The EdTech Startup Show

On this episode of the EdTech Startup Show, my guest is Chrisman Frank, CEO and co-founder of Synthesis School. Synthesis is an enrichment club that teaches complex problem-solving and decision-making for kids 7 to 14 through online team games. Chrisman's cofounder Josh Dahn developed the Synthesis concept while running Ad Astra, a small lab school he built for Elon Musk on the SpaceX campus. Before Synthesis, Chrisman was engineer #1 at ClassDojo, a K-12 network that reaches ~30 million teachers, students, and families every month. Connect with Chrisman on Twitter @chrismanfrank and read his essays at www.ChrismanFrank.com. Learn more about EdTech Startup Show host Gerard Dawson at www.GerardDawson.com, or find the podcast on your favorite podcast player here: https://linktr.ee/gerarddawson.

Today's guest on the EdTech Startup Show is Kelly Smith, founder and CEO of Prenda. Prenda helps create flexible learning environments known as microschools. Often described as the “reinvention of the one-room school house,” microschools combine homeschooling, online education, smaller class sizes, mixed age-level groupings, flipped classrooms, and personalized learning. 

Today's guests on the EdTech Startup Show are Nimit Maru and David Yang, co-CEOs of Fullstack Academy. Fullstack Academy is an innovative software development school with campuses in NYC and Chicago. Fullstack has graduated thousands of students working across every part of the technology ecosystem from first funding to FANG-sized. Fullstack also created the "Grace Hopper Program" - the first deferred-tuition coding bootcamp for women.    

This episode is an excerpt from The 5-Day Copy Fix, a free course on marketing your education product or service to decision makers. To download it, visit https://www.gerarddawson.com/free-course/.

Today's guest on the EdTech Startup Show is Zachary Silverzweig, founder of Tiny Ivy.  Tiny Ivy is working to close the achievement gap in literacy, leveraging their unique approach to teaching English called TIPS™. Zach is a seasoned startup executive with a history of developing innovative products that drive social good. 

No interview with an EdTech CEO or founder today. Instead, this is a personal update on my career. Connect with me: https://www.GerardDawson.com On Twitter On LinkedIn

Today's guest on the EdTech Startup Show is Sara Mauskopf. Sara is the CEO and co-founder of Winnie, a marketplace for daycare and preschool helping over 4 million parents across the United States. Sara has a background in consumer technology and product management. Prior to founding Winnie she held product leadership roles at Postmates, Twitter, YouTube, and Google. She graduated with a Computer Science and Engineering degree from MIT. Sara lives with her family in the San Francisco Bay Area. To access this episode's bonus clip, where Sara shares her lessons learned building a marketplace, join The Business of Learning Letter.

Today's guest on the EdTech Startup Show is Megan O'Connor. Megan O'Connor is serving as an Entrepreneur in Residence at Kaplan, one of the world's largest and most diversified educational services providers. She is currently spearheading development of Kaplan's new Boost program, designed for pre-college students to help bridge the gap between the college experience and work readiness. Prior to joining Kaplan, Megan founded, led and sold Clark, a provider of end-to-end operation software, education services and coaching for teachers who want to grow their tutoring business. Before Clark, Megan was a founding partner of New York-based startup studio Human Ventures and Director of Development at the nonprofit Pencils of Promise. She has an MPA from NYU's Wagner School of Public Service and a BA from Santa Clara University.

This episode is brought to you by Trends.co, which is one of the only sources I read to learn about what's going to happen next in the world of business, tech and startups. The community has also given me what I'd call a free-MBA's worth of insights. Get $100 off your subscription to Trends using this link. Today's guest on the EdTech Startup Show is Austen Allred. Austen Allred is the co-founder and CEO of Lambda School. A native of Springville, Utah, Austen's start-up journey began in 2017 with him living in his two-door Civic while participating in Y Combinator, a San Francisco-based seed accelerator. This experience became the foundation of Lambda School's rapid growth.  Before founding Lambda School, Austen was the co-founder of media platform GrassWire. He co-authored the growth hacking textbook Secret Sauce, which became a best-seller and provided him the personal seed money to build Lambda. Austen's disruptive ideas on the future of education, the labor market disconnect, and the opportunity of providing opportunity at-scale have been featured in: The Harvard Business Review, The Economist, WIRED, Fast Company, TechCrunch, The New York Times, among others. Austen is fluent in Russian and currently lives in San Francisco with his wife and two kids. You can find him on Twitter @Austen.

Shawn Young is the co-founder and CEO of Classcraft, the Engagement Management System for schools. Since its launch, Classcraft has gained traction with educators worldwide, providing tools to gamify their classrooms. Shawn taught 11th-grade physics for nine years, holds a bachelor's degree in physics and a master's in education from Université de Sherbrooke and is also a seasoned web developer. The Great Exchange Student Engagement Summit, hosted by Classcraft and Google for Education, happens October 29. Learn more here. To download this episode's bonus clip, sign up for The Business of Learning member library.

To hear this episode's bonus clip, where Jamie explains TeachFX's bottom-up strategy for implementation, subscribe to the Business of Learning Letter. Jamie Poskin is the founder and executive director of TeachFX. Jamie is a former high school math and English teacher, coach, and athletic director with an MA in Education and MBA from Stanford. He also spent seven years working as an experimental theater artist with The Wooster Group and as the director of his own company. TeachFX's mission is to promote more meaningful and equitable classroom dialogue by superpowering teachers' work — using technology to provide educators with regular, automated feedback on their practice.

Don't miss Sara's exclusive clip for Business of Learning Subscribers. Sarah answers What have you learned about proving the efficacy of an EdTech product? Sign up here for access. Today's guest on The EdTech Startup Show Podcast is Sara Potler LaHayne, Founder and CEO of Move This World. Move This World strengthens the mental, emotional, and social well-being of Pre-K to 12th grade students, educators, and families by building a daily practice of identifying, expressing, and managing our emotions in healthy ways. The learning program has impacted over a million students across 30 states for more than 13 years. In addition to projecting the strategic and creative vision and direction of the organization, Sara is an advocate for mental health and social-emotional wellness for all children. Move This World was largely conceived out of Sara's own experiences growing up. It is this personal quality that defines the program's unique approach to learning: Parents and teachers are encouraged to practice Social-Emotional Learning in their own lives; the program is continuously updated as it adapts to the ever-evolving realities of its end-users; and SEL is taught to become an ubiquitous part of schools' learning cultures. Questions for Sara Potler LaHayne What is the vision-mission of Move This World? How does Sara help teachers with Social-Emotional Learning? How did Sara's background lead to the founding of Move This World? What can teachers do to incorporate SEL in remote or hybrid learning environments amid social distancing measures? What are some great resources to learn more about SEL? How do educators and school district leaders currently view SEL programs compared to a few years ago? How can a school make SEL an ubiquitous part of their learning culture? What can teachers and parents do to prepare their children to go back to school? What has Sara learned through the years about the efficacy of an SEL program? Highlights from the conversation Those who apply SEL strategies in their own lives become more effective teachers in the classroom Beyond allying yourself with mentors and advisors in your subject matter, work with builders and creators who have taken their ideas and made them real COVID-19 made parents and teachers realize that resources and exercises must be as easy as possible to use Two of the key components of the Move This World approach is the validation of thoughts, perspectives, and experiences; and making time for processing and reflection. Satisfaction, engagement, and usage, though important for the end-user, does not mean efficacy. Impact is the key. Important links from this episode Move This World Move This World's COVID-19 Resource Center Email: partnerships@movethisworld.com If you liked this episode, then please Subscribe to The EdTech Startup Show in your favorite podcast player Leave a rating. Write an honest review of the show. Share it with an educator, parents, or entrepreneur in your life. Send your feedback to Gerard Dawson on Twitter or LinkedIn Want to hear from other entrepreneurs focused on social-emotional learning? Ami Shah, CEO & Founder of Peekapak Matthew Gross, CEO & Founder of Newsela

Don't miss Joel and Ryall's exclusive clip for Business of Learning Letter subscribers. Subscribe here for free access. Today's guests on The EdTech Startup Show Podcast are CR SCORE founders Ryall Carroll and Joel Weingarten. CR SCORE aims to solve two problems, namely, the uncertainty around college readiness, and the overmatching and under-matching problem that students of varying backgrounds tend to face during their preparations. Ryall and Joel aim to provide students with positive reinforcement by using a score to make college readiness a fun experience. As a companion piece to the score, students will also receive personalized recommendations on how to incrementally improve their college readiness. A largely bootstrapped venture, the idea for CR SCORE came to fruition as a result of its founders' lean approach to business. Together, Ryall and Joel successfully created an app that effectively engages high school students with its mobile-friendly design and gamified features. Questions for Ryall Carroll and Joel Weingarten What is CR SCORE all about and how do Ryall and Joel divide their responsibilities? Why did Ryall and Joel decide to establish CR SCORE? What components go into CR SCORE and how are they measured? What are some of Ryall and Joel's takeaways from interacting with their stakeholders (ex. students, parents, counselors, administrators, etc.)? Which features did Ryall and Joel have to scrap due to early feedback? How will CR SCORE adapt to the ever-evolving college landscape? What sort of conversations should more parents be having with their kids? What is it like running a business based largely around a mobile app? Highlights from the conversation Gamification can make any otherwise mundane process more fun and engaging Ryall and Joel relied on Lean Startup and design-centered principles to “bootstrap” CR SCORE. Don't hesitate to make use of surveys and other tools when developing your product, since most people are willing to provide feedback. Brand-name colleges aren't always the best colleges for a particular student. As digital natives, high school-aged kids are best engaged via mobile apps Important links from this episode CR SCORE College and Career Ready Standards Ryall Carroll at St. John's University Pell Grants Credit Guru 2019 College Admissions Bribery Scandal University of Michigan Georgetown University Gamification Amazon Mechanical Turk FAFSA If you liked this episode, then please: Subscribe to The EdTech Startup Show in your favorite podcast player Leave a rating. Write an honest review of the show. Share it with an educator, parents, or entrepreneur in your life. Send your feedback to Gerard Dawson on Twitter or LinkedIn Don't miss Joel and Ryall share advice and experience building a mobile-first EdTech company. Only available in this week's Business of Learning Member Library clip. It's free. Get access here.

