WPS Institute

What WPS Institute does

WPS Institute is a Massachusetts-based education nonprofit founded in 2017 that operates as an on-the-ground design partner to public school districts rather than a top-down consulting firm. Its core business is co-designing and implementing middle school redesign initiatives with school district leadership, supported by innovation grants, professional learning stipends, and facilitation of community partnerships. The organization's product portfolio centers on Community Innovation Partnerships with school districts (Salem Public Schools since 2022, Peabody Public Schools since October 2024, and Boston Public Schools since March 2025), supplemented by direct-to-student programs including the Summer Leadership Institute (a three-week immersive program on its Newton campus) and the Innovation Everywhere Internship (a student-led community impact program), as well as the MIT Morningside Academy for Design (MAD)/WPS Teacher Innovation Fellowship.

Underlying technology consists of documented design methodology rather than software: the Liberatory Design framework adapted from Stanford's D-School, a student-centered co-design process, and the Transcend Leaps Survey for measuring student engagement outcomes. Revenue is generated through a professional services model that combines foundation grants (Morningside Foundation is a named anchor funder providing innovation grants to partner districts), district partnership fees covering design and implementation support, and Summer Leadership Institute program fees. Customers are exclusively U.S. K-12 public school districts in Massachusetts and adjacent Greater Boston geographies; measurable outcomes cited include a 50% reduction in chronic absenteeism at Salem's Collins Middle School, MCAS score improvements, and internship engagement metrics of 87-97%.

Name

WPS Institute

Legal name

WPS Institute

Website

https://wpsinstitute.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

WPS Institute is an education nonprofit that partners with Massachusetts public school districts to co-design middle school innovation programs, combining district consulting, foundation-funded grants, and direct-to-student programs like the Summer Leadership Institute.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

K-12 Education Innovation Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) in Education (EDADALAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Community Engagement & Service-Learning Partnerships (EDALAOAI)

Keywords

• Education nonprofit
• School district partnerships
• Student-centered design
• Experiential learning programs
• Middle school innovation

Headquarters

HQ city

Newton

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Foundation Grants and Innovation Funding: WPS receives funding from foundations such as the Morningside Foundation to provide innovation grants to partner districts, which supports collaboration, professional learning, planning stipends for teachers, and community partnerships. This grant funding enables WPS to initiate and sustain district partnerships.
2. District Partnership Fees: WPS serves as a design partner to school districts, providing hands-on implementation support, strategic consulting, design and implementation support, and program documentation. Districts pay for this expertise in transforming their middle school programs.
3. Summer Leadership Institute Program Fees: Three-week summer program for high school students runs on WPS campus in Newton Centre, immersing students in Greater Boston's innovative spaces. Revenue generated from program participation fees.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

WPS Institute is an education nonprofit that partners with public school districts to co-design and implement student-centered, experiential learning programs for middle school students. It provides design and implementation support, innovation grants funded by foundations, professional learning for educators, community partnership facilitation, and program evaluation, with flagship offerings including the Summer Leadership Institute, the Innovation Everywhere Internship, and multi-year Community Innovation Partnerships with districts such as Salem, Boston, and Peabody Public Schools.

Product overview

WPS Institute is an education innovation organization that creates programs and partnerships to transform learning. Their portfolio includes the Summer Leadership Institute (a three-week immersive summer program), the Innovation Everywhere Internship (student-led community impact program), and Community Innovation Partnerships with school districts (Salem, Boston, Peabody) that provide co-design, implementation support, and professional learning. Programs incorporate Learning Immersions, Design Studios, Try It Day career exploration events, and Possibility Mentoring. The organization also offers the MIT MAD/WPS Teacher Innovation Fellowship and publishes the WPS Action Guide for school-community partnerships.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Summer Leadership Institute (SLI): A three-week summer program where high school students immerse themselves in innovative spaces across Greater Boston, learn real-world leadership skills, and develop community impact projects.
• Innovation Everywhere Internship (IEI)
• MIT MAD/WPS Teacher Innovation Fellowship

Products and services

• Summer Leadership Institute (SLI)

Quantifiable outcome

• Chronic absenteeism reduced by 50% at Collins Middle School over three years
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

