Kölner Gymnasial- und Stiftungsfonds

What Kölner Gymnasial- und Stiftungsfonds does

Kölner Gymnasial- und Stiftungsfonds (KGS) is a Stiftung des öffentlichen Rechts (foundation under public law) headquartered in Cologne, Germany, governed by a five-member Verwaltungsrat with representation from the Archdiocese of Cologne, the City of Cologne, and educational professionals. It administers 313 individual private foundations under a single umbrella, with the oldest dating to 1422 and the newest established in September 2024. KGS functions as an educational support organization, awarding scholarships and operating programs for gifted and financially disadvantaged students across secondary school, university, vocational training, and family-foundation beneficiary segments in the Nordrhein-Westfalen region.

The core product set comprises four scholarship categories (Studienstipendien, Schülerstipendien, Familienstipendien, Fach- und Sonderstipendien) supplemented by operational programs including PlanBildung (delivered at four secondary schools), Kooperation Betrieb-Schule (vocational preparation across four Berufskollegs), the Kölner Handwerkstipendium, and the Kölner AD(H)S-Stiftung. Non-financial support is delivered through a Mentoringprogramm, a Bildungsprogramm of seminars and workshops, and annual Stiftungspreise awards. The technology layer consists of two digital platforms: a Bewerbungsportal for application processing and a Bildungsportal for ongoing stipend holder engagement and network access.

KGS generates revenue through three streams: professional management of a diversified endowment portfolio (stocks, bonds, other investments), rental and lease income from a real estate and land holdings portfolio (4.706M EUR in 2024), and incoming donations and Zustiftungen (65K EUR in cash donations in 2024). Pricing is non-applicable in a commercial sense, as scholarships are grants with no repayment obligation. In 2024, the foundation deployed 2.44M EUR in total funding volume to support over 800 students and pupils, with an additional 488K EUR budget for PlanBildung and Kooperation Betrieb-Schule serving approximately 220 students. The organization employs 13 people at its Cologne headquarters (with additional pedagogy staff bringing total program staff to ~23).

Name

Kölner Gymnasial- und Stiftungsfonds

Legal name

Kölner Gymnasial- und Stiftungsfonds

Website

https://stiftungsfonds.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1800

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Kölner Gymnasial- und Stiftungsfonds is a public-law foundation in Cologne administering 313 private sub-foundations to provide scholarships and educational programs to over 800 students and pupils annually across secondary, university, and vocational segments in the Nordrhein-Westfalen region.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Educational Foundation Services

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Grantmaking and Giving Services (8132), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Education Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Scholarship & Fellowship Foundations and Trusts (EDADAHAC), Private Foundations (BPAGAKAA)

Keywords

• Scholarship programs
• Educational foundation
• Endowment management
• Student financial aid
• Nonprofit education funding

Headquarters

HQ city

Cologne

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Endowment Investment Returns: The foundation generates revenue through professional management of its endowment portfolio, including stocks, bonds, and other investments. Returns are used exclusively for educational support according to donors' intentions.
2. Real Estate and Property Management: Rental and lease income from properties and land holdings managed as part of the foundation's asset base
3. Donations and Contributions: Incoming donations and Zustiftungen (additional contributions to existing endowments) from private donors and partners

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Kölner Gymnasial- und Stiftungsfonds is a charitable foundation that administers 313 individual private foundations and provides financial scholarships and non-financial (ideelle) educational support to students and pupils in Cologne and the surrounding region. Its core offerings include study scholarships, school scholarships, family scholarships, and specialist scholarships, supplemented by operational programs such as PlanBildung (academic and social support) and Kooperation Betrieb Schule (vocational preparation). The foundation also operates digital platforms for application management and alumni engagement.

Product overview

Kölner Gymnasial- und Stiftungsfonds is a foundation of public law that manages over 300 private foundations and serves as a comprehensive educational support organization. The core offering consists of financial scholarship programs (Studienstipendien, Schülerstipendien, Familienstipendien, Fach- und Sonderstipendien) that provide direct monetary support to students and pupils. These are supplemented by operational programs including PlanBildung (a support program for students with academic and social challenges) and Kooperation Betrieb Schule (vocational preparation cooperation with companies). Digital platforms including the Bewerbungsportal and Bildungsportal facilitate application processing and ongoing recipient engagement. Additional programs like the Mentoringprogramm, Bildungsprogramm (seminars and workshops), and Stiftungspreise (awards for academic excellence) provide ideelle (non-financial) support. The Kölner AD(H)S-Stiftung focuses on students with ADHD. Together, these products form an integrated ecosystem supporting young people from secondary school through university and into careers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• PlanBildung: A support program for children and youth with social and academic challenges at secondary schools, helping them achieve graduation and find vocational training positions. Formerly known as 'Einsteigen – Aufsteigen!'.
• Chancen stiften
• Bildung fördern e.V.

