What Iowa BIG does

Iowa BIG is a public school program operated by the Cedar Rapids Community School District in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Founded in 2012, it serves high school students enrolled in the district by allowing them to earn credits in English, Social Studies, and Business through project-based learning with local businesses, non-profits, and government agencies. The program addresses the disconnect between traditional classroom instruction and real-world application by requiring every project to have a participatory third-party audience outside school walls that mentors and assesses student work. Students who do not encounter certain academic standards through their projects attend college-style seminars held periodically.

The core offering is built around a community-generated project pool where both external organizations and internal faculty/students pitch project ideas into "inbound" and "outbound" streams. The operational technology stack is notably lightweight: the program relies on Google Calendar, Google Forms for enrollment, and standard productivity tools rather than a proprietary learning platform. The staff of approximately 29 employees includes instructional faculty (e.g., Becky Herman, Mark Matson) and a Community Development Specialist (Amanda Zhorne) responsible for matching student interests with partner opportunities. The Head of Schools, Dennis Becker, oversees both Iowa BIG and City View High School. Pedagogy is informed by neuroscience research, with staff described as continually reading and discussing emerging findings on human development.

Iowa BIG does not generate commercial revenue. It is funded through standard public school district allocations, and students attend at no cost as part of their high school schedule. The program's primary "customer" relationship is with the Cedar Rapids Community School District, which provides institutional resources, while a secondary network of community partners contributes projects and mentorship in kind. The program received a $1,000,000 grant from the XQ Super School Project in 2016 and has been visited by over 600 educators from across the country seeking to learn from the model. Geographic operations are restricted to Cedar Rapids, with the College Community School District also having provided early resource support at founding.

Name

Iowa BIG

Legal name

Iowa BIG

Website

https://iowabig.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Iowa BIG is a public school program in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, operated by the Cedar Rapids Community School District. It enables high school students to earn academic credits through project-based learning with local businesses, non-profits, and government agencies.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Cedar Rapids

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Public School Funding: As a public school program operated by the Cedar Rapids Community School District, Iowa BIG is funded through standard public education funding mechanisms. Students attend free of charge as part of their public high school education.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Iowa BIG is a tuition-free public school program operated by the Cedar Rapids Community School District that allows high school students to earn credits in English, Social Studies, and Business through working on real-world, interdisciplinary projects sourced from local businesses, non-profits, and government agencies. Students learn academic standards and 21st century skills through project teams, supplemented by college-style seminars that cover any standards not addressed through projects.

Product overview

Iowa BIG is a single, unified public school program operated by the Cedar Rapids Community School District. The program centers on a project-based learning model where students earn academic credits through authentic real-world projects with community partners. The offering consists of three main components: the core Project-Based Learning Program (where students work on interdisciplinary projects sourced from businesses, non-profits, and government agencies), Project Seminars (college-style sessions for standards not covered in projects), and a Project Pool System that matches student interests with community partner needs. Students can enroll in English, Social Studies, and Business courses through this program at no cost as part of their high school schedule.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Iowa BIG Project-Based Learning Program A tuition-free public school program for high school students enrolled in the Cedar Rapids Community School District that allows students to earn credits in English, Social Studies, and Business through working on interdisciplinary, real-world projects and in project teams, with instruction supported by college-style seminars for standards not covered in projects.
• Iowa BIG Project Pool System A custom project-sourcing system that matches students with authentic, real-world projects submitted by local businesses, non-profits, and government agencies; supports both inbound projects (pitched by community partners) and outbound projects (pitched by students and faculty) to ensure projects address genuine community needs.
• Iowa BIG Seminars College-style learning sessions held periodically by Iowa BIG teachers to cover academic standards not addressed through student projects, with students expected to work independently between seminar meetings.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 1,500 students served and hundreds of projects completed for community partners
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

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

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Cedar Rapids Community School DistrictcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2012Iowa BIG is a public school program operated by the Cedar Rapids Community School District. The district provides resources and serves as the primary educational partner enabling the program's operation and student enrollment.
• College Community School DistrictcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2012The College Community school district stepped up alongside Cedar Rapids to provide resources and a 'sandbox' from which to begin building the Iowa BIG program in 2012.
• Community Partners (Businesses, Non-profits, Government Agencies)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2012Local businesses, non-profits, and government agencies serve as project providers and participatory audiences. They fully integrate with students on authentic, contextually-rich projects. Projects come from their real needs and partners mentor and assess student work.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• New Tech Network: A national school development organization that supports project-based learning schools across the U.S. Operates as a network partner to districts, directly comparable to Iowa BIG's model of district-embedded PBL schools.
• Big Picture Learning: A national nonprofit network that designs and supports project-based, internship-driven high schools. Highly comparable to Iowa BIG as both center learning around authentic, community-mentored projects rather than traditional seat-time instruction.
• Summit Public Schools: A public charter school network using self-directed, project-based learning with mentor-supported personal goals. Comparable to Iowa BIG in delivering alternative, student-driven high school experiences inside public funding structures.
• High Tech High: San Diego-based network of project-based K-12 schools emphasizing interdisciplinary, real-world student work. Shares Iowa BIG's pedagogy of standards mastery through authentic projects with external audiences and public展示 of student work.
• Envision Schools: Bay Area public charter high schools using project-based learning, portfolios, and exhibitions. Comparable to Iowa BIG in centering student agency and authentic assessment as core design principles.

Regional players

• NYC iSchool: A New York City public high school built around student-driven projects, technology, and partnerships. Comparable to Iowa BIG as a public-school-hosted PBL program, though operating at larger scale in a different region.
• Kettle Moraine School District (Future Forward): Wisconsin district known for its innovative learner-centered high school models including personalized and project-based pathways. Comparable as another public-district-embedded PBL program, though serving a different geography.

Broad incumbents

• PBLWorks (Buck Institute for Education): A leading PBL professional development and advocacy organization that trains teachers and schools in project-based learning. Comparable as a broader ecosystem player shaping the same pedagogical movement Iowa BIG operates in.
• XQ Institute: The organization behind the XQ Super School Project that awarded Iowa BIG its $1M grant. Functions as an incumbent funder/incubator for innovative high school redesign, with direct financial and reputational ties to Iowa BIG.

Emerging players

• Diploma Plus: A network supporting competency-based, personalized high school pathways with performance assessment. Comparable to Iowa BIG's emphasis on mastery, agency, and real-world application rather than traditional seat-time progression.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/iowabig

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 Iowa BIG