newschools venture fund
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.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1998
- HeadquartersOakland, United States
- Headcount—
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
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.
newschools venture fund firmographics
Firmographics- 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
newschools venture fund industry classification
Industry- 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
Where newschools venture fund is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Oakland
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
newschools venture fund business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- 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
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Others | Multi-year contract | Standard Early-Stage Grant |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels7 records
newschools venture fund product offering
Product offeringCore 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
Companies that use newschools venture fund
Customer profileNamed customers9 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
newschools venture fund technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability6 records
Feature3 records
newschools venture fund partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- TranscendcoreCo-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.
- TNTPcoreCo-authored 'Building Anew, Not Rebuilding' essay. CEO Tequilla Brownie joined with other education leaders to call for collaborative approach to education transformation.
- Leading EducatorscoreCo-authored 'Building Anew, Not Rebuilding' essay. CEO Chong-Hao Fu joined coalition calling for education transformation through collaboration.
- DeloitteminorPartnership 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)coreNewSchools 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.
- WestEdminorCo-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 PartnerminorHilton 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
newschools venture fund competitors and assessment
Company assessmentMarket position
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
newschools venture fund social profiles
Digital presencenewschools venture fund financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
newschools venture fund leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles20 records
newschools venture fund funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
newschools venture fund M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about newschools venture fund
What does newschools venture fund do?
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.
Is newschools venture fund a public or private company?
newschools venture fund is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was newschools venture fund founded?
newschools venture fund was founded in 1998.
Where is newschools venture fund based?
newschools venture fund is headquartered in Oakland, United States, in the North America region.
How does newschools venture fund make money?
One revenue line is on record: donor Contributions and Philanthropic Grants.
Does newschools venture fund have an API?
No public API is recorded for newschools venture fund.
What industry is newschools venture fund in?
newschools venture fund's product category is Education Venture Philanthropy. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAGAKAK, Education Grantmaking Foundations, with a secondary code of BPAGAKAE, Public Charities & Grantmaking Intermediaries. Its NAICS code is 813211 and its SIC code is 8200.