Don't miss Rebecca's exclusive clip for Business of Learning Letter subscribers. To watch the short video of Rebecca answering "What are you top 2-3 tips for hiring in EdTech?" Sign up here. ### Today's guest on The EdTech Startup Show is Rebecca Sadwick, startup advisor, go-to-market strategy consultant, and the founder of Strategica Partners. Rebecca's track record of helping tech companies develop actionable customer insights to drive growth and go-to-market strategies has been recognized by Inc. 5000, Forbes, and the Los Angeles Business Journal. By actively mitigating assumptions and emphasizing first principles thinking, each strategy and brand Rebecca develops has a fresh advantage, while leveraging the depth of experience that comes from working with diverse tech clients across all industries. Through radical open mindedness and responsiveness to companies' unique needs, Rebecca elevates brand identities that users internalize and advocate for. Questions for Rebecca Sadwick What is Rebecca's background and her current projects? How did Rebecca ease into a role that was filled with uncertainties? What is “go-to-market strategy”? Should a startup dominate a niche market or capitalize on existing momentum? How can you, as an entrepreneur, hone in on a need that you can potentially turn into a business? What are Rebecca's favorite resources for learning more about business? How should you go about choosing marketing channels? Why should market research come before product research? What makes a good partnership? What are some best practices around the hiring process? Highlights from my conversation with Rebecca Sadwick Go-to-market strategy basically revolves around getting “people who can benefit from the product to know about it and want to buy it.” Long-term momentum should be one of the first and most important considerations of a startup. Positioning should be the core of your marketing strategy. When creating a product, always remember that when something needs explanation, you've already lost. Let the market dictate how they like to buy. Partnerships are not a substitute for other direct strategies. Quantitative data can drive worse decisions than a lack of data altogether. Important links from this episode Reforge Growth Series by Brian Balfour Seth Godin Sean Ellis The Lean Startup by Eric Ries Rebecca Sadwick on Twitter If you liked this episode, then please Subscribe to The EdTech Startup Show in your favorite podcast player Leave a rating for the show on iTunes. Write an honest review of the show. Share it with an educator, parent, or entrepreneur in your life. Send your feedback to Gerard Dawson on Twitter or LinkedIn

Today's guest on The EdTech Startup Show Podcast is Martyn Farrows, COO of SoapBox Labs. Martyn is the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of SoapBox Labs (www.soapboxlabs.com) an award winning deep tech company that specializes in developing voice technology for kids. Proprietary and built from the ground up, SoapBox Labs' accurate, safe and age appropriate voice technology powers immersive play and learning experiences, including literacy and language learning tools, for kids from 2 to 12 years old.  Martyn has a Ph.D in European politics and is an experienced public speaker on the topic of children's digital privacy, the future of AI and the use of voice technology in education. Martyn has been a member of the Irish Government's Data Forum since its inception in June 2015. He was previously Director of the Learnovate Centre, a strategic investment by the Irish government to establish Ireland as a global centre of excellence in learning innovation. Highlights from my conversation with Martyn Farrows: Why voice technology is a great way to foster agency in children Why Martyn considers himself a mix of Pulp Fiction's Winston Wolfe and Winnie the Pooh. Voice as an “enabling technology” How educators can start learning about how to implement voice and AI into their teaching tools Potential future uses of voice technology in literacy and language learning Martyn shares some interesting insights and observations from how SoapBox Labs' voice technology is being used through their partners How SoapBox Labs deals with concerns and issues around privacy Important links from this episode: SoapBox Labs SoapBox Labs on Twitter SoapBox Labs on LinkedIn Send SoapBox Labs an Email at hello@soapboxlabs.com Martyn Farrows on LinkedIn Lingumi Alexa Florida Center for Reading Research Yaacov Petscher Reach Every Reader Project Child Data Citizen Lex Fridman See SoapBox Labs' Voice Technology in Action with Lingumi Want to hear from other entrepreneurs discussing voice tech in education? Philip Cutler - PAPER Bryanne Leeming - Unruly Studios If you liked this episode, then please: Subscribe to The EdTech Startup Show in your favorite podcast player Leave a rating. Write an honest review of the show. Share it with an educator, parents, or entrepreneur in your life. Send your feedback to Gerard Dawson on Twitter or LinkedIn Want more? Join The Business of Learning Letter, and get the only email newsletter written by a teacher on the intersection of business, tech, and education.

Today's guest on the EdTech Startup Show is Mike Teng.  Mike Teng is the CEO and co-founder of Swing Education, a tech-enabled marketplace business that matches substitute teachers with schools in need. He was a software engineer in the private sector and then the tech director at a K-12 charter school network. He and two of his friends who are now co-founders saw the need for fill rates of substitute teachers in districts and decided to start Swing education. Swing Education helps schools and districts find and schedule substitute teachers. They have also recently added tutoring with the same teachers in their classrooms.   During this episode, Mike and I discuss: How Mike saw a problem with fill rates of substitute teachers with his co-founders who convinced him to leave his nonprofit work to start Swing Education. He explains the challenges they went through getting their software out there and how they navigated the pricing model.  The cultural value in education organizations that makes decision making consensus-driven and leads to inefficiency when it comes to sales.  He explains how they are trying to capture and utilize the on-demand teachers workforce that exists.  How they convince school districts to buy into their program throughout the 50 states. How tutoring has worked for them as an addition to their existing business in a highly competitive space. How to implement investments correctly as a new founder by making the right decision. How empathy learned in parenting translates to good leadership. He explains how to eliminate time spent making phone calls without sacrificing good relationships in a business. Mike encourages people to learn more about the Black Lives Matter social justice movement.  Time-stamped questions from this episode: [0:44] Tell me about Swing education and your role there?  [2:10] What did you see or notice in terms of statistics, insight, or observation that gave you that spark to think of this as a problem that needs to be solved? [3:40] Was there a period you were doing both technology and Swing education? [6:37] Have you had an assumption or a belief about either the product, the marketing, or how to operate it, that you had to question and then change your mind about? [11:55] What have you learned as a requirement for your business when interacting with districts that you would advise someone on a similar path?  [17:29] What do you see about the current status of the idea of an on-demand teacher workforce? [21:17] How do you navigate the teacher's credentialing process through 50 different states with 50 different education systems? [23:47] How has launching a new area of business been for you? [26:45] Do you see Swing offering tutors to help students during the typical school days? [29:31] What advice do you have for early-stage founders when it comes to fundraising and making good decisions in implementing investments? [33:33] How does your background in engineering affect your leadership? [36:52] What are some people or resources or books that you feel like you've learned from in your journey with Swing? [42:06] What is your business processes standpoint in general? [47:17] What is your final suggestion or call to action where people can learn more about you and your business?  Links from this episode: Swing education Website: https://swingeducation.com/ Mike's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mpteng  Book Mentioned: Hot Seat: The Startup CEO Guidebook by Dan Shapiro Want to hear from other entrepreneurs building EdTech marketplaces? Amir Nathoo - CEO of Outschool Ruben Harris - CEO of Career Karma If you liked this episode, then please: Subscribe to The EdTech Startup Show in your favorite podcast player Leave a rating. Write an honest review of the show. Share it with an educator, parents, or entrepreneur in your life. Send your feedback to Gerard Dawson on Twitter or LinkedIn Want more? Join The Business of Learning Letter, and get the only daily email newsletter, written by a teacher, on the business of education.

