorous, socially-emotionally focused instruction grounded in Harvard Project Zero's Teaching for Understanding framework, Project-Based Learning, and Differentiated Instruction. Beyond K-8 schools, the network also offers the Leader Institute, a two-year professional development program for current and aspiring school leaders.

Product overview

Citizens of the World Charter Schools is a national network of tuition-free public charter schools operating across three regions: Los Angeles (7 schools), Kansas City (1 school serving K-8), and Cincinnati (1 school launching K-1). The network offers a rigorous academic program with emphasis on social emotional development and diversity and inclusion. The schools follow the CWC Learning Model grounded in Teaching for Understanding (Harvard Project Zero), Project-Based Learning, Data-Informed Instruction, and Differentiated Learning. Individual schools include CWC Hollywood (TK-5, opened 2010), CWC Silver Lake (TK-8, opened 2012), CWC Mar Vista (TK-8, opened 2013), CWC West Valley (opened 2020), CWC East Valley (opened 2021), CWC Kansas City (K-8, opened 2016), and CWC Cincinnati (K-1 launching 2021). The network also offers the Leader Institute, a two-year professional development program for school leaders focused on social-emotional development and diversity and inclusion.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Leader Institute: A two-year institute that supports leaders in social-emotional development and diversity and inclusion dimensions. Creates cohorts of conscious and authentic leaders to launch diverse-by-design schools.
• Navigating Change Learning Series

Products and services

• CWC Hollywood Flagship TK-5 charter school in Hollywood, California, ranked in the top 6% of all LAUSD schools with an API of 912. Tuition-free public charter school serving diverse student populations.
• CWC Silver Lake TK-8 charter school in Silver Lake, Los Angeles, ranked in the top 28% of all LAUSD schools based on API scores.
• CWC Mar Vista TK-8 charter school in Mar Vista, Los Angeles, one of the highest-performing schools in Los Angeles on standardized tests.
• CWC West Valley CWC West Valley opened in 2020 as the sixth school in the Los Angeles region.
• CWC East Valley CWC East Valley opened in fall 2021 as the seventh school in the Los Angeles region.
• CWC Kansas City Regional school network serving 550 students in Kindergarten through 8th grade (as of 2020-2021) in Kansas City, Missouri.
• CWC Cincinnati Regional school in Cincinnati, Ohio serving students in grades K-1 (2021-22), expanding annually to K-6. The charter was approved by The Fordham Institute.
• Leader Institute A two-year professional development program for current and aspiring school leaders focusing on social-emotional development and diversity and inclusion. Includes four in-person convenings, monthly coaching, book study, peer check-ins, and capstone projects.

Quantifiable outcome

• CWC Los Angeles scored in top 6% of district elementary schools in English Language Arts on 2016-17 state assessment
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• The Fordham InstitutecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Charter authorizer for CWC Cincinnati. Described as one of the highest rated sponsors in Ohio.
• Missouri Public Charter School CommissioncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2015New Missouri Public Charter School Commission that became the first sponsor of CWC Kansas City schools, marking a major milestone for the parents and community in Midtown Kansas City.
• Midtown Community School Initiative (MCSI)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2014Parent coalition in Kansas City that invited CWC to expand to their community. MCSI conducted two years of work to bring CWC Schools to Midtown Kansas City and chose CWC as their charter partner.
• Harvard Project ZerominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDeveloper of Teaching for Understanding (TfU) framework used in CWC Schools academic model.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves14 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Others

• NewSchools Venture Fund: Philanthropy and nonprofit focused on funding and supporting innovative public schools and edtech. Comparable as a partner/investor (co-funded CWC's Navigating Change) and represents the same ecosystem of charter-supportive capital.
• EdLoC (Education Leaders of Color): Nonprofit supporting leaders of color in education; board member Krupa Desai is CSO at EdLoC. Comparable as a peer network and ecosystem organization in the diversity-focused charter movement.

Direct peers

• KIPP Public Schools: Largest nonprofit U.S. charter school network serving predominantly low-income K-12 students with a college-prep focus. Comparable to CWC as a multi-city charter operator with strong academic brand and leadership-development pipelines.
• Aspire Public Schools: California-based nonprofit charter network operating TK-12 schools with a focus on college readiness and diverse-by-design communities. Directly comparable to CWC in geography, demographics served, and mission.
• Achievement First: Nonprofit charter school network operating in Connecticut, New York, and Rhode Island with a college-prep mission. Comparable as a multi-state nonprofit CMO with strong academic outcomes and leadership development.
• Green Dot Public Schools: California nonprofit charter operator focused on college preparatory schools in high-need communities. Closely comparable operating geography and student population to CWC Los Angeles.
• Summit Public Schools: California-based nonprofit charter network with personalized-learning model and multi-state presence. Comparable as a CMO with differentiated pedagogy and expansion across regions.
• Alliance College-Ready Public Schools: LA-based nonprofit charter network with 25+ schools serving predominantly Latinx communities. Overlaps with CWC's LA footprint and similarly relies on per-pupil public funding.
• Uncommon Schools: Northeast-based nonprofit charter network with college-prep focus and a known leadership development pipeline (like CWC's Leader Institute). Operates a comparable nonprofit CMO structure.

Broad incumbents

• IDEA Public Schools: Much larger nonprofit charter network operating 80+ schools across Texas, Louisiana, and Florida. Comparable model and funding structure but at significantly greater scale than CWC.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCxNC1S344_9oueyK20gtBng
• Facebookfacebook.com/pages/Citizens-of-the-World-Charter-Schools/731040310274140
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/citizens-of-the-world-charter-schools

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Subsidiaries7 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 Citizens of the World Charter Schools