EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS
Early Childhood Academy PCS is a tuition-free DC public charter school in Ward 8, serving students from PreK3 through third grade at a single campus, funded by DC per-pupil allocations with supplemental before/after-care fees.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2005
- HeadquartersWASHINGTON, District of Columbia, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS does
Early Childhood Academy Public Charter School (ECA PCS) is a tuition-free public charter school located at 885 Barnaby Street SE in Ward 8 of Washington, DC. Founded in 2005 and now in its 20th year of operation, the school serves students from PreK3 through third grade under a publicly funded charter authorized by the DC Public Charter School Board. ECA PCS operates as a single-campus institution with 11-50 employees and a board of trustees comprising approximately 15 members; its instructional leadership includes Executive Director Wendy Edwards and CFO Debra Robinson-Foster.
The school's core product is standards-aligned early-elementary education delivered in person at its Ward 8 campus, supplemented by fee-based before- and after-care programs priced at $60 to $160 per family per month. ECA PCS holds Tier 1 High Performing School designation from the DC PCSB and is fully accredited by the Middle States Association through January 2030. It has received BOLD Performance School Awards in both 2017 and 2025, recognizing academic performance gains among comparable DC charter peers. The school has also accessed approximately $1.8 million in cumulative federal ESSER (Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief) funding across the COVID-19 period to support operational continuity.
ECA PCS's business model is fundamentally a public-sector reimbursement model: the school is funded almost entirely through DC's per-pupil charter allotment, with ancillary revenue from before/after-care fees and, more recently, philanthropic donations through its 20th anniversary $20for20 campaign. Because charter schools in DC cannot charge tuition, the family base is not a direct revenue stream but rather the enrollment count that determines public funding. Strategic positioning emphasizes academic outcomes (Tier 1 status, BOLD awards), institutional credibility (Middle States accreditation through 2030), and community trust built over two decades in Ward 8.
EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS
- Legal name
- Early Childhood Academy Public Charter School
- Website
- https://ecapcs.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2005
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Early Childhood Academy PCS is a tuition-free DC public charter school in Ward 8, serving students from PreK3 through third grade at a single campus, funded by DC per-pupil allocations with supplemental before/after-care fees.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Charter School Education
- NAICS
- Elementary and Secondary Schools (6111), Educational Services (61)
- SIC
- Services-Educational Services (8200)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Early Childhood Development (ECD) & Pre-Primary Education (BPADAKAB)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Comprehensive ECE Curriculum Frameworks (Birth–5) (EDACAJAA), Domain-Specific Curriculum (Literacy, Numeracy, Science, SEL, Motor, Arts) (EDACAJAB)
Keywords
Where EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- WASHINGTON, District of Columbia
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Per-Pupil Funding: ECA operates as a publicly funded public charter school receiving per-pupil funding from the District of Columbia government based on enrollment. The school is overseen by the DC Public Charter School Board and subject to DCPCSB transparency standards.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | Before Care Only - $60/month for first child |
| Subscription | Monthly | Before and After Care - $160/month for first child |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels7 records
EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Early Childhood Academy Public Charter School (ECA) is a tuition-free public charter school serving students from Pre-K3 through 3rd grade in Ward 8, Washington DC. The school delivers a full-day, ten-month educational program aligned with Common Core State Standards and DC Early Learning Standards, featuring two teachers per classroom and fee-based Before & After Care services. ECA also provides USDA-funded school meals, instrumental music classes, and school-based mental health services as part of its comprehensive programming.
Product overview
Early Childhood Academy PCS is a small public charter school offering a unified Pre-K3 through 3rd grade educational program built on Common Core State Standards and Early Learning Standards. The core offering is full-day classroom instruction with two teachers per classroom. Supporting modules include Before & After Care, Instrumental Music Classes (violin, viola, cello), School Meals Program, Sports and Extracurricular Clubs, and Behavior and Mental Health Services. The school uses Edlio as its website content management system.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Full-Day Educational Program (Pre-K3 through 3rd Grade)
Quantifiable outcome
- BOLD Performance School - proficient rates 10+ percentage points higher than schools with similar demographics
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS
Customer profileSegments1 record
Ideal customer profiles1 record
EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration3 records
Feature1 record
EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Middle States Association of Colleges and SchoolscoreECA has been accredited by the Middle States Association since 2014 and was awarded full accreditation through January 2030. The accreditation affirms the school's commitment to providing a high-quality educational experience.
- AppleTree InstitutecoreECA uses AppleTree's Every Child Ready Curriculum for prekindergarten students. The school also utilizes AppleTree coaching services as part of its ESSER funding for intentional strategies for accelerating learning.