On this episode of The EdTech Startup Show podcast, you'll hear 10 one-minute pitches from 10 different companies. As you're listening, I encourage you to listen for ideas that you find fascinating or useful for yourself or for somebody in your life. I encourage you to explore the websites of these EdTech startups and reach out to them if you'd like to talk more. The 10 EdTech Startups You'll Hear ClassHook – Easily find educational videos from TV shows and movies to use in your lessons. SpeakAgent – Combine your STEM curriculum with the language needed to master it. Chef Koochooloo – STEAM education with Cooking. CR Score – A college counselor in your pocket. Product Value Solutions – K12 Educational Research and Technology Consulting Machitia – The education for liberation platform. Biochemistry Literacy for Kids – Unlocking the true potential of young learners. Class Composer – an online tool to help elementary schools make better student placement decisions. Transizion – “Conquer college admissions with our help.” Knowledge Avatars – Teach and Learn Intelligently If you liked this episode, then please: Subscribe to The EdTech Startup Show in your favorite podcast player Leave a rating. Write an honest review of the show. Share it with an educator, parents, or entrepreneur in your life. Send your feedback to Gerard Dawson on Twitter or LinkedIn Want more? Join The Business of Learning Letter, and get the only email newsletter, written by a teacher, on the business of education.

Today's guest on The EdTech Startup Show is Bryanne Leeming. Bryanne is the Founder & CEO of Unruly Studios, and inventor of their award-winning product, Unruly Splats. Unruly Splats engage elementary and middle school students with learning STEM skills and computer science through active recess-style play. Unruly Splats was recently awarded MassTLC's 2019 Digital Transformation in Education. Bryanne has a degree in Cognitive Science from McGill University and an MBA from Babson College. She was named a 2018 Inc Rising Star and a 2019 Boston Business Journal 40 Under 40. Bryanne answered these questions: Can you tell me about what your company does in your own words? And what your role is there?  How has your company adapted during COVID-19 school closures?  Why combine learning STEM/coding and movement?  If you could make a basic STEM curriculum all elementary kids had to learn, what would it include?   Do you have any suggested resources, people, books, etc. that helped you develop your perspective on learning?  You've received investment from the Amazon Alexa fund. What's your perspective on the role voice-enabled devices will play in education? Are we close to them becoming a regular part of it? What's a call to action or suggestion you have for listeners?   Bryanne also discussed these great stories Lessons learned from running a successful Kickstarter campaign Why and how Unruly has gone through 18+ iterations of their product What Bryanne saw and experienced growing up business-owner parents  Bryanne discusses Unruly's brand, which is a fun, bright contrast to many other EdTech companies. How does she feel about the look and of their product and marketing? And more Links mentioned: Bryanne's Twitter Unruly Studios Twitter Unruly Studios Company Kickstarter Amazon Alexa Fund MIT Media Lab Murphy's on the Green, New Hampshire Babson MBA Program GSV Labs Unruly in the House Dr. Amon Millner Want to hear from more Boston-based EdTech entrepreneurs? Kirby Salerno - BroadReach EdTech Advisors Monica Brady-Myerov - Listenwise If you liked this episode, then please: Subscribe to The EdTech Startup Show in your favorite podcast player Leave a rating. Write an honest review of the show. Share it with an educator, parents, or entrepreneur in your life. Send your feedback to Gerard Dawson on Twitter or LinkedIn Want more? Join The Business of Learning Letter, and get the only daily email newsletter, written by a teacher, on the business of education.

Today's guest on The EdTech Startup Show is Lauren Dachille, CEO of Nimble. Lauren started her career as a member of the Human Capital Team at D.C. Public Schools, where she focused on teacher recruitment and selection. She spent several years working on teacher quality policy across 18 states through the nonprofit StudentsFirst. Lauren founded Nimble in 2016 to help school districts identify and hire high-performing teachers. She received her B.S. in Human Development and Education from Cornell University and her MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business.  Nimble is the next generation of K-12 recruitment and hiring software. Our product is an applicant tracking system that leverages AI to save districts time and help them identify and hire the best fit teachers for their classrooms. Founded in 2016, Nimble now serves clients nationwide ranging from small charter school networks to some of the largest urban districts in the country. For more information, visit us at www.hirenimble.com. Links for Nimble:  www.hirenimble.com LinkedIn: @hirenimble / @LaurenDachille Twitter: @Nimblek12 / @LaurenDachille Questions Lauren Dachille Answers Can you tell me about what your company does in your own words? And what your role is there? How did your experience in DC schools lead to your work at Nimble? “Predictive technology” is a phrase used often now, but folks don't always know if it actually means anything. How does Nimble try to predict what teacher candidates will succeed? To follow-up on that, Can you tell me about some of the interesting insights that have been uncovered after looking at the data around teacher hiring? Any surprising correlations or trends? Your company recently published a blog post called “Demo Lessons at Scale in a Virtual Environment.”  How are schools handling the hiring process right now? How are you supporting them? I've spoken to lots of folks at companies who use a bottom-up approach of getting teacher users then moving onto school and district accounts. Your company is by necessity a district-level sale.  What's your approach for that? What would you tell someone new to sales or marketing at a startup who was taking a similar approach? In your interview on Education Next, you said:  “One of the reasons districts aren't sold yet on the benefits of novel approaches and user-friendly tools is because there are too few companies and founders willing to inject a bit of healthy competition into this space. Products should have to be outstanding to get districts to use them, but unfortunately, there are too many complacent incumbent companies and products out there today.” What are some lessons you've learned about competing against incumbents? What's a final message or call to action you'd like to leave listeners with? Want to hear other interviews with entrepreneurs who moved from education to the business of EdTech? Michelle Brown - CEO of CommonLit Eileen Murphy Buckley - Founder of ThinkCERCA Charles Best - CEO of DonorsChoose If you liked this episode, then please: Subscribe to The EdTech Startup Show in your favorite podcast player Leave a rating. Write an honest review of the show. Share it with an educator, parents, or entrepreneur in your life. Send your feedback to Gerard Dawson on Twitter or LinkedIn Want more insights on the EdTech Business? Join The Business of Learning Letter, and get the only daily email newsletter, written by a teacher, on the business of education. Sign up here.

Today's guest on the EdTech Startup Show is Andy Rahden. Andy Rahden is Shmoop's CEO and passionate about progress in the digital learning and educational technology arena. Before hopping aboard the Shmoop train, Andy was the Vice President of the Pluralsight Creative, Design, and Engineering business unit. Armed with his passion for democratizing education, Andy built teams at Pluralsight from the ground up to forge strategic partnerships and create a world-class customer experience. Since his early days as a Mechanical Engineer at Baker Hughes, Andy has always enjoyed solving problems, from mechanical stress tests to Marvel-worthy teams of super-employees. Before Pluralsight, Andy made his way as an all-rounder at Autodesk, where he directed global teams through all elements of improving customer experience. He has also worked for the largest SolidWorks reseller, where he provided in-person training, worked with customers on implementation, and provided guidance to companies transforming their design process. Andy Rahden and Mike Soldan, Shmoop's Chief Experience Officer are now focused on bringing the latest technology to the K-12 learning space to ease the stress of the learning environment.  Andy couldn't be more excited about progressing, at lighting speed, what Shmoop's founders Ellen and David Siminoff started over a decade ago. During this episode, Andy and I discuss: Andy's career before he was the CEO of Shmoop and how his background in engineering and design has led him to what he is doing now. How the people Andy has worked with have influenced how he thinks about making decisions at a professional level The meaning of the word ‘Shmoop' and how it applies to the concept of what Shmoop does as a company The valuable tools Shmoop provides  for teachers and students for grades 6-12 Andy's observations about  school closures due to COVID-19 and Shmoop  The free learning Shmoop has provided to over 3 million students across the country that were not previously customers of Shmoop Why there is a drastic difference between where students live and what kind of education they receive Why founders at Shmoop wanted to use a form of engagement rather than the traditional methodology early on   How they use humor and a little bit of flair in their content to increase engagement. “Even when you are learning E = MC squared” How Shmoop is able to provide a tool to access the students' minds for teachers that are working with them Shmoop's new technology called Shmoop Heartbeat that is expected to release before the 2021 school year. Time-stamped questions from this episode: >>>(0:42) Can you talk about the meaning of the name Shmoop and what you do? >>>(2:38) As a CEO, what's your focus? >>>(10:23) What differences have you noticed as you've made a shift into your role at Shmoop? >>>(19:09) How does your background in engineering and design help inform your work? >>>( 22:10) What were your first days at Shmoop like, and can you give any suggestions for people who might be in a similar situation? >>>(30:15) What other influences do you think have had an impact on your way of thinking? >>>(34:22) Can you tell me a little more about Shmoop applying for a patent for the first time? >>>(41:17) Are you able to talk at all about the mechanism of assessing the students' readiness to learn? Links from this episode Shmoop for Schools and Districts Shmoop for Teachers Amar Hanspal at  Bright Machines Andrew Anagnost at  AutoDesk Digital Promise Website For Shmoop Inquiries: sales@shmoop.com support@shmoop.com  Andy's Social Media Info: Linkedin Twitter Want to hear other business leaders share their approach for entering new roles? Natalie Mactier - Vivi Kirby Salerno - BroadReach EdTech Advisors If you liked this episode, then please: Subscribe to The EdTech Startup Show in your favorite podcast player Leave a rating. Write an honest review of the show. Share it with an educator, parent, or entrepreneur in your life. Send your feedback to Gerard Dawson on Twitter or LinkedIn Want more? Join The Business of Learning Letter, and get the only email newsletter written by a teacher about the business of education. Sign up here.

