We help turn resources into results for students, educators and communities. As former grantmakers and current advisors to 100+ foundations, we align funders, grantees and partners to bridge philanthropy, policy and practice—meeting today’s needs while staying ahead of where education systems are headed.
As experts in effective education philanthropy, we can help you envision a better future for public education, spot trends and opportunities in the sector, advance new ideas, overcome fragmentation, convene and build capacity in your grantees, and connect with other funders to learn, align or pool your funding.
We help grantmakers transform shared learning, co-investments and pooled funding into real, tangible results by deepening relationships, expanding shared resources and advancing collective knowledge to tackle complex education challenges with more success than individual funders alone.
We design and facilitate communities of practice that turn shared learning into action. Grounded in adult learning research, our communities of practice center participant agency to foster collaboration and collective problem-solving. The result: measurable progress.
We help you design and implement grantmaking strategies that are innovative, evidence-based and durable. We blend rigorous analysis with equitable design to align leaders and program officers, center stakeholders who are closest to the problem and deliver real results for students furthest from opportunity.
We partner with funders and organization leaders to incubate new nonprofits and field-building initiatives—translating vision into strategy, developing organization structures, activating partners and supporting early implementation so new efforts launch with clarity, momentum and purpose.
We conduct rigorous research to help foundation leaders understand what’s driving their toughest challenges. We know which questions to ask, which levers to pull and how to translate findings into practical, actionable recommendations.
We help funders and grantees understand what’s working, adapt in real time and strengthen impact—using practical evidence, learning-centered approaches and actionable insights to inform decisions, improve outcomes and support continuous improvement across investments.
Funders committed to equitable education face systems that are complex, politicized and resistant to change. This guide shows how thoughtfully designed funder collaboratives—grounded in shared learning, pooled resources and strong facilitation—can unlock greater impact than any single funder acting alone.
As education policy and funding landscapes shift, funders face high-stakes decisions about where and how to act. This Funder’s Decisionmaking Framework helps assess risk, align values and strategy, evaluate grantee readiness and identify high-leverage opportunities. Using this framework, funders can act with clarity, courage and foresight.
Education First helped launch and guide the $10M Emerging Bilingual Collaborative, aligning funders around a shared strategy to strengthen policy, professional learning and educator voice for multilingual learners (MLLs) in California. With the Multilingual Learning Toolkit, 1,100 educators increased their capacity to deliver high-quality instruction to MLLs.
With deep relationships with funders, systems and states, we help shape the field and help you maximize impact. We understand how to navigate shifting headwinds—bringing the long view that only experience as former funders and agency leaders provides.
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