Partners

As experts in employer benefit solutions, our salaried account managers deliver year-round support, help employers overcome benefit administrative challenges, and always offer a different perspective – a different opinion.

We strive to help education professionals succeed in benefits management. Visit our blog for helpful insights about employee benefits.

With 60 years of focus on the education community, our understanding into the needs and challenges facing your benefit program drives us to design effective solutions tailored for an easy benefit administration.

Ready for a different opinion? Contact us today!

SchoolsFirst Plan Administration has been administering retirement plans for school employees and providing comprehensive and flexible Third Party Administration Services exclusively to school districts in the state of California since 1982.  We currently partner with and serve over 350 school districts, including 10 County Offices of Education throughout California. We offer and administer pre- and post-tax 403(b) and 457(b) plans, as well as  401(a) and 3121 FICA Alternative Plans. SchoolsFirst Federal Credit Union is a not-for-profit, Member owned, financial cooperative serving school employees and their families since 1934.

We believe in…”building the future for those who build the future”.

Led by a highly credentialed team with more than 300 years of combined industry experience, Climatec helps public agencies find general fund relief through renewed infrastructure and funding solutions. The firm has delivered thousands of successful energy efficiency programs to a loyal base of repeat public-sector clients using a customer-centric approach that has forged an unmatched track record of implementation success and savings performance. Climatec’s formula is based on transparency and vendor neutrality that empowers customers with options for upgrading to smarter, safer and more efficient facilities, providing immediate relief to their general funds and securing long-lasting economic development, revenue growth, community engagement and stakeholder benefits.

COLBI’s mission is giving facilities, fiscal and business professionals control over their capital building program. COLBI is a software and support services company that provides tools, training and support to manage a school district’s capital building program. Their software tools (Account-Ability, QualityBidders, and COLBI Docs) provide seamless communication between a public agency’s facilities and fiscal departments and allows each department to work the way they need to. COLBI mirrors the district processes, internal controls and account-code string for easy reconciliation with the district’s financial system. Their software solution tools act as a front-end filter to show you how each decision affects your budget, contract, PO and project before ever hitting the fiscal system. This puts the owner teams in control to make informed decisions to tackle any issues before it’s too late. COLBI has established a solid reputation for strong internal financial controls, training and informed decision making to manage large capital building programs without adding district staff. From small programs to large ones, COLBI simplifies the complex by providing tools, training and technology to work the way school districts function.

ENGIE North America is the only company that delivers comprehensive, integrated services across the entire energy value chain, making it a preferred provider to school districts, public sector organizations and other social infrastructure entities. ENGIE’s business strategy focuses on delivering safe, reliable, cost-effective and sustainable energy solutions that meet customer needs over the long term and contribute to a carbon-neutral economy.

Horace Mann offers a variety of products and services designed with educators in mind, including financial wellness education workshops on student loan debt relief, using DonorsChoose for classroom funding, understanding your retirement system benefits and more. They also provide insurance products that offer various discounts and unique benefits for educators, including auto, life, renters/homeowners and supplemental insurance, as well as retirement solutions and flexible benefit plan services. They also offer convenient payroll services to help make paying certain premiums easier.

Keenan was founded in 1972 and is part of the Accretive Insurance Solutions family of companies. We have a 50-year track record of serving schools, community colleges, health care organizations, and public agencies. Keenan provides innovative employee benefits, health benefits management, workers’ compensation, risk management, and property and liability programs throughout the country. For more information, call 800-654-8102 or 310-212-3344, email info@keenan.com or visit www.keenan.com.

California Financial Services (CFS) is a full-service municipal financial advisor and facility planning firm. The KeyAnalytics division helps school districts with project expenditure tracking and COC reporting, bond and state compliance/reporting, state SFP grant applications, developer fees/mitigation, and CFD formation and administration. KeyAnalytics’ mix of experienced professionals from the private and public sector means that they understand the school facility world from the perspective of the facility planner, the CBO, the superintendent and the board.

