Business

M ark Claypool, President and CEO of ChanceLight Behavioral Health and Education, took time to discuss his efforts to improve public-private partnerships (PPP) in the education sector. Claypool recently co-authored We’re In This Together: Public-Private Partnerships in Special and At-Risk-Education. A social worker and education administrator, Claypool grew frustrated by decreasing resources for children with learning differences, so in 1999 he founded ChanceLight™ Behavioral Health & Education, formerly known as Educational Services of America (ESA). Under his leadership, the company has grown from a start-up to nearly $130 million in annual revenue, and today, ChanceLight is the nation’s leading provider of behavior therapy and alternative and special education programs for children and young adults. Claypool, along with nearly 900 participants, including some 250 global education companies was in New York for the BMO Capital Markets 15th Annual Back to School Education Conference. Dr. Berger, in collaboration with MindRocket Media Group and edCircuit captured views from business leaders to investors taking a look behind the scenes of investment in education and technology.

K aren Mahon, Ed.D joined Dr. Berger to discuss educational apps and lessons for the industry. Mahon is the founder of Balefire Labs that has reviewed nearly 5,000 apps in education. Balefire Labs utilizes a research-based set of criteria to review apps in the areas of instructional and usability design. Karen L. Mahon Ed.D is an Educational Psychologist and Instructional Designer with more than 15 years’ experience in education technology. Mahon was Principal Investigator and Research Scientist at Praxis, Inc., a Waltham (MA) ed tech startup that produced instructional software for children with severe and profound disabilities. While at Praxis, Mahon successfully generated National Institutes of Health Small Business Innovation Research grants totaling close to $4M.Other previous appointments have included Global Senior Manager of Learning Sciences at Mimio Interactive Teaching Technologies and Research Assistant Professor at the University of Kansas. Karen received her Ed.D. and M.A. in Educational Psychology from West Virginia University, her Product Management Certificate from the University of California, Berkeley, Haas School of Business, and her B.A. in Psychology from the University of California, San Diego.  

Education Corporation of America (ECA), which operates private, accredited colleges across the U.S., and Kaplan Higher Education, have completed the previously announced all-stock transaction exchanging 38 campuses, which include Kaplan College, Kaplan Career Institute, Texas School of Business and TESST College of Technology, for a preferred equity interest in ECA. Financial terms are not being disclosed.

Aubrey Bach, PayScale’s Senior Editorial Manager, sat down to talk about their most recent reports informing the position of teaching and the return on investment (ROI) college students receive from their university experience. Bach also talks about upcoming studies and she discusses the results of the most and least meaningful jobs in the U.S survey recently released by PayScale. 

Photo Credit: Edgar Zuniga Jr.by Larry Dignan for Between the LinesNews Corp. is putting its Amplify electronic learning platform and curriculum up for sale because the new school year selling season flopped and the rush to digital tools never materialized.Was the demise due to educational institutions’ reluctance to change or fatal flaws with Amplify?Read the rest of the story at ZDNet.

Investments in educational training, media and services, also known as edtech, grew to $367.4 million across 24 deals in the second quarter of 2015, a record for venture dollars flowing to the sector in a single quarter, according to Dow Jones VentureSource data, Lora Kolodny reports for VentureWire. Tory Patterson, an investor and board member of edtech companies, including LearnZillion,Newsela and MasteryConnect, says that startups in this field have a chance to unseat incumbents in a massive, for-profit business because of the introduction of broadband Internet, mobile and social technology in schools.Read the rest of the story at The Wall Street Journal Venture Capital Dispatch.

Photo credit: Agência Brasilby Julie RuvoloBrazilian startup Descomplica (“Uncomplicate”) has raised an $8 million Series B to build an education entertainment company that the company hopes could actually change the future of education in Brazil. Read the rest of the story at Tech Crunch.

Photo Credit: Milei.vencelWASHINGTON, June 30, 2015—The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors approved $315 million in two credits for Vietnam to support the government’s agriculture restructuring plan and help with the revision of a new education curriculum.Read the rest of the story at the World Bank website.

Photo credit Gennaro Viscianoby Tim JonesCollege is a funny thing. It’s full of scholarly pursuits in the halls of academe, centuries-old institutions with cherished seals, histories of tradition, prestigious alumni, trustees, chancellors, regalia, committees on committees, formal ceremonies, and countless other idiosyncrasies.Read the rest of the story at Inside Higher Ed.