CORPORATE LEARNING SYSTEMS
PRnewswire | May 05, 2023
StrongMind announced a new generation of digital courses for K-5 students today. StrongMind responded to the increased demand for digital courses for the youngest students during the pandemic by releasing a complete suite of K-5 courses in summer 2021, completing their K-12 digital solution. After listening to course users and careful analysis of feedback, StrongMind determined enhancements were needed to keep up with the still increasing need for high-quality digital courses in the early grades.
The new version of digital courses includes robust enhancements for even higher-quality English language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies courses and a user experience designed to delight young learners. Enhancements include:
• Deeper alignment to state standards, including state specific content for select courses and states
• An enhanced approach to phonics instruction for K-2
• Expanded rich media and interactivity throughout each course
• New grading supports for teachers, including grading notes and rubrics
"At StrongMind, we firmly believe that a standards-aligned K-5 curriculum that follows the science of reading is crucial for setting our students up for academic success. By providing engaging and rigorous instruction in the early years, we can inspire a love of learning and empower our students with the skills they need to thrive in all aspects of their lives," said Mori Creamer, Chief Academic Officer.
The newest K-5 digital courses will be available for back-to-school fall 2023 for existing and new customers who have a need for flexible digital courses that will meet the needs for online and blended learning throughout different programs in a school or district. More information about the courses is available at strongmind.com/K-5/, and details about other StrongMind products, including courses for grades 6-12 and social emotional learning (SEL) is available at strongmind.com.
About StrongMind:
StrongMind partners with schools and districts to develop forward-thinking solutions that address unique school challenges. With a consultative approach, engaging digital curriculum, a suite of edtech tools, a range of services, and clear insights, we maximize student achievement and help schools thrive. A recent recipient of multiple Digital Promise Research-Design certifications and winner of more than 60 awards, StrongMind innovates into the future of education.
Read More
TALENT DEVELOPMENT
Businesswire | April 27, 2023
Summer, the certified B Corp committed to addressing the national student debt crisis, announced that it has raised $6M in new capital, with $18M raised in funding to date. General Catalyst, QED Investors, Flourish Ventures, Greycroft, Story Ventures, Gaingels, Calm VC, Partnership Fund for NYC, Fenway Summer, BDMI, and Avidbank participated in the financing.
The company also announced it has surpassed $1 billion in total projected savings for borrowers, and it has hired Leigh Gross as Chief Revenue Officer to lead partnerships with recordkeepers and other financial institutions interested in Summer Secure, the company’s automated solution for SECURE 2.0 retirement matching.
Student loan debt in the United States now stands at $1.75 trillion, according to the Federal Reserve, exceeding credit card and auto debt. It is often the first meaningful debt that young people incur, and can lead to a domino effect on their financial life–making it harder to save for retirement or buy a home years after graduating. Summer works with leading financial institutions, employers, and unions to provide a high impact, comprehensive digital solution that helps individuals plan for college costs, reduce the burden of student loan debt, and optimize retirement savings. To date, the company has delivered more than $1 billion in total projected savings for borrowers across the United States, offering assistance on every leg of the personal finance journey.
“We’re thrilled to announce this new funding, especially at a time when the need for better college planning and student loan solutions has never been more acute,” said CEO and co-founder Will Sealy. “As student loan forgiveness hangs in the balance and payments are set to resume for the first time in years, we’re excited to share our solution with more people to enable them to unlock financial freedom.”
Summer’s funding comes at an exciting time for the business as it continues to expand partnerships with retirement recordkeepers and payroll providers on the heels of its partnership with Fidelity Investments in 2022. Due to the recent passage of the SECURE 2.0 Act, many institutions are turning to Summer to support their employer clients with student loan retirement matching, leveraging Summer’s digital API suite and its expertise with operationalizing complex student loan policies into high-adoption solutions.
