Research Schools International

What Research Schools International does

Research Schools International (RSI) is a Cambridge, MA-headquartered non-profit research-practice organization founded in 2017 by Dr. Christina Hinton. It partners with K-12 schools globally to study and develop programs in character skills, adolescent wellbeing, and global competence, operating a secondary office in London and delivering services in English, Spanish, and French across 70+ countries. Its core offerings include the Promoting Flourishing in Schools program, the Character Skills Program, the IB/Oxford Wellbeing in Schools Programme (154 schools in 71 countries), the OECD/Round Square Global Competence program (147 schools in 34 countries), the UNESCO Education for Flourishing project, the Youth for Youth initiative, Parenting Workshops, and an early childhood flourishing measure developed with Templeton World Charity Foundation and Sesame Workshop.

The technical backbone is a research-practice methodology co-developed with Harvard's Human Flourishing Program and validated through 80+ projects, producing cross-cultural comparative datasets and freely disseminated instruments such as the Character Skills Report and flourishing booklets. Digital extensions include the Send a Smile app, expanding distribution beyond institutional buyers. The team draws heavily on Harvard and Project Zero-affiliated researchers, including an AI Fellow working on human-centered AI literacy programming.

RSI's business model is professional services sold as multi-year school partnerships with custom pricing. Revenue is generated from anchor partnerships with elite schools (e.g., Eton, Wellington, Phillips Exeter, Bedales, Holyport) and large institutional cohorts convened through IB, UNESCO, OECD/PISA, Oxford, Round Square, and Templeton. The model relies on academic co-branding and free dissemination of instruments to drive inbound demand, converting participating schools into paid multi-year engagements. The organization is privately held with a small core staff (approximately 5 employees per firmographics) supplemented by a broader network of part-time academic contributors.

Name

Research Schools International

Legal name

Research Schools International

Website

https://researchschoolsinternational.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Research Schools International is a non-profit founded in 2017 that partners with K-12 schools in 70+ countries on character skills, wellbeing, and global competence research and professional development, co-developed with Harvard's Human Flourishing Program.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Education Research and Professional Development Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (6117)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Research, Monitoring, Evaluation & Learning (MEL) Partnerships (EDADALAK)

akta.pro secondary industry

Research Collaboration & Joint Labs (International Partnerships) (EDAIABAC)

Keywords

• Education research services
• Professional development schools
• Student wellbeing programs
• Character skills curriculum
• School partnership consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

Cambridge

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. School Partnership Programs: RSI generates revenue through collaborative research and professional development programs with partner schools. Schools pay for customized two-year projects that include in-depth research studies, in-person and hybrid professional development, and program implementation support tailored to each school's needs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Research Schools International partners directly with schools worldwide to conduct collaborative research studies and deliver tailored professional development programs focused on student character skills (empathy, growth mindset, mindfulness, motivation, global competence) and overall flourishing. Programs are offered as multi-year engagements combining in-depth research, in-person and hybrid educator training, and dissemination of findings, with a complementary gratitude-focused mobile application.

