Sister Schools

What Sister Schools does

Sister Schools is a Seattle-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1988 by Terry McGill that operates a school-to-school exchange program between K-12 institutions in the Puget Sound region of Washington State and primary schools in Uganda's Mukono District and Kampala region. The organization's core offering is a four-stage School Partnership Program — Fall Presentation, Supply Drive, Distribution, and Return Presentation — through which US students collect school supplies (pencils, books, backpacks, soccer balls) that are shipped to Uganda and personally delivered to partner schools, with photographic 'picture pairs' linking donors to recipients. Supporting programs include a Literacy Training Program that operates five Resource Centers with 18,000+ books and trains Ugandan teachers, a Scholarship Program that sponsors Ugandan students through secondary school, and the Varsity Team monthly giving program (starting at $10/month).

The organization has no proprietary technology; operations rely on standard nonprofit administration, donor management, and logistics for international shipping of physical supplies. Revenue is generated entirely through donations across three streams: individual contributions (one-time and recurring), corporate sponsorships (e.g., Windermere Shoreline at Echo Lake Elementary, Skanska), and school/community fundraisers (e.g., Fernwood Elementary's annual benefit concert raising ~$5,000). The organization employs approximately five full-time staff (Executive Director, Development Director, Uganda Program Manager, Literacy Coordinator, Accountant) plus a part-time founder/volunteer, governed by an 11-member board with one advisory member. Programs operate through direct partnerships with partner schools and PTA organizations rather than through any digital marketplace.

In 2024 the organization completed a leadership transition — founder Terry McGill retired after 35+ years and was succeeded by Jaime Dubrulle — while simultaneously losing its USAID grant that had funded shipping costs, creating a near-term operating pressure that will need to be offset through expanded individual and corporate fundraising.

Name

Sister Schools

Legal name

Sister Schools

Website

https://sisterschools.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1988

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Education Outreach Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), Educational Services (611)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

K–12 Support & School Improvement Nonprofits (BPAGADAB)

Keywords

• School partnership programs
• Education outreach
• School supply drives
• Literacy program support
• International student exchange

Headquarters

HQ city

Seattle

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Others

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: Individual donors contribute one-time or recurring donations to support school supply programs and operations. The Varsity Team offers monthly giving starting at $10.
2. Corporate Sponsorships: Local businesses sponsor specific schools or programs, such as Windermere Shoreline sponsoring Echo Lake Elementary's Sister Schools program.
3. School/Community Fundraisers: Partner schools conduct benefit concerts and fundraising events. Fernwood Elementary raised nearly $5,000 through an annual benefit concert.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Sister Schools connects K-12 schools in the Puget Sound region with primary schools in Uganda through structured school partnerships, facilitating Fall Presentations, two-week school supply drives, collection and shipping, and end-of-year Return Presentations. It also runs a Literacy Training Program that builds Resource Centers and trains Ugandan teachers, a Scholarship Program for secondary school students in Uganda, and the Varsity Team monthly donor program starting at $10 per month.

Product overview

Sister Schools offers a portfolio of educational outreach programs connecting Puget Sound students with Ugandan peers. The core School Partnership Program guides schools through four stages: Fall Presentation, Supply Drive, Distribution, and Return Presentation. Supporting programs include the Literacy Training Program (which builds and maintains Resource Centers/libraries in Uganda) and the Scholarship Program (sponsoring secondary education for Ugandan students). The Varsity Team monthly giving program provides recurring donor support.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• School Partnership Program Core four-stage program connecting K-12 schools in the Puget Sound region with primary schools in Uganda: Fall Presentation (cultural education), two-week Supply Drive (collecting school supplies), Distribution (shipping and delivering supplies to Uganda), and end-of-year Return Presentation (showing impact to donors and US students).
• Literacy Training Program Establishes and maintains Resource Centers (school libraries) at Ugandan partner schools, conducts teacher workshops to improve reading instruction, and supports 18,000+ donated books across five Resource Centers over 10 years.
• Scholarship Program

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 2,300 Seattle-area students participated annually in the program
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Windermere Real Estate/ShorelinecoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2024Serving the Shoreline community since 1977, Windermere Shoreline sponsors Sister Schools' program at Echo Lake Elementary. Their support enables students to participate in global citizenship education and supply collection for Uganda partner schools. The partnership exemplifies how local businesses can help shape the next generation of global citizens.
• SkanskaminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSkanska, a construction company, partnered with Sister Schools for building hope initiatives, including gala sponsorship and construction projects.
• Chautauqua Elementary SchoolcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerChautauqua Elementary School on Vashon Island participates in Sister Schools program, connecting students to Uganda, Spain, Colombia, Mexico, and Puerto Rico through global education initiatives.
• The Amity InstituteminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization that helps connect Chautauqua Elementary students to international cultures alongside Sister Schools.
• Clyde Hill ElementarycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBellevue, WA school with about 600 students in K-5; participated in Sister Schools program, hosting Terry McGill for presentations and conducting supply drives.
• Fernwood ElementarycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-standing partner school; hosts annual benefit concerts raising thousands of dollars; music teacher Katherine Berry has been instrumental in program development and literacy center establishment.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Pencils of Promise: Pencils of Promise builds schools and funds education programs in developing countries, including Uganda. Like Sister Schools, it relies on donor engagement and school partnerships to deliver supplies and educational access to underserved students.
• African Library Project: African Library Project partners with US schools, groups, and individuals to establish small libraries in African schools. It mirrors Sister Schools' literacy-center and US-school-driven supply chain.
• The School Fund: The School Fund enables individual donors to directly support students' secondary education costs in East Africa, including Uganda. It is comparable to Sister Schools on Uganda-focused student support and donor-direct giving model.
• Books for Africa: Books for Africa collects and ships books to schools and libraries across the African continent. It is comparable to Sister Schools on the book-supply-to-African-schools mission and US-donor-collection distribution model.
• SchoolBOX: SchoolBOX builds and equips schools and supports literacy in underserved communities in Latin America and Africa. It shares Sister Schools' school-partnership, supply-driven, and literacy-center model.
• buildOn: buildOn partners with US schools and youth to construct schools and support education in low-income communities across Africa, Asia, and Latin America. It shares Sister Schools' US-school-driven partnership model and community-led GTM motion.

Emerging players

• Global Citizen Year: Global Citizen Year runs global citizenship and intercultural learning programs for US high school students. It overlaps with Sister Schools on the global-citizenship development outcome for US students, though it delivers through fellowships rather than supply partnerships.

Others

• Girl Rising: Girl Rising focuses on girls' education and empowerment through storytelling and advocacy in developing countries. It is thematically adjacent to Sister Schools on international K-12 education access but operates a media/advocacy model rather than school-supply partnerships.

Broad incumbents

• Room to Read: Room to Read is a much larger literacy and girls' education nonprofit operating school libraries and reading programs across multiple developing countries. It overlaps with Sister Schools on literacy centers in African schools but at substantially greater scale and geographic breadth.

Regional players

• Rwanda Education Assistance Project: REAP partners with US communities to support schools and students in Rwanda through supplies, scholarships, and infrastructure. It is comparable to Sister Schools on the cross-border K-12 partnership and supply-drive model but focuses on Rwanda rather than Uganda.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/sisterschools
• Instagraminstagram.com/sisterschools
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sister-schools

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 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 Sister Schools