Founded on relationships built through discovering the current needs of today’s learner, MeTEOR Education brings together best practices in educational services, innovative tools for measuring student engagement, best-in-class learning spaces, and research-driven design for optimal support and enhanced experiences.

MGT specializes in consulting services to improve Fiscal, Facilities, Human Resources, and Administration departments. Our team members consist of former school district leaders, so we are proudly known as “School People Helping School People”. With our breadth of expertise, MGT consults, services, advises, mentors, and guides districts to holistic innovative solutions. Along with Staff Augmentation, we also provide critical analyses such as Interim Reports, Facilities Master Plans, Classification & Compensation Studies, Growth/Declining Enrollment Evaluations, and Organizational Reviews. We are committed to facilitating positive community and social impact while focused on improving educational agencies for our students’ educational experiences.

With California offices in Los Angeles and San Francisco, STIFEL is the No. 1 underwriter, by par amount and number of issues, of K-12 school district bonds in California and the U.S. (Thomson Reuters for the time period 2018 through 2022). Stifel’s public finance professionals specialize in helping school districts raise capital to build and maintain essential infrastructure using general obligation (GO) bonds, certificates of participation (COPs) and special tax bonds (CFDs). Having the largest and most experienced municipal banking and underwriting group in California, Stifel works with school districts to develop and implement financing strategies that allow them to operate and optimize the important work they do.

Amazon Business for Education combines the selection, convenience and value customers have come to know and love from Amazon, coupled with features tailored to the needs of educational institutions to drive compliance and increase visibility. Amazon Business provides simplified access to hundreds of millions of products and suppliers including business-only pricing, cost saving quote and bulk ordering tools, Business Prime benefits for all users, approval workflows to balance staff empowerment with purchasing controls, purchasing system integrations, payment solutions, dedicated customer support and more. Learn more at  http://business.amazon.com/en/work-with-us/education.

Baird is a leading public finance bond underwriting firm with a longstanding presence in California, having been underwriting bonds for California school districts for more than 20 years and establishing its first office within the state in 2007. Specific to public finance, Baird opened its first California public finance office in Los Angeles in February 2024 and is already ranked among the top 5 senior/sole managing underwriters for K-12 issuers in California for the first half of 2024. Baird underwrites school facilities funding mechanisms including general obligation bonds, certificates of participation, special tax bonds, tax and revenue anticipation notes, refunding and refinancing bonds and private placements and notes. Source: S&P Muni Deal Query as of July 1, 2024, based on number of issues. Does not include Private Placements or Notes.

The global leader in intelligent asset management solutions, Brightly’s sophisticated cloud-based platform leverages more than 20 years of data to deliver predictive insights that help users through key phases of the entire asset lifecycle. More than 12,000 clients worldwide depend on their complete suite of intuitive software. Paired with award-winning training, support and consulting services, Brightly helps light the way to a bright future with smarter assets and sustainable communities.

The California Schools Voluntary Employees Benefits Association (VEBA) was started in 1993 through the combined efforts of school superintendents and representatives of both the California Teachers Association and the California School Employees Association. VEBA provides health care benefits for education, municipal and public agency employees that are effective, affordable and of the highest quality and value.

With considerable experience, expertise and connections to key decision-makers in California and Washington, D.C., Capitol Advisors Group provides services to local education agencies, statewide associations and private-sector companies, including government relations, school finance consulting, and strategic consulting and public relations. Experts in school business and education finance, they serve as an important resource to school business professionals to provide an independent perspective of, and help with, the complexity and dilemmas that accompany the daily work of school business.

Christy White’s Certified Public Accountants provide exceptional audit and consulting services for peace of mind, fiscal accountability, and constituent transparency.  LEAs are our single core business.  We are your school finance and audit experts.  Let us help you establish excellent internal controls, build compliance, prevent and detect fraud, implement new accounting requirements and achieve business efficiencies.  We love helping the business of education and look forward to working with you!

