OAESA

What OAESA does

OAESA (Ohio Association of Elementary School Administrators) is a private, nonprofit professional membership association serving PreK-8 school administrators across Ohio. Founded in 1924 as the Ohio Department of Elementary Principals within the Ohio Education Association, it became an independent association in 1973 and was renamed OAESA in 1978 to reflect expanded membership that includes middle-level and central office administrators. The organization is headquartered in Columbus, Ohio and operates with a small staff (1-10 employees), reaching more than 1,600 school administrators through its Thursday Thoughts weekly email newsletter and distributing the Principal Navigator magazine to every superintendent in Ohio.

OAESA's product portfolio centers on professional development, advocacy, and assessment services rather than a unified technology platform. Core offerings include the OAESA 360° Feedback Tool — a $100-per-person annual subscription product aligned to Ohio Standards for Principals and the Ohio Teacher Evaluation System (OTES) — the Leaders AdvantEDGE Podcast, the tri-annual Principal Navigator magazine, the InfoHub member portal, and an annual professional conference. Recognition programs include Principal of the Year, Hall of Fame Schools (since 1984), and lifetime achievement awards. A Legal Defense Fund provides access to staff attorneys and representation in contract disputes, while a university partnership with Concordia University Chicago offers graduate programs and principal licensure for members.

Revenue is generated through four primary streams: annual membership dues (subscription, with multiple payment options including payroll deduction), conference and event registration fees ($249-$899 depending on event and membership status), the OAESA 360° Feedback Tool subscription, and corporate partnership/advertising revenue (e.g., $500 weekly Thursday Thoughts sponsorships, $699 vendor booths). The organization distributes services through direct member engagement via its website portal, 10 regional zones with both in-person and virtual meetings, an annual conference at the Hilton Columbus at Easton, and partnerships with sister organizations including OASSA, BASA, and OASBO, as well as corporate partners such as Curriculum Associates, Renaissance, FranklinCovey, Horace Mann, and Varsity Tutors.

Name

OAESA

Legal name

Ohio Association of Elementary School Administrators

Website

https://oaesa.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1924

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

OAESA is a private nonprofit professional membership association serving PreK-8 school administrators across Ohio through advocacy, professional development, conferences, recognition programs, and a 360° feedback evaluation tool aligned to Ohio Standards.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Education Association Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

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

akta.pro primary industry

ECE Leadership & Administration Training (Directors/Owners/Supervisors) (EDACAIAD)

Keywords

• Education leadership association
• Professional development services
• Administrator evaluation tools
• School administrator membership
• Education advocacy services

Headquarters

HQ city

Columbus

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Annual membership dues for professional, associate, aspiring, retired, and institutional membership levels. Membership runs for 12 months from date of processing. Multiple payment options including one-time payment, credit card, extended payment plan, and payroll deduction through districts.
2. Conference and Event Registration: Registration fees for professional conferences, training events, and zone meetings. OAESA 2027 Professional Conference: $399 member, $499 non-member. Administrative Assistants Conference: $249-$299. Beginning Administrators Academy: $399-$699 for one or both sessions.
3. OAESA 360° Feedback Tool Subscriptions: $100 per person for unlimited yearlong access to the 360° feedback tool for administrators or teachers.
4. Corporate Partnership and Advertising: Corporate partnership program offering advertising opportunities in Principal Navigator magazine, website logo placement, conference trade show booths ($699 vendor booth), and Thursday Thoughts sponsorship ($500).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

OAESA is a professional membership association that connects and supports PreK-8 school administrators across Ohio through advocacy, professional development, legal defense fund access, and recognition programs. It sells annual memberships, hosts conferences and academies, and offers the OAESA 360° Feedback Tool for administrator and teacher evaluations aligned to Ohio standards.

Product overview

OAESA (Ohio Association of Elementary School Administrators) is a professional membership organization offering a portfolio of services for PreK-8 administrators rather than a unified technology platform. The core offerings include the OAESA 360° Feedback Tool for professional assessment, the Leaders AdvantEDGE Podcast for audio content, Principal Navigator Magazine for publications, and the InfoHub Member Portal for member resources. Professional development programs include the Beginning Administrators Academy, Administrative Assistants Conference, Trauma and Resilience Specialist Training, and annual Professional Conference. The organization also provides Recognition Programs (awards and Hall of Fame schools), Zone Meetings for regional networking, and advocacy services. The Thursday Thoughts weekly newsletter and corporate partnership advertising opportunities round out the service portfolio.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• SAIL: Professional development and leadership programs for school administrators
• Principal Navigator
• Leaders AdvantEDGE Podcast
• OAESA 360 Feedback Tools

Products and services

• OAESA Professional Membership

Quantifiable outcome

• Thursday Thoughts weekly email reaches more than 1600 Ohio school administrators
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 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 and minor.

