newschools venture fund

What newschools venture fund does

NewSchools Venture Fund is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit venture philanthropy founded in 1998 in Oakland, California, by Kim Smith, John Doerr, and Brook Byers. It provides unrestricted one-year grants of $150,000 to $250,000, plus expert coaching and peer-community access, to early-stage K-12 education entrepreneurs in the United States. Its portfolio is organized across four investment programs — Innovative Schools, Learning Solutions (K-8 reading and math), Teaching Reimagined, and Learning Differences — and is supported by the proprietary Expanded Definition of Student Success (EDSS) research framework built on longitudinal study of 122 innovative schools.

The organization operates a five-step investment process (open call, screening, deep diligence, funding/support, continuous learning) and applies explicit AI-in-education investment criteria across five research-based priorities, though NewSchools itself does not develop AI products — it funds ventures that build generative AI tutoring, personalized reading/math tools, and formative assessment platforms. Distribution runs through an open application portal, an annual Summit convening 800+ leaders, an Insights Hub, email and social channels, and thought-leadership placements in outlets such as Stanford Social Innovation Review.

The business model is donor-funded philanthropy rather than commercial revenue. NewSchools raises charitable contributions and deploys them as grants; it does not sell products or services. Annual grant disbursements have scaled from $10M+ in 2023 to $13.4M in 2024 to $23M+ in 2025, supporting more than 80 ventures in the most recent cycle from a pool of 1,600 applicants, with cumulative deployment of $511M+ across 956 ventures since founding. Portfolio impact reported includes 20M students reached annually, 1.5M educators supported, and a 3.6x portfolio growth multiple.

Name

newschools venture fund

Legal name

NewSchools Venture Fund

Website

https://www.newschools.org/

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Short description

NewSchools Venture Fund is a 501(c)(3) venture philanthropy founded in 1998 that provides $150K-$250K unrestricted grants, coaching, and peer-community access to early-stage K-12 education entrepreneurs across the United States.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Education Venture Philanthropy

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Other Grantmaking and Giving Services (813219)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Education Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Public Charities & Grantmaking Intermediaries (BPAGAKAE), Early-Stage Venture Capital (Series A/B) (FSANAAAB), Entrepreneurship Foundations & Startup Basics (EDAMAHAA)

Keywords

• Venture philanthropy services
• K-12 education funding
• Education grantmaking programs
• Nonprofit investment support
• Education innovation financing

Headquarters

HQ city

Oakland

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. Donor Contributions and Philanthropic Grants: NewSchools raises charitable donations from donors and distributes those funds as grants to early-stage education entrepreneurs. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, they rely entirely on philanthropic support rather than revenue-generating operations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

NewSchools Venture Fund is a venture philanthropy that provides one-year unrestricted grants ranging from $150,000 to $250,000 to early-stage K-12 education entrepreneurs, along with management assistance, one-on-one coaching, and access to national experts. The organization operates a 5-step structured investment process (open call, screening, deep diligence, funding/support, continuous learning) across four investment areas: Innovative Schools, Learning Solutions, Teaching Reimagined, and Learning Differences.

Product overview

NewSchools Venture Fund is a venture philanthropy organization that provides funding, expert support, and community connections to early-stage education innovators. Their portfolio consists of four main investment programs: Innovative Schools (supporting new charter and district schools), Learning Solutions (K-8 reading and math tools/content/models), Teaching Reimagined (educator workforce redesign with AI integration), and Learning Differences (support for students with disabilities). These programs are supported by the Expanded Definition of Student Success (EDSS) research framework, annual Summit events, and Management Assistance services. Funding ranges from $150,000 to $250,000 one-year unrestricted grants with expert coaching and community of practice access.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Innovative Schools Investment Venture philanthropy program that provides $150,000-$250,000 unrestricted grants, expert coaching, and community connections to early-stage education organizations creating innovative public schools with strong academic foundations and essential skills for student success.
• Learning Solutions Investment program providing grants and support for K-8 reading and math solutions including tools, content, and models that accelerate foundational skills growth and personalize learning through research-based approaches and emerging AI technologies.
• Teaching Reimagined Investment program providing grants to solutions that redesign educator roles, bridge school and community connections, and leverage AI to make teaching more sustainable, effective, and joyful while attracting diverse educators.
• Learning Differences Investment program providing grants to solutions that enhance teaching and learning for students with diagnosed and undiagnosed disabilities, including professional development, instructional tools, special education workforce initiatives, and postsecondary readiness.
• Expanded Definition of Student Success (EDSS) Framework Proprietary research framework expanding the definition of student success beyond traditional metrics to include academic foundation, habits, mindsets, skills, and positive learning environment factors. Includes longitudinal research study of 122 innovative schools.
• NewSchools Summit Annual premier conference bringing together over 800 social entrepreneurs, philanthropists, and education leaders to explore how education can better serve students, featuring sessions on innovative schools, AI, teaching reimagined, and future of education.
• Management Assistance One-on-one coaching, access to national experts, and peer organization connections provided to funded ventures to strengthen their organizations and deepen their impact alongside the financial grant.

Quantifiable outcome

• 20M students reached annually by portfolio ventures
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability6 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• TranscendcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 24 March 2026Co-authored 'Building Anew, Not Rebuilding' essay with Frances Messano, CEO of NewSchools; Tequilla Brownie of TNTP; Chong-Hao Fu of Leading Educators; and Aylon Samouha of Transcend. Joint vision for education transformation emphasizing collaborative approach over 'lone hero' model.
• TNTPcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 24 March 2026Co-authored 'Building Anew, Not Rebuilding' essay. CEO Tequilla Brownie joined with other education leaders to call for collaborative approach to education transformation.
• Leading EducatorscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 24 March 2026Co-authored 'Building Anew, Not Rebuilding' essay. CEO Chong-Hao Fu joined coalition calling for education transformation through collaboration.
• DeloitteminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to help education nonprofits explore mission-aligned strategic collaborations, including partnerships, shared services, and mergers. Includes survey, webinars, and future support for leaders to assess options for strengthening impact and sustainability.
• Transcend (Research Partner)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNewSchools partnered with Transcend to document four school models showing how collaboration, shared leadership, and continuous learning can improve student outcomes while making teaching more sustainable.
• WestEdminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-developed ed tech product review rubric as part of ed tech virtual accelerator program. WestEd conducts literature reviews for each NewSchools Ed Tech challenge.
• Summit 2026 Venue PartnerminorOthersHilton San Francisco Union Square serves as venue for Summit 2026 (May 6-7, 2026) with group room rate of $259/night.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Market position

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/nsvf
• YouTubevimeo.com/newschools/videos
• Facebookfacebook.com/newschools
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/newschools
• Instagraminstagram.com/newschoolsvf

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles20 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 newschools venture fund