Formerly AIG Life & Retirement, Corebridge Financial is one of the largest and most established providers of retirement solutions and insurance products in the United States, with a long and proven track record of serving our clients. At Corebridge, we’re passionate about giving people the power to help them reach their financial goals.

We deliver an expansive portfolio of products to serve your unique needs. And we proudly partner with financial professionals and institutions to make it possible for more people to take action in their financial lives for today and tomorrow.

At Corebridge, we believe no one achieves a financially secure future by accident–great things happen when people take action.

As one of California’s leading financial advisors to K-14 districts, Dale Scott & Company (DS&C) seeks to improve public education and strengthen communities by helping school districts get the funding they need for success. Working side-by-side with districts, DS&C draws on forward-thinking strategies based on innovative, yet practical, solutions that positively impact communities and their schools for years into the future.

For over 40 years, Dannis Woliver Kelley (DWK) has devoted its entire practice to serving public school districts, county offices of education and other educational organizations. From bond finance to business and technology, construction to litigation, board ethics to students’ rights, collective bargaining to charter oversight, DWK provides outstanding legal representation and preventive and practical counsel on key issues surrounding your core mission — the education of students.

EdFiles firmly believes that permanent personnel, student and administrative files that are vital for educators to serve their students, employees and communities must be preserved and backed up, conveniently and securely accessible electronically and, lastly, available to institutions of all sizes and budgets. EdFiles facilitates the permanent retention and exchange of organized and secured educational records … not paper!

The key to a comfortable retirement starts with you! At Equitable Financial, we understand the challenges that come with retirement planning, and are committed to helping you through every stage of life. Whether you are beginning your career, changing jobs, or nearing retirement, you can count on us to help reach your savings goals.

We have the experience to help make an impact on your financial future. With Equitable Financial, you’re not just investing in a 403(b); you’re working with a company with a background of generations in the financial services industry.

Fagen Friedman & Fulfrost LLP represents nearly 400 of California’s educational institutions and related agencies. From bargaining to business and facilities, F3 provides full legal services. Districts across California rely on this recognized leader in real property, energy and education technology. For legal updates, please subscribe to F3’s NewsFlash.

Facilitron is a comprehensive data-driven facilities management platform and public spaces marketplace designed to help operators like schools and cities meet community space rental needs in a more effective way. By integrating work orders, facility use scheduling and leasing into one system-of-record, Facilitron allows operators to showcase and monetize their spaces, keeping them safe and secure while also funding their upkeep, maintenance and staffing. With more than 10,000 schools across 31 states and billions of square feet of facility space on its platform, Facilitron has processed and supported millions of community events since its founding in 2014. Beyond simply providing software, Facilitron provides its partners with valuable business and financial services, serves as an advisory partner to train and support admins and develops customized facility management programs, generating millions of dollars in additional revenue for schools while better serving community needs.

For more than 35 years, Lozano Smith has been recognized as a preeminent leader serving hundreds of K-12 school districts throughout California. The firm’s unmatched culture continues to foster innovative and tailored legal services in every area of education law, including: charter schools, facilities and business, governance, investigations, labor and employment, litigation, public finance, public safety, special education, student services, technology, and Title IX. Lozano Smith’s eight offices throughout California provide clients with local and statewide expertise, ultimately giving clients the accessibility they deserve

Previously Office Depot Business Solutions Division, ODP Business Solutions™ is now more flexible and more innovative in how we focus on businesses while bringing nearly 30 years of knowledge and experience. From K-12 schools to Higher Ed, we offer solutions and services that empower staff and students for lasting success.  And, Supplier Diversity helps us identify and deliver innovative, quality products and services across all business channels. It provides support for local, small, diverse, disadvantaged businesses; creates an environment for innovation; opens new markets; and drives competition.

