King Open School

What King Open School does

King Open School is a public K-5 elementary school (with a preschool program, CPP) operated by the Cambridge Public Schools district at 850 Cambridge Street, Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1975 by approximately 20 Cambridge parents as The Open School at the King School and renamed King Open School after the move to the Harrington School building in 2002, the school runs parallel programs: a mainstream track (4 strands) and the Olá two-way Portuguese-English bilingual immersion program (1 strand). It enrolls students exclusively from the district catchment and operates at no tuition, with placement governed by district lottery for preschool and kindergarten.

The school's academic offering is built on Massachusetts State Standards with a distinctive social-justice and culturally responsive curriculum integrating Discovering Justice (1st grade), Origins social studies (2nd), and a Charles River unit (3rd), supplemented by structured interventions (Reading Recovery, Leveled Literacy Intervention, Math intervention) and inclusion programs including an ASD strand (max 5 students per classroom) and ESL services. Technology is configured around vendor platforms — ClassLink, Aspen, Google Classroom, i-Ready, Lexia Core5, Symphony Math, Fastbridge, Naviance, and the Follett Destiny library system — in a dedicated Library and Technology Center; no proprietary AI or platform is developed on site. Extended learning is delivered through KOED (serving ~3/4 of students), Tutoring Plus (200+ students with MIT volunteer-led Science Explorers), Everybody Wins! Metro Boston Power Lunch (80 mentors), CitySprouts, Food For Free Carrot Cards, and Discovering Justice curriculum partnership.

The business model is non-commercial: King Open is funded through the Cambridge Public Schools district's public education allocation (local, state, and federal), with no tuition, no enrollment fees for residents, and limited fee-bearing optional out-of-school-time activities. The school is led by Principal Darrell Williams and Assistant Principal May Petrov, supported by two Family Liaisons and a wider staff body of ~136 named roles per the public directory. Distribution is direct via the district Student Registration Center; marketing is primarily district-driven, augmented by formal school tours (October-January), the multilingual website (8 languages), ParentSquare, and community events such as the MLK and Black History celebrations and Science Day. Strategic positioning is concentrated on equity, bilingual immersion, and inclusive practice rather than expansion outside the Cambridge catchment.

Name

King Open School

Legal name

King Open School

Website

https://kingopen.cpsd.us

Company type

Public

Founded year

1975

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

King Open School is a public K-5 elementary school (with preschool) in Cambridge, Massachusetts, operated by Cambridge Public Schools. It serves district families through a mainstream program and the Olá Portuguese-English bilingual immersion strand, funded by public education allocations with no tuition.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Public K-5 Elementary Education

NAICS

Elementary and Secondary Schools (611110), Elementary and Secondary Schools (61111)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Public Elementary Schools (EDAJAAAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Charter Language Immersion & Bilingual Schools (EDAJACAI), Specialized Programs & Classrooms (Autism, Emotional/Behavioral, Intellectual/Developmental, Multi-Disability) (EDAJAKAH), Early Childhood Development (ECD) & Pre-Primary Education (BPADAKAB), Head Start & Public Pre-K Programs (EDACABAK)

Keywords

• Public elementary education
• Bilingual immersion program
• Special education services
• After school programs
• Social justice curriculum

Headquarters

HQ city

Cambridge

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Public School Funding: King Open is a public school within Cambridge Public Schools district, funded through public education funding (local taxes, state funding, federal programs). No tuition is charged for enrollment.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

King Open School is a public K-5 elementary school (plus preschool/CPP) within the Cambridge Public Schools district that delivers full-day academic instruction aligned with Massachusetts State Standards, plus the Olá two-way Portuguese-English bilingual immersion strand, an ASD special education program, ESL services, intervention programs (Reading Recovery, Leveled Literacy, Math intervention), specialist instruction in art/music/PE/library/technology, and King Open Extended Day (KOED) before- and after-school programming serving approximately three-quarters of enrolled students.

Product overview

King Open School is a public elementary school (Kindergarten through 5th grade) within the Cambridge Public Schools district in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It is not a technology product company but rather an educational institution. The school offers a regular academic program (4 strands) as well as the Olá two-way Portuguese-English bilingual immersion program. Additional programs include the Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) Program, English as a Second Language (ESL) services, and various student support interventions such as Leveled Literacy Intervention, Reading Recovery, and Math intervention programs. The school also partners with King Open Extended Day (KOED) for after-school programming. No distinct commercial product, SaaS platform, or software-as-a-service offering was identified on the website.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Olá: A two-way Portuguese-English bilingual immersion program within King Open, serving grades K-5. Students receive instruction approximately half in English and half in Portuguese, with the goal of developing bilingual and biliterate students.
• King Open Extended Day (KOED)

Products and services

• K-5 Regular Education Program Standard public elementary school program across four strands, serving kindergarten through 5th grade students with full academic curriculum aligned to Massachusetts State Standards, differentiated instruction, social-emotional development, and inclusive practices.
• Olá Portuguese-English Bilingual Immersion Program Two-way Portuguese-English bilingual immersion strand within King Open serving K-5 students with approximately half of instruction delivered in English and half in Portuguese, developing bilingual and biliterate students; includes an annual 5th-grade trip to the Azores.