Today's guest on The EdTech Startup Show is Dan Carroll, Chief Product Officer at Clever.   As a teacher and tech director, Dan saw first-hand how data obstacles were quickly becoming the biggest barriers to innovation in education. Before co-founding Clever, Dan joined Teach for America and taught science at STRIVE Preparatory Schools in Denver before becoming their director of data and technology. Clever brings all K12 applications into one secure portal and provides single sign-on for everyone in the district. During this episode, Dan and I discuss How Clever can help transform minutes of logging into minutes of learning by taking something complicated and tricky and making it dead simple, in addition to that, also making it safer, and more secure. The early stages of Clever, and how Dan and his co-founders made building relationships and improving security their top priorities How they made the observation early on that when people are adopting something new, it's not just about the technology,  but also about the people behind it. Dan's approach to being a leader as a person, and as a company in the ed-tech industry. Clevers' open-sourcing privacy policies and terms of service, and encouraging other applications within Clever to adopt using their policies as a starting point. Why EdTech can be competitive because of limited resources, but it can also be an incredibly collaborative space because ultimately everyone wants to learn and help students have an amazing education How Clever is partnering with companies like Zoom to help provide teachers support right now. Why Ed Tech purchases need to have data to measure if the tool is helping to meet classroom  goals Clever's tool for EdTech analytics, and how it's helping classrooms discover what is most effective for their students. Time-Stamped Questions Discussed During This Episode >>>(1:00)  How would you describe Clever and what do you do there? >>>(4:40) As a Chief Product Officer, it seems you get to always be looking to the future of the already forward-thinking culture of Ed Tech, is that accurate? >>>(7:45) As somebody who is right in the middle of new advancements, what have you learned about facilitating and creating successful partnerships with other companies? >>>(13:00) What is your approach to being a leader both as a person and as a company? >>>(19:42) Can you tell me about the impact of partnering with companies like Zoom, as well as the Clever Library? >>>(30:08) If you were to go back to teaching, what are your top three EdTech tools you would use in your classroom? >>>(35:13) What is your perspective on how Clever could continue to shape things positively in EdTech? >>>(41:01) What is the EdTech Startup scene like in Silicon Valley? >>>( 44:33) Anything else you would like to share? Links Mentioned In This Episode Clever App Gallery Clever Resources Clever Library PhET Simulations NewsELA Student Privacy Pledge SDPC ( Student Data Privacy Consortium) FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act) CAPA (Corrective Action Preventative Action) Dan Carroll's Social Media Twitter - @bytingtheapple If you liked this episode, then please: Subscribe to The EdTech Startup Show in your favorite podcast player Leave a rating. Write an honest review of the show. Share it with an educator, parents, or entrepreneur in your life. Send your feedback to Gerard Dawson on Twitter or LinkedIn Still want more? Join The Business of Learning Letter, and get the only daily email newsletter, written by a teacher, on the business of education. Sign up here.

Today's guest on The EdTech Startup Show is Monica Brady-Myerov, CEO of Listenwise. Monica Brady-Myerov is a 25-year veteran public radio journalist and host and the founder of Listenwise. Before founding Listenwise, she was Senior Reporter and Assistant Managing Editor at WBUR in Boston and her reports have been heard on NPR, Marketplace and numerous other outlets nationally and internationally. Monica's reporting on education won two 2005 Edward R. Murrow Awards for her stories on closing the achievement gap and First Prize from The Education Writers Association in 2009 for her series on the high school dropout crisis.  Listenwise is an award-winning listening skills platform for students and teachers in middle and high schools. Listenwise, a proud partner of NPR, curates a growing collection of professionally produced podcasts, aligned to state standards in ELA, social studies, and science.   During this episode Monica and I discuss:  What her award-winning company Listenwise is all about, and how it can help all students grades 2-12 build academic vocabulary, and develop background knowledge through listening.  How her company is responding to COVID-19 and offering free support for all Listenwise users  What it takes to be an entrepreneur in the EdTech industry  How Monica was able to take her journalism experience into the EdTech industry and start a company   As a journalist, you are a communicator and an educator and those are the keys to a successful business.  Monica's podcast, Student Podcast Podcast that highlights student work, and gives students and teachers helpful ideas for lessons. Teachers want their students to have an audience. The process of figuring things out and actually doing the work is where you experience deep learning.  What type of students benefit most from audio listening The Lexile Audio Measure and how it relates to reading comprehension The advantages of working with the Boston-based accelerator Learn Launch  Time-stamped overview of the discussion >>> 02:06 : What is Listenwise all about?  >>>04:25  Tell me more about your podcast and what is your advice to people who want to get started in educational podcasting?  >>>08:45  How have you been able to transfer your journalism skills & knowledge to running your business? >>>  12:09 Why did you choose to run an EdTech business publicly? >>> 14:00 What are things like for you right now amidst this international crisis? (COVID-19) >>>20:42  Why do you think listening is an important part of a balanced curriculum? Are there specific types of students that have benefitted from structured listening activities? >>>26:47  Can you explain what is the Lexile Audio Measure and why is it important? >>>30:00   What are some factors that make a listening piece more easy or difficult?  >>>32:26   How are students listening to stories on Listenwise?   >>>35:24  Can you explain the Language Identification Organizer feature in Listenwise?   >>>37:00 Can you talk about your experience with the Boston-based accelerator Learn Launch?   >>>40:30 Based on what you know now, what advice would you give your past self when it comes to starting a business?   >>>41:36 Any final suggestions? Important links from this episode: Lexile Framework for Listening Monica's article:  How One Ed-Tech Startup is responding to the Coronavirus Listenwise Website Listenwise Blog : Support for Schools Affected by Coronavirus NPR's Student Podcast Challenge NAEP Website ( National Assessment of Educational Progress) CAASPP Website ( California Assesment of Student Performance & Progress) LearnLaunch Website  Connect with Monica on Social Media :   Linkedin   Twitter  Student Podcast Podcast Connect with Gerard Dawson on Social Media:  Linkedin Twitter Want to hear more from entrepreneurs working on literacy? Michelle Brown - CEO of CommonLit Dr. Brock Eide - Founder of Neurolearning SPC Matthew Gross - CEO of Newsela

Today's guest on The EdTech Startup Show is Kirby Salerno. Kirby is the Founder & Principal at BroadReach EdTech Advisors.  Kirby is a sales and marketing leader with nearly 2 decades of experience in the EdTech industry. He has led revenue generation, partnership development, customer success and marketing teams as an executive at Amazon and several venture-backed EdTech start-ups. On this episode, Kirby shares Kirby's story of starting his EdTech career in Seattle in the early 2000s Why selling to schools (not districts) is the approach Kirby recommends for many EdTech companies The common mistakes in building sales teams that Kirby often sees How to build rapport and evaluate the situation when coming in as an interim sales or marketing leadership role What it's like to be a Mets and Bills fan while living in Boston How the companies Kirby works with have responded to coronavirus The permanent changes that will result from schools being forced into remote learning Kirby's concept of "The EdTech Stack" that schools will need to pivot between in-person and remote learning What is "flexible learning"? Schools need. a plan for FAPE in a remote learning world Important links for this episode Connect with Kirby on LinkedIn BroadReach EdTech Advisors Sandi Everlove Education Modified LearnLaunch Listenwise ETS Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy Money Experience Unruly Studios Lalilo Flocabulary Amazon Education EverFi Teach First FAPE If you liked this episode, then please Subscribe to The EdTech Startup Show in your favorite podcast player Leave a rating. Write an honest review of the show. Share it with an educator, parents, or entrepreneur in your life. Send your feedback to Gerard Dawson on Twitter or LinkedIn

Today's guest on the EdTech Startup Show is Dr. Aditya Nagrath, CEO of Elephant Learning Math Academy. Dr. Aditya Nagrath is the co-founder of Elephant Learning Math Academy, a platform that promises to teach children 1.5 years of math in 10 weeks using the system just 30 minutes per week. Dr. Nagrath holds a PhD in Mathematics & Computer Science from University of Denver. After a decade in University, Dr. Nagrath graduated to found Elephant Head Software where he led a team of no more than 10 engineers to bring over 35 different product lines with over 50 different applications to market between 2009 and 2016. In 2016, Dr. Nagrath co-founded Elephant Learning with Professor Alvaro Arias from the University of Denver in order to bring transformational change to America's education system. Today's episode of the podcast is brought to you by The Business of Learning Letter, the only daily email on the education industry written by a real teacher. And, you guessed it, that teacher is me - Gerard Dawson. Sign up for The Business of Learning and start receiving short daily insights on the education business. Ready by folks at Newsela, Edpuzzle, Nearpod, and more. Sign up here. Links from this episode Elephant Learning Facebook Page Inc Magazine article on the growth of Slack Elephant Learning Math Academy University of Denver produced video on Elephant Learning co-founders Child's home learning environment predicts 5th-grade academic skills Want to hear more from entrepreneurs interested in gamification? Jessica Millstone - The Queen of NYC EdTech Clarence Tan - Boddle Learning If you liked this episode, then please... Subscribe to The EdTech Startup Show in your favorite podcast player Leave a rating. Write an honest review of the show. Share it with an educator, parents, or entrepreneur in your life. Send your feedback to Gerard Dawson on Twitter or LinkedIn