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

• Boston Public SchoolscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 March 2025WPS partnered with Boston Public Schools in March 2025 to design a universal 7th and 8th grade experience, starting with a pilot at Charlestown High School. WPS provides an innovation grant (made possible by Morningside Foundation), co-design support, and implementation assistance. Mayor Michelle Wu highlighted the partnership in her 2025 State of the City address. Partnership serves 61 students in Dream Academy cohort.
• Peabody Public SchoolscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2024Partnership launched October 2024 with J. Henry Higgins Middle School to enrich educational journey of 400+ sixth graders. WPS provides funding for professional learning stipends, learning materials, strategic consulting, design support, and program documentation. Features Try It Day career exploration events and Blueprint for 6th Grade Experience program including community building, interest exploration, design challenges, and interdisciplinary projects.
• Salem Public SchoolscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Three-year partnership (2022-2025) to reimagine middle school education at Collins Middle School. Partnership cut chronic absenteeism in half, improved MCAS scores, and evolved from pilot to standard practice. WPS served as on-the-ground design partner providing funding, hands-on implementation support, community partnership facilitation, professional learning, and program evaluation. Salem Mayor Dominick Pangallo and Superintendent Dr. Stephen Zrike were key visionary leaders.
• MIT Morningside Academy for Design (MAD)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerMIT MAD/WPS Teacher Innovation Fellowship program. WPS collaborates with MIT's Morningside Academy for Design to advance design thinking in education through teacher professional development and innovation fellowships.
• Rennie Center for Education Research and PolicyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWPS partnership with Salem Public Schools was featured in Rennie Center's 2025 Condition of Education Action Guide. Dean of Innovation Chelsea Banks participated in community conversation at the convening alongside Secretary Patrick Tutwiler and Commissioner Jeffrey C. Riley.
• Aurora InstituteminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWPS presented at the Aurora Institute Symposium, a national convening dedicated to transforming K-12 learning through personalized, competency-based education. Session showcased community partnership model with Salem Public Schools and Salem State University.
• Salem State UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Salem State University's McKeown School of Education for possibility mentoring program. 10 undergraduate near-peer mentors (pre-service teachers) matched with 7th graders. Also partners with Center for Civic Engagement for civic action projects.
• Babson College Institute for Social InnovationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBabson College mentors support Innovation Everywhere Internship students. Students pitch community impact projects at Babson's Foundry, receiving guidance on entrepreneurship and social innovation.
• Boston Children's HospitalminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSummer Leadership Institute students experience clinical roles in high-fidelity simulations at Boston Children's Hospital, exploring healthcare careers.
• Eastie FarmminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEastie Farm provides Summer Leadership Institute students with experiences in sustainable agriculture and food justice at their geothermally powered greenhouse in East Boston.
• Wentworth Institute of TechnologyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSummer Leadership Institute students prototype with design mentors at Wentworth Institute of Technology.
• Harvard Business School Christensen CenterminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHarvard Business School's Christensen Center for Teaching & Learning facilitates case-based discussions with Summer Leadership Institute students, promoting participant-centered learning.
• Northeastern UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNortheastern University Professor Rahul Bhargava leads data sculpture workshops with SLI students. University partners on Climate Corps fellowship program with Eastie Farm.
• MIT Edgerton CenterminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMIT's Edgerton Center provides engineering experiences for Summer Leadership Institute students.
• Ipswich River Watershed AssociationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity partnership with Collins Middle School students on river health studies, environmental advocacy, and science experiments including macroinvertebrate counts and dissolved oxygen testing.
• FabNewportminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEcosystem exchange partnership with Rhode Island nonprofit helping youth build positive future visions. Staff visited Collins Middle School to learn about Salem's pilot program.
• Remake LearningminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWPS team attended Forge Futures Convening sponsored by Remake Learning and Grable Foundation in Pittsburgh, learning from regional ecosystem model for cross-sector learning networks.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Jobs for the Future: Larger national nonprofit working on equitable economic advancement, including student pathways and school-to-career redesign. Overlaps with WPS on career-connected learning (Try It Days, SLI) and district-level transformation, but at significantly greater scale and scope.
• XQ Institute: Nonprofit focused on redesigning American high schools with student-centered, project-based learning. Overlaps with WPS on the high-school student experience and on district- and school-level transformation, including career-connected learning.
• IDEO (Education practice): Global design consultancy with a notable education practice that partners with schools, districts, and foundations on human-centered design for learning. Comparable to WPS on Liberatory Design / human-centered design methodology applied to K-12.

Direct peers

• Big Picture Learning: Nonprofit network that designs and supports student-centered, internship-based school models. Highly comparable to WPS on student-led project work, employer/community partner involvement, and district partnership delivery.
• Transcend Education: Nonprofit that partners with schools and districts to design and launch innovative learning models, including use of the Leaps Survey (referenced in WPS's methodology). Directly comparable as a co-design partner for whole-school redesign.
• 2Revolutions: Education design firm that partners with districts and states to redesign K-12 systems around learner-centered models. Directly comparable to WPS on co-design, design partner staffing, and district-level transformation engagements.
• Highlander Institute: Rhode Island-based nonprofit partnering with districts on personalized, blended, and competency-based learning redesign. Comparable as a New England design partner with co-design and professional learning offerings similar to WPS.

Others

• Rennie Center for Education Research and Policy: Massachusetts-based policy and research organization that featured WPS's Salem partnership in its 2025 Action Guide. Enabling peer that amplifies WPS's evidence base but does not deliver district partnership services.
• Aurora Institute: Policy and advocacy organization promoting personalized, competency-based K-12 learning. WPS has presented at Aurora's symposium; the two are aligned on the student-centered redesign movement but Aurora is an enabling/convening peer rather than a direct competitor.

Emerging players

• BetterLesson: Provides professional learning and coaching to K-12 educators and districts, including on personalized and student-centered practices. Adjacent peer that overlaps with WPS on teacher professional learning and district coaching.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/WPSInstitute
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/wpsinstitute
• Instagraminstagram.com/wpsinstitute

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 WPS Institute