- Houghton Mifflin HarcourtcoreECA utilizes the Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Curriculum for grades K-3, covering Reading, Language Arts, Math, Social Studies, and Science.
- DC Public Charter School BoardcoreECA is overseen by the DC Public Charter School Board, which ensures the school meets the highest standards of education as part of the transparency standards for DC public charter schools.
- My School DCcoreECA participates in the My School DC lottery system, which is the citywide common application and lottery system for DC public charter schools.
- USDA Child Nutrition ProgramscoreECA participates in National School Lunch Program, School Breakfast Program, Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program, and Seamless Summer Option through USDA as administered by OSSE. All meals are provided free of charge to students.
- Risse Brothers UniformsminorRisse Brothers is the designated uniform supplier for ECA. Parents must purchase logo uniform shirts from Risse Brothers for their children.
- Empower K12coreECA has been recognized as a BOLD Performance School by Empower K12 in both 2017 and 2025, demonstrating exceptional academic performance.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights2 records
EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- DC Prep: DC public charter school network with multiple elementary campuses serving PK-3 students. Comparable target market (DC families) and grade band, competing directly for lottery applicants.
- KIPP DC: Largest charter school network in Washington, DC operating multiple PK-12 campuses across the city. Directly comparable as a DC public charter school competing for the same My School DC lottery families, though KIPP DC has a multi-site, multi-grade platform versus ECA's single-site PK-3 model.
- AppleTree Early Learning Public Charter School: DC early childhood public charter school operator focused on PK3 and PK4. Closest functional peer given ECA uses AppleTree's Every Child Ready Curriculum; competes in the same DC lottery and serves an overlapping early-childhood segment.
- Friendship Public Charter School: Multi-campus DC public charter network serving elementary through high school grades. Comparable as a DC charter competitor in the same lottery system with overlapping early-grade offerings in similar neighborhoods.
- Two Rivers Public Charter School: DC public charter school serving PK-3 through 8th grade with multiple campuses. Comparable as an elementary-focused DC charter competitor in the same lottery and similar geographic footprint.
- Eagle Academy Public Charter School: DC public charter school serving PK-3 through 8th grade in Congress Heights. Direct geographic and grade-band peer to ECA, serving the same Ward 8 community via the same lottery system.
- Cesar Chavez Public Charter School for Public Policy: DC public charter school serving elementary through high school grades with multiple campuses. Comparable as a DC lottery participant serving similar demographic communities in Southeast Washington.
Broad incumbents
- DC Public Schools (DCPS): The traditional public school district that ECA families would otherwise attend. Serves the same Ward 8 families through neighborhood schools and competes with ECA for the same pool of DC-resident students, though via assignment rather than lottery.
- BASIS Charter Schools: National charter school operator with a DC campus offering an advanced elementary curriculum. Comparable as a high-performing charter alternative in the DC market but with a broader national footprint and different pedagogical emphasis.
Regional players
- Achievement Prep Public Charter School: DC public charter school network serving elementary grades in Wards 7 and 8. Comparable demographic focus and grade-band but operates primarily east of the river with a different programmatic emphasis.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS social profiles
Digital presenceEARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles5 records
EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS
What does EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS do?
Early Childhood Academy Public Charter School (ECA) is a tuition-free public charter school serving students from Pre-K3 through 3rd grade in Ward 8, Washington DC. The school delivers a full-day, ten-month educational program aligned with Common Core State Standards and DC Early Learning Standards, featuring two teachers per classroom and fee-based Before & After Care services. ECA also provides USDA-funded school meals, instrumental music classes, and school-based mental health services as part of its comprehensive programming.
Is EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS a public or private company?
EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS founded?
EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS was founded in 2005. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS based?
EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS is headquartered in WASHINGTON, District of Columbia, United States, in the North America region.
How does EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS make money?
One revenue line is on record: per-Pupil Funding.
Who are EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are DC Prep, KIPP DC, AppleTree Early Learning Public Charter School, Friendship Public Charter School, Two Rivers Public Charter School, Eagle Academy Public Charter School and Cesar Chavez Public Charter School for Public Policy. Broad incumbents are DC Public Schools (DCPS) and BASIS Charter Schools. Achievement Prep Public Charter School is listed as a regional player.
Does EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS have an API?
No public API is recorded for EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS.
What industry is EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS in?
EARLY CHILDHOOD ACADEMY PCS's product category is Charter School Education. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPADAKAB, Early Childhood Development (ECD) & Pre-Primary Education, with a secondary code of EDACAJAA, Comprehensive ECE Curriculum Frameworks (Birth–5). Its NAICS code is 6111 and its SIC code is 8200.