Today's guest on The EdTech Startup Show Podcast is Charles Best, CEO of DonorsChoose. Charles Best leads DonorsChoose.org, a nonprofit organization that provides a simple way to address educational inequity. At DonorsChoose, public school teachers create classroom project requests and donors can pick the projects they want to support. Charles launched the organization out of a Bronx public high school where he taught history for five years. DonorsChoose.org is one of Oprah Winfrey's "ultimate favorite things" and was named by Fast Company as one of the "50 Most Innovative Companies in the World," the first time a charity has received this recognition.  Compelling stats on the impact of DonorsChoose: 84% of public schools have posted a project to DonorsChoose 1,657,753 projects have been funded at the time of this recording 4,245,393 citizen donors contributed to those projects 951,801,513 dollars donated to American classrooms via DonorsChoose 39,689,805 students impacted through thousands of classroom projects Highlights from my conversation with Charles Best: How Charles has engineered the "3 Magic Moments" that I've experienced as a teacher and donor while using DonorsChoose What it was like for Charles to start DonorsChoose while still working as a classroom teacher Why Tim Ferriss says that DonorsChoose is run like a lean for-profit company Fascinating examples of how data leads Charles to make counter-intuitive decisions at DonorsChoose The way coronavirus is accelerating innovation at DonorsChoose Charles discusses bottom-up vs. top-down change in education, and where he sees his company playing a role in the future of education Listener question from Mike Kleba: How have teachers impacted/changed your vision for and/or direction of your company? What are your thoughts about working classroom teachers serving on Boards of Directors for companies such as DonorsChoose? Listener question from Colin Magee: What are characteristics of EdTech products that have had the most success being funded via DonorsChoose? How do you make using DonorsChoose simple for first-time educators? Important links from this episode: Charles Best on Twitter Charles Best on LinkedIn DonorsChoose.org Match offers currently available on DonorsChoose Partner with DonorsChoose The COVID-19 updates page from DonorsChoose Charles Best interviews Tim Ferriss at SXSW EDU The Tim Ferriss Show Podcast Dr. Emily Meixner Mr. Jim Mahoney Mr. Bill Sowder Don Wettrick STARTedUP Foundation Mike Kleba Colin Magee Want to hear from more EdTech entrepreneurs based in New York City? Jessica Millstone - The Queen of NYC EdTech Brandon Goon - CEO of BeAnything Brad Schiller - CEO of Prompt If you liked this episode, then please: Subscribe to The EdTech Startup Show in your favorite podcast player Leave a rating. Write an honest review of the show. Share it with an educator, parents, or entrepreneur in your life. Send your feedback to Gerard Dawson on Twitter or LinkedIn Want more? Join The Business of Learning Letter, and get the only daily email newsletter, written by a teacher, on the business of education.

Today's guest on The EdTech Startup Show is Philip Cutler, CEO of PAPER. Philip A. Cutler is the founder and CEO of PAPER (f. 2014). PAPER is the leading Educational Support System (ESS) implemented by school districts to improve student achievement and teacher effectiveness. Prior to PAPER, Cutler had founded several successful businesses including national in-home tutoring service Laurus Educational Services (f. 2009) and Montreal's first lifestyle summer camp, Laurus Summer Camp (f. 2012), where he remains Chairman. In 2013, at 25 years of age, he became the youngest ever elected City Councillor in Westmount, Quebec. He continues to sit on Westmount's council and is the city's Commissioner of Infrastructure and Innovation. Cutler holds a Bachelor's degree in Education from McGill University in Montreal where he played linebacker for the McGill Redmen Football team & represented the Faculty of Education on McGill University's Senate. He has also been very active philanthropic initiatives related to Alzheimer's Disease as well as the McGill University Health Center and the Jewish General Hospital.  On this episode, Phil shares insights on The story behind his company's rebrand from Gradeslam to PAPER Why he questions the quick change to "FREE" that some education companies are making in response to COVID-19 How he made the journey from teacher to entrepreneur The present and future of remote learning, particularly for American public schools The switch his company made from B2C to B2B (selling to schools) Some funny insights on how and when teenagers like to interact with PAPER teachers The major lessons Phil has learned while building his business (and who he has enlisted for help along the way Phil makes some predictions as well as analyzes the role of voice and AI in education for the future And more Important links mentioned in this episode: GradeSlam rebrands to PAPER Connect with Phil on LinkedIn Say Hi to Phil on Twitter Visit the PAPER website Google's AI Assistant Fund Invests in GradeSlam to Make Online Tutoring More Equitable Paper, formerly GradeSlam, Raises $7.5 Million to Grow Beyond Online Tutoring Ned Renzie Birchmere Ventures Chuck Kleiner Tustin Unified School District Phil is hiring at PAPER Want to hear more episodes with teachers turned entrepreneurs? Matthew Gross, CEO of Newsela Dea Auray - CEO of Empowering Writers Michelle Brown - CEO of CommonLit If you liked this episode, then please: Subscribe to The EdTech Startup Show in your favorite podcast player Leave a rating. Write an honest review of the show. Share it with an educator, parents, or entrepreneur in your life. Send your feedback to Gerard Dawson on Twitter or LinkedIn

Dr. Brock Eide of Neurolearning SPC is today's guest on the EdTech Startup Show. Neurolearning SPC was founded in 2014 by learning specialists Drs. Brock and Fernette Eide and technology innovator and entrepreneur Nils Lahr. They came together to address the need for accurate, accessible, and affordable tools that could help children and adults with different learning and cognitive styles, including dyslexia, to flourish. Drs. Brock and Fernette Eide are leading experts in the fields of dyslexia and brain-based learning (neurolearning). They are the authors of the internationally best-selling book The Dyslexic Advantage (2011), and of The Mislabeled Child (2006). They also co-founded the 501(c)3 non-profit Dyslexic Advantage, which is a leading source of information on the strengths and challenges associated with dyslexia, and one of the world's largest online dyslexia communities. Dr. Brock Eide and I discuss these videos: “Because I'm Dyslexic” from The Dyslexic Advantage YouTube channel “What You May Not Have Heard About Dyslexia” from The Dyslexic Advantage YouTube channel Dr. Brock Eide shares his expertise around these topics and questions: How did he and his wife become focused on serving the dyslexic community? What are the signs of dyslexia? How can adults support children with dyslexia? What are some stories of successful people who have overcome dyslexia? Why did Dr. Brock decide to create his app Neurloearning SPC? And more If you enjoyed this episode, please leave the podcast a rating and review on iTunes. Subscribe to The EdTech Startup Show to catch every new episode. And share this episode with an educator, entrepreneur, or parent. in your life. Want to hear more conversations with literacy technology entrepreneurs? Listen to these episodes: Michelle Brown, CEO of CommonLit Eileen Murphy Buckley, founder of ThinkCERCA Matthew Gross, CEO of Newsela Thanks for listening, Gerard Dawson

This episode is a clip from my upcoming conversation with Dr. Brock Eide, the founder of Neurolearning SPC. Make sure you subscribe to The EdTech Startup Show podcast, so you don't miss my full conversation with Brock, coming soon. Thanks for listening, Gerard Dawson www.GerardDawson.com

Today's guest on the EdTech Startup show is Brandon Goon. Read the show notes, including a transcript of great answers from Brandon, by clicking here. Brandon Goon is the founder and CEO of Be Anything, a project management platform that enables students to direct their learning and helps teachers give the right feedback at the right time. When Brandon was 16, he dropped out of high school. His lust to design and invent didn't have a place in education. Now, Brandon's mission is to reinvent education its self.  If you enjoyed this episode, please leave the podcast a rating and review on iTunes or your favorite podcast app. Share the podcast with an educator or entrepreneur in your life. Lastly, Tweet me your feedback @GerardDawson3

This episode is a little bit different than the typical episode. Often I interview CEOs, founders, and professionals from the world of EdTech startups. However, every day I also write The Business of Learning Letter, which is a short daily email,  sharing my perspective on the intersection of business, technology, and education. It's read by folks from companies like Newsela, Kiddom, Edpuzzle, ThinkCERCA, Nearpod, and more. So if you want to find out more and subscribe to the newsletter you can check it out and sign up here. PS - Here's my favorite testimonial of all time about The Business of Learning:  "I read your email every day, then print it to put in a binder for reference, and carry a couple of my favorites in my bag for rereading during quiet moments. Every one gives me a few new ideas that I can put to use.  One of the emails I carry around is "5 tips for marketing to teachers" because these are tips I need to keep top in my mind. But I realize different folks are interested in different aspects of marketing or building a business. I don't know how you manage to write such an informative email every day, and if it were only once every few days or once a week, it would still be pretty amazing. But I'm not going to complain about too much gold. Your advice is usually very distilled and gets me newly focused. Thank you." You can sign up for The Business of Learning Letter here.