Quantifiable outcome

• School Improvement Plan and School Report Card demonstrate ongoing academic progress monitoring
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Everybody Wins! Metro BostoncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2008Power Lunch reading mentor program matches volunteer readers from local businesses (Biogen Idec, Gentle Giant, CDM Smith, Blackbaud, Riverside Boating) with elementary students in grades 1-4. 80 mentors currently read to 63 students. Meets Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from 11:30AM-1PM from October until June.
• CitySproutscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCitySprouts is a school garden program that provides hands-on science learning experiences. A CitySprouts Garden Educator visits every other week throughout the year, partnering with classroom teachers to engage students in garden-based investigations and projects. The courtyard garden includes raised beds for vegetables, herbs, and flowers used as outdoor classrooms.
• King Open Extended Day (KOED)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKOED is a collaboration between Cambridge Public Schools Department and the City's Department of Human Services Programs (DHSP). Serves approximately 3/4 of King Open students with before/after school, summer, and vacation week programs. KOED teachers offer academic support during the school day and focus on social-emotional development in after-school hours.
• Food For FreecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFood For Free's Carrot Cards program provides reloadable debit cards to Cambridge and Somerville public school families for use at any food retailer. Cards are loaded with $25/month per student enrolled. King Open's Family Liaison coordinates with Food For Free to support families through the Carrot Card Program and Free Market.
• Tutoring Plus of CambridgecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFree tutoring and enrichment programs serving over 200 students in grades 4-12. Programs include one-on-one tutoring (grades 4-5 Monday nights), Science Explorers with MIT volunteers, MCAS Math Prep, Girls Media & You, and Future Engineers. Operates 5:30-7PM Monday-Thursday.
• MIT VolunteersminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMIT volunteers lead Science Explorers program (grades 4-6), an 8-week hands-on science program teaching that science is fun through experiments. Part of Tutoring Plus offerings at King Open.
• DHSP Community SchoolscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDepartment of Human Service Programs offers youth-serving Out-of-School Time programs including childcare (K-5th), Community Schools (K-5th Grade), and Cambridge Youth Programs for pre-teen/middle school (4th-8th Grade). Enrollment through DHSP lottery system.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Amigos School PK-8: Cambridge Public Schools PK-8 school with a Spanish-English two-way immersion program, directly comparable to King Open on district enrollment, progressive pedagogy, and bilingual immersion model.
• Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. School: Cambridge Public Schools K-5 elementary school sharing the same district governance, public-funding model, and inclusive K-5 instructional design as King Open.
• Graham and Parks School: Cambridge Public Schools K-5 elementary school serving a similarly diverse urban population under the same district policies and curriculum frameworks as King Open.
• Peabody School: Cambridge Public Schools K-5 elementary school operating in the same district and grade span as King Open, with overlapping student-support and ESL service offerings.
• Fletcher-Maynard Academy: Cambridge Public Schools K-5 elementary school sharing the same district enrollment lottery, public funding, and inclusive K-5 instructional framework as King Open.
• Cambridgeport School: Cambridge Public Schools K-5 elementary school within the same district, comparable to King Open in grade configuration, urban demographics, and progressive curricular approach.
• Haggerty School: Cambridge Public Schools K-5 elementary school operating under the same enrollment, funding, and curriculum framework as King Open with comparable community-engagement programming.
• Baldwin School: Cambridge Public Schools K-5 elementary school comparable to King Open on grade configuration, district funding, and K-5 curriculum delivery model.
• Oyster-Adams Bilingual School: Washington, DC public K-8 school with a Spanish-English two-way immersion model, closely comparable to King Open's Ol\u00e1 program in two-way immersion pedagogy and urban public-school context.
• Morse School: Cambridge Public Schools K-5 elementary school serving a similar diverse Cambridge population under the same district policies as King Open.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/kingopen.cpsd
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/king-open-school
• Instagraminstagram.com/cambridgepublicschools

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 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 King Open School