National School Reform Faculty

Name

National School Reform Faculty

Legal name

National School Reform Faculty

Website

https://nsrfharmony.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Educator Professional Development and Training Services

NAICS

Professional and Management Development Training (611430), Professional and Management Development Training (61143), Educational Support Services (61171)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPACANAM

Training Delivery Providers (In-Person, Virtual, Train-the-Trainer)

Business & Public Services/HR, Staffing & Recruitment Services/Training, Learning & Development Services

Keywords

• Educator professional development
• Facilitation protocols
• Coaching certification
• Professional learning communities
• School improvement training

Headquarters

HQ city

Bloomington, Indiana

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Professional Training Programs: NSRF generates primary revenue through professional development training programs including virtual and on-site CFG Coaches' Training (5-day intensives) priced at $999 per participant. Training culminates in certification and includes handbook and year-long membership.
2. Membership Subscriptions: Annual memberships provide access to protocol libraries, resources, and the Connections publication. Regular membership $25/year; Coaches' membership available for certified CFG coaches. Auto-renewable subscription option available.
3. Book and Resource Sales: Sale of published books and resources including Protocols for All ($40-43), More Courageous Conversations About Race ($34), At What Cost? ($18), and Facilitator's Guides. Physical products sold through e-commerce store and Amazon.
4. Self-Paced Online Courses: Asynchronous virtual courses like Better Meetings: Structure for Success offered at $59.98, providing on-demand professional development with certificate of completion.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

National School Reform Faculty (NSRF) delivers Critical Friends Group® (CFG®) Coaches' Certification training and supporting professional development resources for educators. Core offerings include a 5-day on-site or 26-hour virtual coaches' training ($999/seat) leading to CFG certification, annual memberships that unlock proprietary protocol libraries, and a catalog of shorter specialized trainings plus published books and self-paced courses.

Product overview

National School Reform Faculty (NSRF) offers a suite of professional development products centered on Critical Friends Group® (CFG) work, which originated with the organization in 1994. The core offering is the CFG Coaches' Training program, available as both virtual (26-hour, 8-session Zoom-based training) and on-site (5-day in-person) formats, leading to CFG Coach Certification. Supporting the training are Protocol Libraries accessible through annual memberships (Regular at $25/year or Coaches' Membership for certified coaches). NSRF also publishes the 'Protocols for All' book ($43 spiral-bound, available on Amazon) containing 50+ facilitation structures. Additional products include the self-paced 'Better Meetings: Structure for Success' course (co-created with Coltrain Group®, $59.98), the 'Courageous Conversations About Race' book series, and the 'At What Cost?' book on adolescent development. Physical products include Collaborative Cue Cards. The organization also offers shorter specialized training modules covering Data Discovery, Observations, Text/Media Protocols, Difficult Conversations, and Team-building.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Critical Friends Group (CFG): A structured collaborative methodology for educators that focuses on building trust and solving problems through intentional facilitation using NSRF protocols.

