EAST CENTRAL KANSAS COOP IN EDUCATION

What EAST CENTRAL KANSAS COOP IN EDUCATION does

East Central Kansas Cooperative in Education (ECKCE / Interlocal #614) is a publicly funded Kansas interlocal cooperative that delivers special education services to students ages 3 to 21 across three member school districts: Baldwin City USD 348, Eudora USD 491, and Wellsville USD 289. Founded approximately 25 years ago and operating from 600 High Street in Baldwin City, Kansas, the organization serves 800+ students and runs six core programs — the Interrelated Resource Program (K-12 individualized instruction), Bridges (ages 18-21 transition to adult life), Early Childhood Special Education, Gifted Special Education, RISE (intensive support needs), and WEBS (behavioral/emotional support) — coordinated via a Special Education Advisory Council (SEAC). It is jointly governed by a six-member Board of Directors with two representatives appointed by each member district.

ECKCE's business model is a public-sector interlocal agency rather than a commercial venture. Funding flows from member school district allocations and state/federal special education pass-throughs; there is no customer-facing pricing model, no external revenue capture, no venture or private-equity ownership, and no M&A structure. The underlying technology is a human-delivered service stack — special education teachers, paraprofessionals, speech/language therapists, and related service providers delivering individualized education programs (IEPs) — with no proprietary software platform, no AI/ML components, and no mobile application. Distribution is direct: services are provided on-site through the three member districts, with inter-council coordination extending service reach to children ages birth to 3 via the Douglas County Tiny-K Early Intervention and Ottawa/Wellsville Early Childhood Coordinating Councils.

The go-to-market posture is structurally captive rather than competitive: as an interlocal #614 entity, ECKCE is the formal service vehicle for its three member districts and cannot independently add or lose "customers." Operational staff disclosed include a Director of Program Information (Sara Hoepner), an HR/Payroll Manager who also serves as Title IX Coordinator (Kim Bergan), and an MIS Clerk handling student records (Tristan Normile). The organization maintains a Title IX compliance program, including training delivered in March 2025 by counsel from the Kansas Association of School Boards, signaling institutional compliance maturity typical of established public education agencies.

Name

EAST CENTRAL KANSAS COOP IN EDUCATION

Legal name

East Central Kansas Cooperative in Education

Website

https://eckce.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

ECKCE (Interlocal #614) is a Kansas public education cooperative providing special education services to 800+ students ages 3-21 across three jointly governed member school districts: Baldwin City USD 348, Eudora USD 491, and Wellsville USD 289.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Special Education Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), Educational Support Services (61171)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Special Education Evaluation & Assessment (Psychoeducational, Speech/Language, OT/PT) (EDAJAKAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Developmental Therapy / Early Childhood Special Instruction (EDACAFAG)

Keywords

• Special education services
• Cooperative education programs
• Individualized instruction services
• Early childhood special education
• Transition services education

Headquarters

HQ city

Baldwin City

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

ECKCE provides special education services to all eligible students ages 3-21 across three member Kansas school districts (Baldwin City USD 348, Eudora USD 491, and Wellsville USD 289) through six specialized programs including the Interrelated Resource Program, Bridges transition program, Early Childhood Special Education, Gifted Special Education, RISE intensive support program, and WEBS behavioral/emotional support program.

Product overview

ECKCE operates as a unified special education service provider rather than a technology platform. The organization delivers six specialized programs serving students ages 3-21 across three school districts (Baldwin City, Eudora, and Wellsville). The programs include: the Interrelated Resource Program for K-12 students with disabilities, the Bridges Program for students ages 18-21 focusing on transition to adult life, Early Childhood Special Education for developmental delays, Gifted Special Education for advanced learners, the RISE Program for intensive support needs, and the WEBS Program for behavioral and emotional challenges. These programs are coordinated through a Special Education Advisory Council (SEAC) and supported by professional development resources, with oversight by a Board of Directors. The organization does not offer a technology product or platform; all services are direct educational programs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Interrelated Resource Program Provides individualized instruction and specialized support for students with disabilities in grades K-12 through collaboration with general education teachers, targeted academic interventions, and accommodations.
• Bridges Program Provides individualized instruction and community-based learning experiences for students ages 18-21 to help prepare for adult life after high school by developing independent living, employment, and social skills.
• Early Childhood Special Education Provides individualized supports for children with developmental delays in areas such as speech and language, early learning, motor, self-help, social, and behavioral skills, identified through a comprehensive evaluation process.
• Gifted Special Education Provides individualized enrichment and advanced learning opportunities for students identified through a formal evaluation process as demonstrating exceptional academic potential or performance.
• Reaching Independence through Special Education (RISE) Provides intensive, individualized support for students with significant learning, developmental, or health needs while focusing on building communication, independence, and meaningful participation in school and community settings.
• WEBS Program Supports Wellsville, Baldwin City, and Eudora students who need a smaller, structured setting to address significant behavioral and emotional challenges by providing individualized instruction and social-emotional support.
• Special Education Advisory Council (SEAC) Provides guidance and support for families of students receiving special education services, including parents, educators, and community members working together to improve special education services.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Douglas County Tiny-K Early InterventioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerECKCE is a member of the Douglas County Tiny-K Early Intervention Council, which coordinates services for families of children ages birth to 3 with disabilities and transition services to public schools.
• Ottawa/Wellsville Early Childhood Coordinating CouncilscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerECKCE participates in the Ottawa/Wellsville Early Childhood Coordinating Councils, coordinating services for families of young children with disabilities and supporting transition to school-based services.
• Baldwin City USD 348coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of three member school districts served by ECKCE for special education services.
• Eudora USD 491coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of three member school districts served by ECKCE for special education services.
• Wellsville USD 289coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of three member school districts served by ECKCE for special education services.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights2 records

Others

• Therap Services: A web-based documentation and case-management platform purpose-built for special education and human services providers—adjacent to ECKCE because it serves as a back-office technology layer for organizations like ECKCE rather than a direct competitor.
• Frontline Education: A K-12 software vendor providing HR, payroll, special education management, and operational systems to school districts and cooperatives—an enabling technology supplier that could augment ECKCE's largely manual back office.

Direct peers

• Erie 1 BOCES: New York's Board of Cooperative Educational Services delivering shared special education and instructional services to component districts—operationally and structurally analogous to ECKCE's interlocal model.
• Education Service Center Region 11: Texas regional education service center providing cooperative educational services including special education to member districts across a multi-county region, sharing the cooperative/regional-service delivery model that ECKCE uses in Kansas.
• Greenbush Education Service Center: A southeast Kansas education service center that delivers special education, professional development, and cooperative services to multiple member school districts under a regional service model—directly comparable to ECKCE's interlocal cooperative structure.

Broad incumbents

• Specialized Education Services Inc. (SESI): A provider of special education and behavioral health day programs serving K-12 students with disabilities and emotional challenges; shares service mix (e.g., behavioral/emotional support, individualized instruction) with ECKCE's RISE and WEBS programs.
• Public Consulting Group: A management consulting and services firm that operates special education staffing, Medicaid billing, and direct service programs for public school districts—comparable service portfolio delivered at significantly greater scale than ECKCE.
• Catapult Learning: A large national provider of supplemental special education, intervention, and behavioral health services to K-12 school districts—overlaps with ECKCE's core function but operates at much greater scale across many states.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/east-central-kansas-coop-in-education

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 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 →

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