Typically on the podcast, I interview one EdTech entrepreneur, often a founder or CEO or an accomplished professional in the industry. Today's episode is a little different. After doing the show for a year, I've started to notice some trends in the stories and insights that founders share. So today is the first example of me reporting on one of those trends, and it comes in the form of sharing three excerpts of past episodes. I'm going to share with you a clip from my conversation with Michelle Brown, the founder of CommonLit. A clip from my conversation with Brett Kopf, who along with his brother created Remind and also a clip from my conversation with Brad Schiller, who is the CEO of Prompt In each of these clips, you'll hear the three entrepreneurs discuss what I'm calling their Superhero Origin Stories. We all know how before superheroes get their powers or when they discover their powers, they go through some kind of formative story. And I've noticed that for many EdTech founders, something similar happens. I hope you enjoy this new format for this podcast, and please give me your feedback about whether you like it or not. You can do that on Twitter @GerardDawson3 or you can connect and message me on LinkedIn, and I'm Gerard Dawson there. Also, if you liked the episode, please give the podcast a rating. Leave a review on iTunes, and be sure to share it with the entrepreneur or educator in your life. Thanks for listening, Gerard Dawson https://www.GerardDawson.com

My guest for this episode of The EdTech Startup Show is Jessica Millstone. Read the full show notes on the blog here. Jessica Millstone, MPS, Ed.M, is a leading expert on the use of technology at both home and school, and an early-stage investor in technology companies primarily in the education space.   Most recently she served as Director of Engagement at BrainPOP, connecting teachers and families to BrainPOP's beloved animated movies and interactive tools in new and creative ways.  Prior to BrainPOP Jessica was the inaugural Education Fellow at the Joan Ganz Cooney Center, a research + innovation lab at Sesame Workshop, and a presenter for Common Sense Media.  She holds master's degrees from New York University's Interactive Telecommunication Program and Bank Street College of Education, where she was a professor of instructional technology for 5 years, and is the mother of two children (ages 14 and 9) residing in Brooklyn, NY.  Many New Yorkers also know Jessica from her work as organizer of the NYEdTech Meetup, a professional networking organization with nearly 9000 members that hosts monthly events for educators, entrepreneurs and investors working across the edtech space. Important Links: Follow Jessica on Twitter Connect with Jessica on LinkedIn Learn more about the NYEdTech Meetup Want to hear another episode with someone from NYC's EdTech Community? Listen to past conversations with Brad Schiller of Prompt or Jordan Levy of CapSource. If you like the podcast, please leave a rating and review on your favorite podcast player. Share the podcast with an educator or entrepreneur in your life. Tweet me your feedback @GerardDawson3 or email me at contact@gerarddawson.org Thanks for listening, Gerard Dawson

This is another quick clip from my conversation with Jessica Millstone. This is a listener question submitted by Pamela Gaudet, who asked Jessica: "What is your opinion on valuations in EdTech? Is there a bubble and if so will it burst?" To catch the full interview with Jessica, coming soon, subscribe to the EdTech Startup Show in your podcast player. Also, if you find this episode enjoyable, then please leave an honest rating and review for the show. Share the episode with an educator, entrepreneur, or investor in your life.  And feel free to tweet me and Jessica with your feedback: Gerard on Twitter: @GerardDawson3 Jessica on Twitter: @j_millstone Thanks for listening, Gerard Dawson www.GerardDawson.com

Read the full transcript of this episode here. This episode is a clip from my conversation with Jessica Millstone, a leader in the NYC EdTech community, an early-stage tech investor, and co-organizer of the NYEdTech Meetup. Learn more about the New York EdTech Meetup here.

On this episode of the EdTech Startup Show, my guest is Graham Forman, founder of Edovate Capital. Note: this episode features our full conversation. Previously, I shared three highlights of this conversation. You can read and listen to those here: Why does Graham do seed-stage investing in EdTech? How does Graham identify successful education entrepreneurs? How do you grow an EdTech Startup? Graham answers Graham is the founder and managing director of Edovate Capital. He's spent his career in education, entrepreneurship, and investing. The first phase of his career was in education policy where he worked for U.S. Senator Paul Simon and former California State Assemblyman, Senator, and Community College Chancellor Jack Scott. He worked with school leaders addressing some of their biggest challenges in leading large school systems. The second phase of his career was as a startup operator serving as head of sales, marketing, business development, and customer success in impact-focused SaaS companies serving education. His last role included leading sales and business development for Netchemia. During his tenure, the company grew to serve more than 2,400 school districts and 20,000 schools in the U.S. with a best-in-class talent management suite. Netchemia was acquired by People Admin (backed by Vista Equity Partners) in 2015, which kicked off Graham's third career phase where he founded Edovate. In this role, he backs impact-focused seed stage K12 companies with investment and advisory support. He lives in Denver with his wife and two children and enjoys travel, the outdoors, and cooking. Important links: Read Graham's writing on Medium Visit the Edovate Capital website If you enjoyed this episode, please tap 5 stars to give this podcast a rating. If you have 90 seconds, leave a review so other listeners can discover the podcast. And share this podcast with the educators, entrepreneurs, or investors in your life.  Thanks for listening, Gerard Dawson www.GerardDawson.com  

This is the third and final snippet of my conversation with Graham Forman, 3X edtech startup operator and founder of early-stage investment company Edovate Capital. Here, Graham gives detailed advice to education entrepreneurs looking to scale their edtech startup and sell to schools.  No article for this one, but you can watch the video version on LinkedIn here. Subscribe to The EdTech Startup Show so you don't miss the full episode, which comes out on Thursday. 

Here's the second clip from my conversation with Graham Forman of Edovate Capital. The audio clears up for this one. In this clip, Graham answers the question: "why do you choose to do seed-stage investing in EdTech?" To read this as a Q/A article, click here.

Note: there's a little "buzz" in the background. Graham's answers are so valuable that I had to share it anyway : ) This is a clip from my conversation with Graham Forman of Edovate Capital. More from Graham coming soon. In this clip answers the question: "What patterns do you notice after talking to 500+ edtech entrepreneurs each year?" To read this as a Q/A article, click here.

Today's guest on the EdTech Startup Show is Jennifer Larson, CEO of Hive Digital Minds & Creator of SchoolBzz. If you enjoyed this episode please leave a rating for the show on iTunes, review the show, and share it.  Click here to read the full original article about my conversation with Jennifer, featuring quotes from the podcast. SchoolBzz is a cloud-based communications platform that streamlines how schools share information with families, giving parents and guardians the opportunity to engage in all aspects of their child's education. The SchoolBzz team is comprised of parents, educators and communications experts who have spent years studying parents' experiences with school communications and built the platform to address their real and pressing needs. This easy-to-use tool has been successfully piloted in schools across the U.S., helping to simplify communications, increase buy-in for initiatives, and foster a thriving school culture. To learn more, visit https://schoolbzz.com or call 800-213-8915.     Hive Digital Minds provides communication solutions for the K-12 industry helping school and district leaders more effectively reach, connect and engage their key stakeholders. The Hive team created its flagship solution, SchoolBzz, to address the challenge many parents face in staying connected and knowing how to actively support their child's learning journey. Hive Digital Minds is a member of the Amazon Web Services EdStart Accelerator and was selected as a Top Startup to Watch in 2019 by Built in Colorado. Learn more at https://hivedm.com/.      Connect with Jennifer Larson on Twitter Visit the Hive Digital Minds website Visit the SchoolBzz website Thanks for listening, Gerard Dawson www.GerardDawson.com

Ruben Harris is CEO of Career Karma, a company that matches people who want to learn to code with the right support circle and coding boot camp for their needs. Read the full blog post for this episode here. More on Ruben Harris and Career Karma Career Karma website Career Karma YouTube Ruben Harris Twitter Ruben Harris Instagram Breaking Into Startups Podcast Like this episode? Please review the EdTech Startup Show Podcast on iTunes. Leave a rating. And share the episode with an educator or entrepreneur who you think should hear it. Thanks for listening, Gerard Dawson http://gerarddawson.com