Piper Sandler & Co. is a leading financial services firm for California school and community college districts. Our expertise in financing options such as general obligation bonds, certificates of participation, community facility district bonds, interim/bridge financing and short-term notes (TRANS/BANs) can assist your district in reaching its financial goals. A proud partner with CSBA California Cash Reserve Program TRAN pool financing, Piper Sandler has one of the largest and most experienced teams of dedicated education finance professionals in California and takes pride in creating and implementing superior financial solutions for their clients.

PlanetBids is an award-winning “Software as a Service” (SaaS) company offering a modular suite of innovative and best-in-class digital solutions to help procurement teams streamline traditionally time-consuming bid management practices. With 22+ years of industry knowledge, experience and service, PlanetBids is recognized as the leading purveyor of web-based Procurement solutions that are easy-to-use, configurable, reliable and secure. The company’s proprietary PB System™, designed, developed and serviced in California, offers all key procurement modules of choice: Vendor, Bid, Contract, Prequalification, Project Evaluation and Insurance Certificate Management, Emergency Operations and Bid Spec Library. PlanetBids’ highly trained and knowledgeable staff, many of them former procurement professionals, is continuously enhancing the PB System™ with added features helping users save time and better communicate with the vendor community.

ReLiEF is a non-profit, member-owned-and-operated California joint powers authority (JPA), serving public schools since 1986. ReLiEF currently serves 450 local education agencies, representing in excess of 2 million average daily attendance and $65 billion in total insured values.

Schneider Electric’s purpose is to empower all to make the most of their energy and resources, bridging progress and sustainability for all. They call this Life Is On. Their mission is to be your digital partner for Sustainability and Efficiency. Schneider Electric drives digital transformation by integrating world-leading process and energy technologies, end-point to cloud connecting products, controls, software, and services, across the entire lifecycle, enabling integrated company management, for homes, buildings, data centers, infrastructure, and industries. They are the most local of global companies. They are advocates of open standards and partnership ecosystems that are passionate about our shared Meaningful Purpose, Inclusive, and Empowered values.

SchoolBuys is a nonprofit, mission-driven cooperative procurement program committed to strengthening California’s K-12 education system by leveraging the collective buying power of educational institutions across California to secure best-value pricing. With over twenty-five years of experience in system-level procurement, we are a time-tested program that serves multiple needs: leveraging buying power, demanding high accountability from supplier partners, and reinvesting resources in our states’ education systems. We maximize districts’ investments by offering discounts of up to 85 percent on a wide range of products and over 75 contracts that are California PCC-compliant. Our program saves millions of dollars for school districts and private schools each year through deals on software, furniture, equipment, supplies, and more.

School Services of California, Inc., (SSC), founded in 1975, is the premier business, management and governmental relations resource for school agencies in California. SSC’s consultants are recognized experts in school finance, management and education policy.

SitelogIQ is a leading independent U.S. energy efficiency and facility solutions company operating in California since 1987. We are a national provider of energy efficiency and master facility planning solutions, offering the full range of design engineering, construction, management, energy, and lighting solutions. We’re focused on partnering with our customers to address their facility needs and help them improve the health and safety of their building environments, while also making them more energy efficient and sustainable. We’re incredibly proud of the work we do and the impact it has to people, our planet, and facility performance.

As an MEP building systems expert, we provide integrated, full lifecycle solutions that optimize the design, construction, operation, and efficiency of buildings. This year, we celebrated 75 years since our founding. From collaborating on flagship projects to serving clients in multiple markets, our people, culture, and expertise have been a driving force in creating better built environments where communities and businesses can thrive. By developing true partnerships, leveraging the collective expertise of our people, and thinking big to account for the whole picture, our engineering, construction, service, and energy solutions deliver results that will work for you, your building, and your business or community.

Southwest School & Office Supply is the largest privately held school supplier in California, offering next-day delivery with employee drivers, online ordering, blanket purchase-order controls, experienced sales consultants and local customer service personnel.

As America’s largest manufacturer and supplier of furniture and equipment for K-12 schools, Virco continues to give customers the unparalleled advantages of working with an experienced U.S. manufacturer. Visit their facility in Torrance, California!