Products and services

• Studienstipendien (Study Scholarships)
• Schülerstipendien (School Scholarships)

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 800 students supported annually with scholarships
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Kreishandwerkerschaft KölncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020Joint initiative for Kölner Handwerkstipendium (craftsman scholarship) awarding 3,000 EUR to talented young craftsmen during their master craftsman training
• Karl Rahner AkademiecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2012Cooperation partner for educational seminars and workshops in political education and contemporary topics. Jointly organized events for stipend holders covering topics like democracy, European politics, and social issues.
• Stiftung Begabtenförderung Berufliche Bildung (SBB)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner for vocational education workshops and skill development programs for stipend holders
• Dr. Hans Riegel-StiftungminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner for specialized academic programs including glaciologie courses and academy programs for advanced students
• Universität zu KölncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMultiple partnerships including institutes for German language, philosophy, law, air and space law, supporting moot courts, summer schools, and poetry festivals
• Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität BonncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner for Georgia und Helmut Friedrich-Stiftungspreis für Psychologie awarded annually to students and doctoral candidates at the Institute for General Psychology
• Berufskolleg EhrenfeldcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPartner school for Kooperation Betrieb-Schule program providing vocational preparation for disadvantaged youth
• Berufskolleg UlrepfortecoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPartner school for Kooperation Betrieb-Schule vocational preparation program
• Berufskolleg Bergisch GladbachcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPartner school for Kooperation Betrieb-Schule vocational preparation program
• Hans-Böckler-BerufskollegcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPartner school for Kooperation Betrieb-Schule vocational preparation program

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Stifterverband für die Deutsche Wissenschaft: Umbrella association for German science foundations; comparable in administering and supporting a portfolio of private foundations with education/research missions, though at a national level.
• Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung: Major political foundation providing scholarships with comprehensive ideelle Förderung; broader in scale and political remit but operates the same student-scholarship-plus-programming model as KGS.
• Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung: Politically affiliated foundation offering scholarships and educational programming to German and international students; comparable scholarship-plus-ideelle-Förderung model at a much larger national scale.
• Hans-Böckler-Stiftung: Confederation-aligned foundation providing scholarships and vocational program support; shares KGS's focus on disadvantaged students transitioning from school to vocational training and employment.
• Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung: Large political foundation with extensive scholarship and educational programming; comparable in offering scholarship plus mentoring plus ideological development, but at a much larger national scale.

Direct peers

• START-Stiftung: Provides scholarships to talented youth with migration backgrounds and is also a KGS partner; directly comparable as a private scholarship program with ideelle (mentoring, networking) support beyond pure financial aid.
• Cusanuswerk: Bishopric scholarship foundation funding Catholic students with ideelle Förderung; shares KGS's model of combining financial scholarships with educational programming and ideological development.
• Stiftung Begabtenförderung Berufliche Bildung (SBB): Awards scholarships for vocational education and is an existing KGS partner; comparable in targeting disadvantaged vocational students and Berufskolleg populations with private-foundation funding.
• Studienstiftung des deutschen Volkes: Germany's largest and most prestigious scholarship foundation, awarding stipends to exceptional students. Directly comparable to KGS as a merit-based, privately funded scholarship provider serving the same beneficiary segment across Germany.

Emerging players

• Dr. Hans Riegel-Stiftung: Corporate-affiliated foundation funding specialized academic programs (an existing KGS partner); comparable in providing subject-specific scholarships but with a narrower corporate-driven focus.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/Stiftungsfonds
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/school/k%C3%B6lner-gymnasial--und-stiftungsfonds
• Instagraminstagram.com/stiftungsfonds_koeln

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Kölner Gymnasial- und Stiftungsfonds