Today's guest is Dea Auray, CEO & Co-Founder of Empowering Writers. About Empowering Writers: Over the past 13 years, Empowering Writers has developed a proven methodology for teaching writing that immediately improves student writing and impacts test scores while providing the foundation for continued growth for the long term. Our research and experience working with schools and districts across the country proves a writing curriculum can achieve both. About Dea: As a young girl Dea announced that she would someday sit at the head of the table and make all kinds of decisions. Well, as it turns out, dreams do come true! That is what most days are like as Chief of an Excellent Organization. With a Master's Degree in Education, 25 years in the educational industry, and a degree in Business and Marketing, Dea is ideally suited for her Empowering Writers leadership role. She combines her business savvy, strong communication skills and passion for problem solving into her everyday duties, successfully navigating the challenges of a growing business and the dynamic needs of the educational industry. Dea is an educator, trainer, coach, creator of professional development and resources, entrepreneur and chief problem solver. When she is not sitting at the table she can be found operating the livery service for her three very active teenage children. Her home is in Easton, CT where she lives with her husband, Tom, their children, two pooches, three cats, and 18 hens and one very loud, happy rooster. If you like this episode, please leave a review on iTunes and share the episode with a teacher or education entrepreneur in your life. Share your feedback via Twitter @GerardDawson3 Or email me at contact [at] gerarddawson [dot] org Thanks for listening, Gerard Dawson https://www.GerardDawson.org    

This episode was inspired by a discussion online about Beyond Meat, the Impossible burger. It led to the question: how will schools look as content and devices become cheaper and cheaper. What happens to education when human interaction is the luxury? Send Gerard your feedback via email: contact[at]gerarddawson[dot]org Or via Twitter: @GerardDawson3 Thanks for listening, Gerard Dawson

False start on this one - one take only 

This is an experimental episode with just me - Gerard Dawson, teacher and copywriter for the education market. Recently there were tweets and blog post by Jason Calacanis called "9 reasons people don't get wealthy." This episode applies that concept to my stories and experiences working with education companies. Reply to me with your reasons # 10, 11, and 12 why companies fail when trying to sell to teachers, parents, students, schools, and districts.  Tweet me: @GerardDawson3 Email me: contact@gerarddawson.org

This episode is brought to you by The EdTech Shop. Today's guest is Natalie Mactier, CEO of Vivi. Natalie has a demonstrated history of building start-ups, an in-depth knowledge of the education industry and over 16 years' experience in sales and marketing. Natalie spent the first decade of her professional life in sales before taking on the role of SEEK's inaugural Marketing Manager in 2003. After 6 years building the SEEK brand, she left to join SEEK's original CMO at her new start-up; Kidspot. Natalie helped scale Kidspot into the leading parenting website in Australia and was part of the Executive Team who took the business to market to be acquired by News Corporation.  Natalie became Kidpot's CEO following the acquisition. In 2014 Natalie was approached by a Founder and investment team to build an innovative online platform for private school vacancies, which led to the launch of School Places.  As CEO of School Places, Natalie oversaw two funding rounds and offshore expansion. In September 2018 she became Vivi's inaugural CEO. Learn more about Vivi at https://www.vivi.io/.  

On this episode of The EdTech Startup Show, I talk to Amir Nathoo (@amirnathoo), CEO & co-founder of Outschool. Amir leads growth, trust and safety at Outschool. He previously worked at Square founding the Square Payroll product. Before that he was CEO and co-founder of Trigger.io, having started his career at IBM. Amir holds an MEng from Cambridge. Outschool is a marketplace of live online classes for kids. The company's mission is to inspire kids to love learning. They provide small group classes that meet over live video chat where learners are connected with teachers and classmates who share their interests. These classes are offered through Outschool's marketplace and conducted on their remote learning platform. Amir encourages interested teachers to explore the flexibility, autonomy, and income-earning opportunities available to teachers on Outschool. Learn about teaching on Outschool here. Explore Outschool's live online classes for kids here. Highlights from the episode The class Amir would like to teach on Outschool How playing computer games for hours led to Amir's career in technology In the very early days, Amir taught an Outschool class on startups and business. He tells this story The incredible power of learning from teachers who love their subject area "Math art"?? - This is just one example of a unique and inspirational class available on Outschool The relationship between inspired students, passionate teachers, and supportive parents How a retired economics professor helped guide a young Amir on his journey to become a programmer San Francisco, 2015: the story of Amir, Mikhail, & Nick coming together to start Outschool HS physics teacher --> first engineer at Airbnb --> product manager at Clever --> founder of Outschool: Amir explains the journey of his co-founder Nick Grandy Version 1.0 of Outschool was in-person classes: Amir explains The critical difference between live online video and other online education modalities An inspiring story of how Megan Hardy became (the world's first?) full-time teacher of Dungeons & Dragons classes Another incredible story: Kirsten Bowman, a UN human rights lawyer, who teaches social studies classes to young learners on Outschool Pet Reptile Social Hour. You'll just have to listen to learn more. Why Amir wonders if his son might want to pursue e-sports instead of programming when 20 years from now The inherent tension between core, standardized knowledge bases with career and interest-specific skills The new role of coding and technological literacy as a core subject for all learners Amir and I will need to talk again in 5-10 years to evaluate the predictions made during our conversation A teacher for every learner's interest: Amir's vision for the future of Outschool Amir's invitation to teachers who are waiting to teach the subjects they've always wanted to teach Objective, secular, age-appropriate: the fair and open content guidelines for classes on Outschool If you liked this episode, then leave a review on iTunes, and share it with a friend. Thanks for listening! Gerard Dawson

When it comes to PR for EdTech, this episode is a masterclass. My guest is Jacob Hanson, CEO of PR with Panache. Background on Jacob: A graduate of Fort Lewis College, Jacob graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Modern Language. Spending subsequent years of his career dedicated to sales growth, marketing, and brand awareness, Jacob brings to PR with Panache! a fierce passion for education and extensive experience in moving high-quality companies and their brands to the forefront of the education marketplace. A skilled communicator with a zest for life, he has the wherewithal to see the big picture, connecting the dots between sales, marketing, and public relations to create dynamic communication and integrated marketing plans to effectively tell your story. Jacob serves on the Board of Directors for a MN-based STEM non-profit, High Tech Kids, whose mission is to deliver fun, hands-on science, engineering, and technology programs and events that inspire Minnesota kids in their formative years.  A native of Minnesota with a strong affinity for the Rocky Mountains, Jacob enjoys spending time with his two wonderful children, Sawyer and Bexley, making fresh tracks and hiking with his hound dog, Dan. From the PR with Panache website: "PR with Panache! develops and shares stories that captivate the K-12 education market and influence high-level conversations in the media. Our team includes expert journalists, editors, administrators, and former educators who have one thing in common: We are all storytellers at heart. We craft customized campaigns that stay true to your vision while leveraging the dynamic voice of your customers and establishing you as a thought leader in education. Together we craft stories that inspire decision-makers in K-12 education not just to take notice but to act. As your storytelling team, we earn you the attention and acclaim of your audience. And we do it all with passion and energy that's unparalleled in the education industry." Highlights from the show The history of Jacob's agency, PR with Panache, and how his mother started the company How Jacob went from a Spanish major to CEO of his company Why Jacob turned down a job at a startup in order to join his family business The origin story of the mother-son tag team at Jacob's company A complete description of PR with Panache, a boutique agency doing PR for EdTech and PreK-12 education companies An overview of the type of campaigns - both inbound marketing and brand awareness - Jacob runs for his clients What's it like to work in a family business? Jacob explains at 7:00 Insights and tips on running a 100% virtual team The different business relationship Jacob had with his mother and father "Sorry to say this, but there is no silver bullet in education" - Jacob explains why there are no short cuts when doing PR for EdTech at 12:30 The first step in crafting your message as an EdTech startup "It's not about your product, it's about the educators" Jacob breaks down why education is a relationship-based industry (advice especially relevant for newer companies) It's not "sell and tell," it's "earn." Jacob explains this marketing and sales strategy. There's no breaking news in education - Jacob explains how education entrepreneurs should work with this Why EdTech startups need to plan five-years ahead (17:15) Jacob gives a step-by-step breakdown of how EdTech startups can do their own PR The "Too big too soon" problem EdTech startups fall into (and the power of local media) 2 specific tips on pitching to media outlets at 23:00 The incredible story of an 8-year-old who could never speak who comes home and says, "Hey Mom." (PR With Panache's work with RoboKind) Why focusing on impact and results is the secret to great storytelling for startups "The Common Core Aligned Effect" - the danger of slapping buzzwords on your education tool or product Jacob's advice on how EdTech startups can maximize the return on investment on attending live events (30:00) "We below $150,000 at conferences last year and have nothing to show for it" - Jacob's post-mortem on a founder who says something like this to him How to deal with tougher school SPAM filters and engaging in permission marketing The importance of educator voices in for PR for EdTech (and why context is the most important thing here) Jacob's current take on purchasing in schools and districts The 3 types of principals and how you can use this to your advantage Links for this episode: Sue Hanson, founder of PR with Panache: Sococo - virtual workplace Robo Kind EdWeek Time Magazine EdCamp ERDI Google for Education Apple Education FCC If you liked this episode, then leave a review, and share it with a friend. Thanks for listening! Gerard Dawson