Products and services

• Critical Friends Group® (CFG) Virtual Coaches' Training 26-hour virtual training delivered via Zoom across eight sessions that culminates in CFG® Coaches' Certification. Teaches educators how to build trust, lead CFG communities, and facilitate NSRF protocols and activities. Priced at $999 per seat, including handbook and one-year Coaches' Membership.
• Critical Friends Group® (CFG) On-Site Coaches' Training 5-day intensive in-person experiential training held at customer or NSRF-designated locations such as Los Angeles, CA, culminating in CFG® Coaches' Certification from NSRF. Registration is $999 per seat and includes the CFG Coaches' Handbook and year-long Coaches' Membership.
• Protocols for All (Book) Book by Michele Mattoon and Luci Englert McKean containing 50 practical structures to ensure engagement, deepen learning, and improve facilitation skills. Available in spiral-bound ($43), paperback ($40), and Kindle ($38) editions, also distributed on Amazon.
• Better Meetings: Structure for Success Self-paced virtual course co-created by NSRF and Coltrain Group® that teaches how to structure effective meetings, create goal-driven discussions, and maximize meeting participation and outcomes. Priced at $59.98 (sale price; originally $99.98) and includes a certificate of completion.
• Regular Annual Membership Annual membership providing access to NSRF's Members' Protocol Library, subscription to the Connections publication, and member-level resources. Priced at $25/year with an auto-renewable option.
• CFG Coaches' Membership Annual membership for trained CFG Coaches providing full access to the Coaches' Protocol Library, exclusive resources, and coaches-level support. Requires completion of full CFG Coach Training.
• Courageous Conversations About Race (Field Guide) A field guide for achieving equity in schools. Priced at $27.
• Facilitator's Guide: Courageous Conversations About Race Companion volume to Courageous Conversations About Race providing chapter summaries, activities, writing prompts, and artwork for overheads and handouts. Priced at $16.
• More Courageous Conversations About Race Sequel to the 2006 Courageous Conversations About Race book, expanding the discussion of equity and social justice in schools. Priced at $34.
• At What Cost?: Defending Adolescent Development in Fiercely Competitive Schools Book by Dr. David Gleason investigating concerns in competitive high schools about student mental health, overscheduling, and overwhelming practices. Priced at $18.
• Collaborative Cue Cards Physical cue cards that assist participants engaged in CFG work with key skills, adding efficiency and effectiveness to NSRF protocols. Available in 12-pack ($41.25) and 15-pack ($44.50) options.
• Specialized Trainings Catalog Catalog of shorter specialized trainings including Data Discovery and Decision Making, Collaborating For a Child, Learning through Observations, Text and Media Protocol, Difficult Conversations, Maximize Meeting Effectiveness, Team-building, and Facilitative Leadership. Available on-site or virtually, in one- or two-day formats.

Named customers3 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

One partnership is on record.

• Coltrain GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-creation partnership with Coltrain Group to develop the Better Meetings: Structure for Success self-paced virtual course. Combines NSRF facilitation expertise with Coltrain Group's meeting optimization methodologies.

Scale indicators3 records

Regional players

• CENTER FOR COLLABORATIVE EDUCATION: A nonprofit focused on equitable school redesign and educator collaboration. Comparable to NSRF on school-improvement and collaboration methodology, though more equity-policy focused.

Emerging players

• BetterLesson: An online PD platform connecting teachers with coaches and offering virtual PD workshops. Partially comparable to NSRF's virtual training model and PD focus, though more technology-led.

Direct peers

• Learning Forward: The largest US professional association dedicated exclusively to educator professional learning. Directly comparable to NSRF as both organizations deliver training, conferences, and resources focused on improving educator practice and student outcomes.
• Edutopia: The George Lucas Educational Foundation's PD content platform for educators, offering free articles, videos, and resources on teaching strategies. Comparable to NSRF as a content-and-community-driven PD resource for K-12.
• ASCD: A major educator association providing professional development, books, and conferences for teachers and administrators. Highly comparable to NSRF given shared focus on educator capacity-building and curriculum/leadership development.
• New Teacher Center: A nonprofit focused on teacher induction, mentoring, and PD. Directly comparable to NSRF as both serve K-12 educators with structured training and ongoing professional support programs.
• Corwin: A leading PD publisher and training provider for K-12 educators, offering books, on-site workshops, and online courses. Highly comparable to NSRF's publishing-plus-training model.
• Solution Tree: A PD and publishing company best known for the Professional Learning Communities (PLC) framework. Directly comparable to NSRF as both deliver structured collaboration training, books, and on-site/district consulting for K-12 educators.

Broad incumbents

• ISTE: The International Society for Technology in Education provides standards, PD, and certification for educators. Overlaps with NSRF on PD delivery but focuses specifically on educational technology integration.

Others

• Public Agenda: A nonprofit research and engagement organization producing reports on education and democracy. Adjacent to NSRF as a thought-leadership and educator-engagement organization, though not a direct competitor.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/TheNSRF
• Facebookfacebook.com/NationalSchoolReformFaculty
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/nsrf
• Instagraminstagram.com/nsrfharmony

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 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 National School Reform Faculty