# DonorsChoose

DonorsChoose is an Endowment / Foundation based in New York, United States.

## Overview

- **Organization type:** Endowment / Foundation
- **Headquarters:** New York, United States
- **Region:** North America
- **Address:** 134 West 37th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018, United States
- **Founded:** 2000
- **Assets under management:** $23M (Altss estimate)
- **Website:** donorschoose.org
- **LinkedIn:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/donorschoose

## Regulatory record

- **Reports private funds:** No

## About

Charles Best, a former history teacher, founded DonorsChoose in 2000 after he and his colleagues repeatedly spent their own money on classroom supplies. The organization was built to let public school teachers post project requests, which individual donors can fund in part or in full. That origin anchors the governance structure: a board stacked with technology and media operators, including Stephen Colbert and Acrew Capital founding partner Theresia Gouw, alongside former LinkedIn CEO Jeff Weiner. The nonprofit is headquartered in New York City. DonorsChoose deploys its assets across a crowdfunding marketplace, a direct-giving model, and an internal endowment that engages in co-investments, growth equity, distressed debt, and secondaries (per Altss estimate). The platform has processed over $1.6 billion in total donations for more than 2 million classroom projects (per DonorsChoose, 2024). Institutional partners play a heavy role in matching and amplifying teacher requests. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has provided recurring matching funds, Google.org supports educational initiatives, and the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative backs teacher professional development. In 2018, Ripple made a record-breaking $29 million XRP donation. The platform accepts a range of cryptocurrency gifts. The internal endowment is estimated at $23 million (Altss estimate). Alix Guerrier, a former GlobalGiving CEO and McKinsey consultant, now leads the organization as CEO. The team operates from 134 West 37th Street in Manhattan. The nonprofit runs an "Equity Fund" that directs resources toward schools in historically underfunded communities. The board includes Peter Bloom, the former Chairman and Partner at General Atlantic, and Nasir Qadree, founder of Zeal Capital Partners. DonorsChoose combines a marketplace for small-dollar donors with a balance sheet that can take principal positions in distressed and growth-stage education ventures. That hybrid structure—pairing a regulated, transparent request pipeline with a separate, risk-taking endowment—creates a sourcing moat that pure venture funds cannot replicate. The arrangement also insulates the donor-funded side from investment losses, keeping the retail mission structurally separate from the endowment's portfolio decisions.

## Sectors

- Education

## People

- Charles Best — Founder
- Alix Guerrier — CEO
- Theresia Gouw — Board Chair
- Stephen Colbert — Board Member
- Jeff Weiner — Board Member
- Peter Bloom — Board Member
- Nasir Qadree — Board Member

## Questions

### Who runs investment decisions at DonorsChoose?

The internal endowment's investment posture is overseen by the leadership team and board. CEO Alix Guerrier, former GlobalGiving CEO and a McKinsey alumnus, manages organizational strategy, while board members Peter Bloom (ex-General Atlantic) and Nasir Qadree (Zeal Capital Partners) bring private-market investment experience. The nonprofit does not publicly disclose the individual responsible for portfolio-level asset allocation.

### How does DonorsChoose source proprietary deal flow?

The platform receives teacher-verified project requests from roughly 80% of all US public schools. This funnel gives DonorsChoose granular, real-time data on which classroom tools and programs are in demand by region and subject. The endowment can then invest in companies or credit instruments tied to the products and services that populate teacher wishlists, using the platform's request data as a leading indicator.

### Is DonorsChoose structured as a charity or does it operate more like a venture firm?

It is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that runs a donor-advised crowdfunding marketplace alongside an internal endowment. The marketplace is pure philanthropy—individual donors fund specific teacher requests. The endowment, however, engages in co-investments, growth equity, distressed debt, and secondaries (per Altss estimate), functioning more like a mission-driven investment vehicle than a traditional grantmaker.

### Does DonorsChoose participate in fund commitments or only direct deals?

Its internal endowment engages in co-investments, growth equity, distressed debt, and secondaries (per Altss estimate). The organization does not publicly break out commitments to external fund managers versus direct positions. The Equity Fund further directs platform-raised dollars into schools in under-resourced zip codes.

### How is DonorsChoose related to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and other institutional partners?

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has repeatedly provided matching funds that double individual donations to teacher projects on the platform. Google.org and the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative fund specific programs, such as professional development and technology access. Ripple made a notable $29 million XRP donation in 2018. These are philanthropic partnerships, not equity relationships with the endowment.

## Related profiles

- [Children's Institute](https://altss.com/profile/children-s-institute)
- [Highland Street Foundation](https://altss.com/profile/highland-street-foundation)

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Last updated: 2026-06-03T20:00:00.000Z

Canonical page: https://altss.com/profile/donorschoose-org

Maintained by Altss — https://altss.com — methodology: https://altss.com/methodology