This episode of the podcast is brought to you by The EdTech Shop – Copywriting & Marketing Strategy for Education Startups. Get more schools to sign up and buy with The 5-Day Copy fix. Click here to enroll for free. ### Brad Schiller is co-founder and the CEO of Prompt, a company focusing on making people better writers through a combination of software and providing writing tutoring at scale. Brad is a writer, having written extensively on such topics as college admissions essays and case interview preparation for aspiring consultants. Previously, Brad founded Beacon Ventures, a consultancy to PE firms, PE portfolio companies, and the Fortune 500. Before that, Brad was the first employee (2nd person) at Airware, a Y Combinator and VC-backed drone start-up ($85M funding), and he spent nearly 5 years at McKinsey after graduating from MIT. Prompt manages and supports the college application writing process. Students receive a Personalized Assignment List over everything they need to do to complete applications for their school list based on Prompt's database of every requirement for every school (e.g., essay prompts). Students use Prompt's Content Strategy and Essay Outlining tools to develop the content and structure for their applications – effectively eliminating bad first drafts. Organizations use Prompt's essay review tools and workflows to review essays or access personalized feedback on essays from Prompt's global network of writing specialists. Prompt is used by high schools, college access organizations, and hundreds of independent admissions consultants. Brad encourages interesting people to reach out to him at brad@prompt.com.  Highlights from the conversation: Brad's personal story of receiving valuable writing feedback at his first job The crazy story of DoesMyEssaySuck.com (yes, that was a real website!) Why content and structure are two focal points for the feedback given by Prompt instructors The tools Prompt has created to help students get started with college essays Take a guess: what % of student essays are submitted to Prompt within two weeks of the college app deadline? Hear the answer at 16:30 Instructional and actionable: the two keywords for feedback on student writing The surprisingly quick rate that Brad's company helps students improve their essays No, AI isn't coming to steal teachers' jobs - Brad explains why at 22:50 Brad's bet on writing help as a massive opportunity in EdTech Business development tip: The clever business partnership Prompt has with college admissions consultants Brad's strategy on growing out of the revenue Prompt creates and understanding market signals The decision-making process the Prompt team went through to plan its growth moves (35:12) An honest look into the decision not to raise venture capital funding - Brad explains it What's up next for Prompt? If you liked this episode, then leave a review, and share it with a friend. Thanks for listening! Gerard Dawson

This episode of the podcast is brought to you by The EdTech Shop – Copywriting & Marketing Strategy for Education Startups. Get more schools to sign up and buy with The 5-Day Copy fix. Click here to enroll for free. ###   Ashley Lamb-Sinclair is the Founder & CEO of Curio Learning, a platform to help teachers discover new ideas, curate them visually, and collaborate with other educators to become more creative and more empowered in their teaching craft. Curio Learning has received numerous awards including acceptance into the LearnLaunch Accelerator in Boston, the Navitas Ventures Prize in the Milken Penn Business Plan Competition, and most recently, the grand prize in the Uber Girlboss Pitch Competition. In addition to building Curio, Ashley was honored as the 2016 Kentucky Teacher of the Year. In that role, she served as Teacher in Residence for the Kentucky Department of Education and co-founded multiple statewide projects including KYEdPolicy.org, Policy Together, and The Courier Journal Classroom Connections. As Kentucky Teacher of the Year, she created innovative lesson plans with the Spotify for Education Advisory Board and received an EF Education First scholarship to study the education system in Finland with other educators. Prior to being honored as Kentucky Teacher of the Year, she was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to Thailand and Vietnam and an English Speaking Union Scholarship to study creative writing at Exeter College at the University of Oxford. She is a contributing writer to the Atlanticand the Washington Post, among other publications, and taught secondary English and creative writing as a National Board Certified Teacher for thirteen years. She also founded an educator accelerator called School Startup, integrating entrepreneurship and human-centered design principles into teaching craft. She also provided expertise as a curriculum and educator outreach consultant to TrueSchool Studio based in New Orleans. Highlights include: Ashley (a 14-year teacher) walks us through the process many teachers go through when planning, collecting and creating lessons "The Rebel Teacher" - Who are they? What are they rebelling against? The social impact of hundreds of thousands of teachers sharing and discussing resources in a network like Curio Ashley explains the challenges of going from the classroom to the startup world "There's a divide between what happens in schools and out of schools." Ashley has written for The Atlantic - how did her editors contradict the sacred beliefs of English teachers? The mindset, timing, and ebb and flow of teachers, which has a big impact on user growth Believe it or not, Ashley says, "I was a Luddite." Listen to her explain. What are the career paths available to teachers and how can EdTech startups expand opportunities? The suspicion teachers show towards Ashley because she's started a company (this is very real) Ashley's advice, which may surprise you, for teachers who want to carve out an entrepreneurial path If you liked this episode then please subscribe on iTunes, leave a review, and share it with a friend.  Thanks for listening! Gerard Dawson TheEdTechShop.com

This episode of the podcast is brought to you by The EdTech Shop – Copywriting & Marketing Strategy for Education Startups. Get more schools to sign up and buy with The 5-Day Copy fix. Click here to enroll for free. ### Jordan is a Forbes 30 Under 30 and serial education technology entrepreneur. He has started two EdTech companies that help higher-ed programs bridge the skills gap for their students through experiential learning. His method is to integrate real companies into the education process through hands-on collaborations that expose learners to new circumstances with real stakeholders, challenges, and outcomes.  His company CapSource is a fast-growing marketplace where educators and students can find companies interested in collaborating through specially designed project-based learning engagements. So far, CapSource's has leveraged 100+ different host company partners to provide in-depth learning experiences to 1,500+ students at 25 different schools and universities around the globe including Fordham University, UT Dallas, the University of Illinois, Pace University, and Notre Dame Jordan started his first company, Real Time Cases, while an undergraduate at Lehigh University studying Accounting, Finance, and Entrepreneurship. That company has since raised over $8M in private funding and is working on reinventing the case study method for the 21st century leveraging real companies and their current business challenges. During his tenure there, he built the product and sales team and helped the company reach over 30,000 students at 200+ universities through the original content and platform. Outside of work, Jordan is passionate about cooking, photography, networking, mixology, travel, sailing, tennis, public speaking, and coaching/connecting fellow entrepreneurs. Highlights include: How Jordan's own experience at Lehigh University led to his future ventures The products CapSource offers to help democratize career preparation in college classrooms Jordan walks us through how a cap stone or live business case happens when a classroom partners with CapSource Why content learning is "the fuel for the engine" of real learning An unconventional class called "The Garage" and the impact it had on Jordan's career The advantage of a marketplace model vs. content distribution Advice on networking, B2B sales, and business development for education entrepreneurs "You have to fight for your first customers" and other insights on navigating the early stages of sales for your education product StartEd: Jordan explains incubators vs. accelerators, his own experience with StartEd, and the benefits of joining 18 projects simultaneously running coast to coast through a Notre Dame and CapSource partnership The big question: how do you scale this? and more on the future of learning with CapSource If you liked this episode then please subscribe on iTunes, leave a review, and share it with a friend.  Thanks for listening! Gerard Dawson www.TheEdTechShop.com

This episode of the podcast is brought to you by The EdTech Shop – Copywriting & Marketing Strategy for Education Startups. Get more schools to sign up and buy with The 5-Day Copy fix. Click here to enroll for free. ### Research scientist Dr. Carolyn Brown has spent more than 30 years studying the needs of struggling readers and has received support from the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Education and the state of Iowa to develop and test strategies that work. She and Dr. Jerry Zimmerman are the co-founders of Foundations in Learning, a provider of research-based tools designed to assess struggling readers, address their foundational skill deficits and empower them to achieve significant gains in reading fluency and comprehension. They recently contributed an op-ed to SmartBrief entitled 10 Ways to Combat Middle School Reading Failure and another one to Hechinger Report on the need to connect cognitive science to reading instruction.  Developed in close collaboration with school districts, Foundations in Learning's premier product Access Code is an innovative blended assessment and intervention system designed for students who persistently struggle with reading comprehension and fluency. Using Access Code, teachers can diagnose struggling readers and help them develop automatic word recognition — the critical bridge between phonics and fluency.  Episode highlights:  The damaging assumptions our education system makes when teaching children to read Just how critical it is to get kids reading well by the third grade (Carolyn shares some shocking statistics) A deep dive into the “varied practice model,” a research-based approach to literacy instruction Why Carolyn decided to use the lessons she learned in research to start a company Carolyn quickly learned the difference between a research environment and the classroom – hear what she said about this The reason EdTech startups need education experience and business operators The “heavy lifting” technology can do for reading teachers (and why you can never take the teacher out of the room) Advice to teachers and researchers who want to start an education business venture Learn more about Carolyn's work here: https://www.foundations-learning.com/ If you liked this episode then please subscribe on iTunes, leave a review, and share it with a friend.  Thanks for listening! Gerard Dawson TheEdTechShop.com