Product overview

Research Schools International (RSI) is an education research organization that operates as a research-and-professional-development service provider rather than a software product company. RSI offers a portfolio of collaborative research programs and professional development services centered on character skills and student flourishing, delivered through partnerships with Harvard's Human Flourishing Program, UNESCO, and other institutions. The core offerings include six main program types: Promoting Flourishing in Schools, Promoting Character Skills and Flourishing, Education for Flourishing (UNESCO partnership), Youth for Youth Flourishing, Evidence-Based Parenting for Flourishing Families, and Impact Studies. These programs are complemented by research focus areas spanning empathy, happiness, global competence, mindfulness, growth mindset, and motivation. RSI also developed the Send a Smile gratitude app and provides a global network of school partners across 70+ countries. All programs are delivered in English, Spanish, and French.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Promoting Flourishing in Schools Research and Professional Development Program A two-year collaborative research and professional development engagement that begins with an in-depth research study on student flourishing at the partner school, followed by in-person and hybrid professional development to help educators implement evidence-based initiatives targeting growth areas identified by the research.
• Promoting Character Skills and Flourishing Research and Professional Development Program A research and professional development program delivered with Harvard's Human Flourishing Program that assesses students' character skills and flourishing, provides professional development for educators, and disseminates findings to the global education community.
• Education for Flourishing Project A research and professional development program developed in partnership with UNESCO researchers that promotes flourishing among students, educators, and parents in schools around the world as part of the Happy Schools initiative.
• Youth for Youth Flourishing Program A one-year hybrid program in which students create and implement evidence-based initiatives to promote flourishing among children and adolescents at their schools and around the world.
• Evidence-Based Parenting for Flourishing Families Workshop Workshops developed in collaboration with Harvard's Human Flourishing Program that schools can offer to families on evidence-based parenting strategies to nurture flourishing in children.
• Impact Study A longitudinal research study conducted by RSI and Harvard to assess the impact of partner school programs on participants' flourishing and other outcomes, including an in-person workshop to present findings and collaborate on program improvements.
• Global Competence Research and Professional Development Research-based programs that help schools develop students' global competencies, including knowledge of global issues, respect for cultural diversity, intercultural understanding, and responsible action toward sustainability.
• Wellbeing in Schools Program A global collaborative action research program with International Baccalaureate and the Oxford Centre for Wellbeing Research that explores policies and practices supporting student wellbeing aged 3-18 across thousands of educators and hundreds of schools worldwide.
• Send a Smile App A research-based mobile application developed by RSI that guides students to write thoughtful thank-you notes, supporting students' gratitude, happiness, and social-emotional learning.

Quantifiable outcome

• 80+ research and professional development projects completed across 70+ countries
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers19 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

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• Harvard Graduate School of Education (Human Flourishing Program)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRSI was founded by Harvard faculty and maintains a close partnership with the Human Flourishing Program at Harvard. RSI leads the Human Flourishing Program's work in education globally. The research team from RSI and Harvard collaborates on all major projects including research studies, professional development, and the development of flourishing measures for children and adolescents.
• International Baccalaureate (IB)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerRSI partnered with IB and Oxford Centre for Wellbeing Research on a global Wellbeing in Schools Program involving 154 schools across 71 countries. This collaborative action research program explored policies and practices supporting student wellbeing aged 3-18, culminating in a publicly available multilingual digital booklet on research-informed practices.
• Oxford Centre for Wellbeing ResearchflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated with RSI and International Baccalaureate on the global Wellbeing in Schools Program. Contributed expertise in wellbeing research to analyze practices supporting student wellbeing across international schools.
• UNESCOflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerRSI partnered with UNESCO researchers on the Education for Flourishing Project - a program of research and professional development to promote flourishing among students, educators, and parents in schools around the world. This is part of the Happy Schools initiative.
• PlayVertocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborating with RSI and Harvard's Human Flourishing Program to create an engaging, accessible measure of flourishing for children ages 5-8, which will be published as open-access academic article.
• Sesame WorkshopcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnering with RSI and Harvard to develop a flourishing measure for children ages 5-8. Sesame Workshop contributes expertise in creating engaging educational content for young children.
• OECD/PISAflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerRSI collaborated with OECD/PISA and Round Square on research identifying key learning activities that support global competence. The study collected data from 147 schools across 34 countries in 6 continents using PISA's Global Competence Framework.
• Round SquareflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered with RSI and OECD/PISA on global competence research across 147 schools. Round Square provides access to its network of schools committed to experiential learning and global education.
• Christian Schools AustraliacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerConducted a landmark longitudinal study on student flourishing with 24,000 students across 70 schools in Australia - the first study of this scope on adolescent flourishing.
• Making Caring Common (Harvard)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRSI implements strategies from Making Caring Common (a project at Harvard Graduate School of Education) to help students develop empathy and compassion. Research showed MCC strategies led to statistically significant increases in students' sense of belonging, engagement, and compassion.
• ACS International SchoolscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRSI partnered with ACS International Schools to support them in deepening research-based practices that promote global competence, building on findings from the global competence study across 34 countries.
• Universidad de San Francisco de QuitominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated with RSI and Colegio Menor on research exploring how compassion arises in students through qualitative interview methods with preschoolers through 10th graders.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Market position

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/watch?v=LXrKB03W0bM
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/research-schools-international

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Research Schools International