In a recent survey, 91% of employees with student debt said they would save more money for retirement if their employer offered a student loan repayment program. By ensuring that an employee’s student loan payments count toward the retirement match provided by their employer, Summer’s workplace solution can relieve student loan borrowers from having to make an impossible decision between paying down their debt or saving for retirement.
Summer was founded in 2017 by Sealy, a former Policy Analyst and Assistant to Sen. Elizabeth Warren and a veteran of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Chief Product Officer Paul Joo, with previous experience at the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Boston Consulting Group, and Chief Product Officer Vincent Tran, who previously led product at Pave and Orchard and was an investor at the Partnership Fund for NYC.
Summer’s recent partnership milestones include a student loan benefit launched with Intuit’s personal finance subsidiary, Credit Karma, and an expanded partnership with the American Federation of Teachers to support their 1.7 million teachers, government employees, and healthcare workers. Summer will use the new funding to expand the platform to help even more borrowers with a holistic approach to financial well-being.
About Summer
Summer partners with financial institutions and employers to empower their populations to reduce education costs and student debt through proven technologies, policy expertise and human support. Founded in 2017 by industry experts, Summer’s mission is to alleviate student loan debt for 46 million borrowers by providing leading solutions for college cost planning, automated enrollment for loan assistance plans, tuition assistance, student loan contributions and retirement matching, and emergency savings. Summer is a certified B Corporation.
Read More
EDUCATION TECHNOLOGY
PRnewswire | May 08, 2023
Relativity, a global legal technology company, today announced it is working with Microsoft Corp. to expand the impact of its programs, Justice for Change and Relativity Academic Partners. Relativity and Microsoft will work together to accomplish Relativity's mission of empowering communities through providing access to the education, technology, and resources necessary for a more equitable society.
"We are deeply committed to driving better outcomes through our social impact programs and are honored and excited that Microsoft has taken notice of our work as well as felt inspired to get involved," said Phil Saunders, CEO of Relativity. "Microsoft's generous investment will directly support our ongoing efforts to power the pursuit of justice and expand legal technology education."
Microsoft will support Relativity's social impact programs, Justice for Change and Relativity Academic Partners and further advance Relativity's existing work with nonprofits and academic institutions and strategically expand access to better achieve program goals. They will establish volunteer opportunities and community engagement projects for employees to nurture the communities in which they live and work.
"Supporting social programs for justice and expanded legal technology education is important to Microsoft and we are proud to work with Relativity on these issues," says Justin Spelhaug, Vice President of Tech for Social Impact, part of Microsoft Philanthropies. "Modern cloud technology is a key component to ensuring students and policy makers have the tools they need to advance racial and social justice."
Relativity's Justice for Change program provides the company's SaaS product, RelativityOne, free of charge to organizations tackling legal cases and academic and policy research related to racial and social justice. The Relativity Academic Partner program offers professors access to practice-ready curricula and Relativity software, enabling students to gain early exposure to the knowledge and skills needed to be indispensable to their future employers.
"It's amazing to see what's possible when we align our resources with other companies like Relativity who are looking to make an impact in the community that's both palpable and enduring," said Nisaini Rexach, Manager, Community Engagement, Microsoft Philanthropies. "Thrilled to support Relativity in this capacity."
"Relativity's commitment to making a difference not only positively impacts the communities we serve, it also creates opportunities for fellow organizations to join forces and amplify their work," said Colleen Costello, Head of Social Impact at Relativity. "We appreciate Microsoft's incredible generosity and look forward to collaborating to make an even greater impact."
Today's news builds on Relativity and Microsoft's existing work to bridge technology with social impact initiatives.
About Relativity
Relativity makes software to help users organize data, discover the truth and act on it. Its SaaS product, RelativityOne, manages large volumes of data and quickly identifies key issues during litigation and internal investigations. Relativity has more than 300,000 users in approximately 40 countries serving thousands of organizations globally primarily in legal, financial services and government sectors, including the U.S. Department of Justice and 198 of the Am Law 200.
Read More