• Curriculum Associates (i-ready)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate partner offering i-ready educational technology solutions. Featured on OAESA homepage and corporate partners page. Zone meetings sponsored by Curriculum Associates, such as Zone 10 Regional Meeting at Mill Run Ale House, Hilliard.
• RenaissancecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate partner offering learning analytics and assessment solutions. Featured corporate partner that sponsors Zone meetings including Zone 2 at Sonder Brewing and Zone 6 at Fire 45, North Royalton.
• FranklinCoveycoreGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate partner offering leadership development programs. Co-branded event: The 4 Essential Roles of Leadership with FranklinCovey collaboration with OAESA and OASSA.
• Horace MannminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate partner offering insurance and financial services for educators. Featured on OAESA corporate partners page.
• Varsity TutorsminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate partner offering tutoring services for schools. Featured on OAESA corporate partners page.
• Concordia University ChicagocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniversity partnership providing graduate programs for OAESA members. OAESA-CUC partnership offers PreK-12 principal licensure and advanced degrees. Becky Hornberger served as chair of partnership since 2016 and as associate professor and assistant dean of College of Education at CUC. Bob Schultz serves as University Partnership Board Representative.
• OASSA (Ohio Association of Secondary School Administrators)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSister organization partnership for collaborative events. Co-hosts Administrative Assistants Conference with OAESA. Also partners on The 4 Essential Roles of Leadership with FranklinCovey event. Members of OASSA can join OAESA as associate members.
• BASA (Buckeye Association of School Administrators)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSister organization for Ohio school administrators. BASA members may join OAESA as associate members.
• OASBO (Ohio Association of School Business Officials)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSister organization for school business officials. OASBO members may join OAESA as associate members.
• Ohio Leadership Advisory Council (OLAC)minorOthersProvides free resources for Ohio educators to develop shared and effective leadership at every level. Listed as educational partner resource.
• Ohio Inclusive Instructional Leadership (IIL)minorOthersProfessional learning programs customized by role from central office staff to principals, teachers, teams, and coaches. Listed as educational partner resource.
• OCALI (Outreach Center for Deafness and Blindness)minorOthersIncreases access, communication, and equity for learners who are deaf, hard of hearing, blind, or visually impaired. Listed as educational partner resource.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves3 records

Emerging players

• Learning Forward: National professional learning association focused on educator and administrator professional development; Learning Forward overlaps OAESA's professional development, conferences, and standards-aligned training offerings, while serving a broader educator audience rather than Ohio-specific PreK-8 administrators.

Broad incumbents

• Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD): National education leadership association providing professional development, publications, and advocacy for educators and administrators; ASCD overlaps OAESA in serving school leaders with publications, conferences, and standards-aligned resources, but at a broader, national scope.
• National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP): National professional association serving PreK-8 principals; NAESP is the national counterpart to OAESA's state-level mission and overlaps on principal recognition, professional development, and advocacy, but operates at national rather than Ohio-specific scale.
• AASA, The School Superintendents Association: National professional association for school superintendents and central office leaders; AASA overlaps with OAESA in serving central office administrators, advocacy, and professional development, but covers all districts nationwide rather than focusing on Ohio PreK-8 leaders.
• National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP): National professional association for middle and high school principals that mirrors OAESA's structure at the national level; it offers comparable membership, recognition (Principal of the Year), and professional development for building-level administrators.

Direct peers

• Ohio Association of Secondary School Administrators (OASSA): Sister Ohio state-level professional association serving secondary school administrators; OAESA and OASSA co-host the Administrative Assistants Conference and FranklinCovey programming and offer cross-association associate memberships, making them structurally and operationally identical peer associations.
• Buckeye Association of School Administrators (BASA): Ohio statewide professional association for school administrators (notably superintendents and central office leaders); BASA members can join OAESA as associate members, making BASA a directly comparable membership association operating in the same state and overlapping on central-office administrator content.
• Ohio Association of School Business Officials (OASBO): Ohio statewide professional association for school business officials; OASBO members can join OAESA as associate members, positioning it as a directly comparable state-level administrator membership association with shared conference, advocacy, and recognition programs.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/OAESA
• Facebookfacebook.com/OAESA/about
• Instagraminstagram.com/oaesa
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/oaesa

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Subsidiaries2 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 OAESA