Patriot Legacy Education Foundation

What Patriot Legacy Education Foundation does

The Patriot Legacy Education Foundation (PLEF) is a California-based nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that operates exclusively as a fundraising and grant-making vehicle for Literacy First Charter Schools (LFCS), a K-12 public charter school system serving approximately 1,200 students across four campuses in El Cajon and Lemon Grove, San Diego County. PLEF channels 100% of contributions to LFCS programs covering areas beyond state funding mandates, including technology upgrades (SMART Boards), student transportation (vans), teacher grants, classroom libraries, scholarships, and college preparation support.

PLEF has no proprietary technology platform. Its product surface consists of three categories: (1) donation infrastructure including a SecureGive online portal with PayPal integration, phone and mail-in giving, planned/legacy giving vehicles (wills, charitable remainder trusts, gift annuities, donor-advised funds, real estate gifts), and corporate matching gift administration; (2) a WooCommerce-based spirit wear e-commerce store (store.patriotlegacy.org) selling LFCS Bulldogs and LCHS Lions branded apparel at unit prices of $15-$40; and (3) recurring fundraising events including jogathons (largest single event: $92,000 raised in February 2022), coin wars, dress-up days, Parent Prom, and All American Blast Gala. Additional programmatic outputs include the $500 RE:EQUIP teacher grant contest, $150 ongoing teacher grants, a $5,000+ classroom library investment program with a reading-incentivization scheme, and an annual $1,000 Making a Difference scholarship for LCHS graduates with 100+ volunteer hours.

Revenue derives entirely from voluntary contributions across channels named above, with documented single-event totals ranging from $5,000 to $92,000 and no consolidated financial disclosure available. Customer segments are narrowly segmented: LFCS K-8 students and their families (primary funding participants via peer-to-peer pledges), LFCS teachers and staff (grant recipients), LCHS graduates (scholarship candidates), and individual/corporate donors (financial contributors). A partnership with DonorsChoose.org matches and occasionally triples teacher grant funding. Operations are governed by a board of directors (e.g., Kim Zierman as Board Treasurer) with no publicly disclosed full leadership team.

Name

Patriot Legacy Education Foundation

Legal name

Patriot Legacy Education Foundation

Website

https://patriotlegacy.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Patriot Legacy Education Foundation is a California 501(c)(3) nonprofit that channels 100% of donations to Literacy First Charter Schools (K-12), funding technology, transportation, teacher grants, scholarships, and programs beyond state mandates across four San Diego County campuses.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Education Fundraising Services

NAICS

Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Education Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Community Foundations (BPAGAKAB), College Access, Scholarships & Student Success Nonprofits (BPAGADAE), Under-18 / High School-to-University Foundation Pathways (EDAIAJAI)

Keywords

• Education foundation fundraising
• Charter school support
• Teacher grant programs
• School spirit merchandise
• Educational philanthropy

Headquarters

HQ city

El Cajon

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Contributions: Tax-deductible donations from individuals, families, grandparents, alumni, businesses, and community members. The foundation emphasizes that 100% of contributions go directly to LFCS programs.
2. Spirit Wear and Merchandise Sales: Online store selling branded apparel including t-shirts, sweatshirts, hoodies for LFCS Bulldogs and LCHS Lions. Products priced from $15-$40 with various size options for students and adults.
3. Special Events: Annual galas (Parent Prom, All American Blast), jogathons, coin wars, dress-up days that raise funds for specific needs like vans, technology, and scholarships.
4. Planned Giving and Legacy Gifts: Estate planning vehicles including wills, living trusts, life insurance, retirement accounts, charitable remainder trusts, charitable gift annuities, life estates, donor advised funds, and charitable lead trusts.
5. Corporate Matching Gifts: Corporate matching gift programs where employers match employee donations, potentially doubling or tripling gifts.
6. Real Estate Gifts: Accepts gifts of real property including homes, vacation properties, vacant land, farmland, and commercial property.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Patriot Legacy Education Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit education foundation that raises and channels funds exclusively to Literacy First Charter Schools (LFCS), a K-12 public charter school system with campuses in El Cajon and Lemon Grove, California. The foundation runs fundraising programs, classroom grants, scholarships, and a spirit-wear e-commerce store, with the stated promise that 100% of monetary contributions are directed to LFCS programs.

Product overview

Patriot Legacy Education Foundation is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization that operates primarily as a fundraising entity supporting Literacy First Charter Schools (K-12). The foundation's offerings include an e-commerce store selling school spirit wear (t-shirts, hoodies, sweatshirts with LFCS Bulldog and LCHS Lion branding), teacher grant programs (RE:EQUIP $500 grants, ongoing $150 teacher grants), a $1,000 Making a Difference scholarship for LCHS seniors, library programs, and various fundraising events including Jog4Tech/Jogathon, Coin Wars, and Wacky Tacky Wednesday. All donations go directly to LFCS educational programs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Patriot Legacy Store (Spirit Wear E-Commerce)

Quantifiable outcome

• 100% of donations go directly to LFCS programs
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• DonorsChoose.orgminorGTM or Marketing PartnerThird-party platform that matches and multiplies some PLEF teacher grants. Several teacher gifts were doubled or tripled through DonorsChoose.org matching.

Scale indicators15 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• AdoptAClassroom: National nonprofit that distributes direct donations to teachers for classroom supplies. Closely comparable in mission and mechanism to PLEF's ongoing $150 teacher grants and RE:EQUIP $500 grant program for LFCS teachers.
• DonorsChoose: Crowdfunding platform that matches and channels donor funds directly to public school teacher projects. Directly comparable as PLEF already partners with DonorsChoose.org to double or triple teacher grants, and both serve the same donor-to-classroom funding flow for K-12 public education.
• Boosterthon Fun Run: School-based peer-to-peer fun run fundraiser that drives students to collect pledges from family and friends, with proceeds going to participating schools. Functionally identical to PLEF's Jog4Tech/Jogathon model, though operated as a for-profit service provider rather than an in-house foundation program.
• Parent Booster USA: National nonprofit supporting parent-led fundraising for K-12 schools through events, spirit wear, and tax-deductible giving. Highly comparable to PLEF's community-driven gala, jogathon, and spirit wear model serving LFCS families.
• Public Education Foundation: Local education foundation supporting a specific public school district (Orange County, FL) through fundraising, teacher grants, scholarships, and student programs. Operates the same school-affiliated community foundation model as PLEF, including teacher grants and scholarships for graduates.

Broad incumbents

• KIPP Foundation: National nonprofit network supporting KIPP charter schools with fundraising, teacher pipeline programs, and college persistence support. Comparable as a charter-school-supporting foundation, though at vastly greater scale than PLEF's single-system focus.

Regional players

• San Diego Education Fund: Local education foundation serving San Diego County public schools through grants and scholarships. Same geographic market and education-foundation structure as PLEF, though operating across multiple districts rather than tied to a single charter system.

Others

• Blackbaud (GiveButter / JustGiving): Software and payment infrastructure providers for nonprofit fundraising, donor management, and online giving. PLEF uses SecureGive for online donations and WooCommerce for its spirit wear store, placing it firmly in this vendor ecosystem.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/LFCS_K12
• Facebookfacebook.com/LiteracyFirstCharter
• Instagraminstagram.com/lfcs_k12
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/patriotlegacy

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 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 Patriot Legacy Education Foundation