“2020 has taught us all many lessons,” said David Kennedy, co-founder and partner of Serent Capital focused on the education sector. “I am so impressed with the ways our education-sector portfolio companies, including C2 Education and USATestprep, have rapidly mobilized to help teachers and parents continue to educate students in what is one of the most challenging educational environments in a generation.”
C2 Education: Now Delivering Comprehensive Virtual Education
C2 Education, the nation’s premier network of subject tutoring, college admissions test prep and college admissions counseling services,
With the launch of the C2 Virtual Platform, the team has moved forward to provide students with the same educational resources and face-to-face tutoring and test prep they expect from C2—but from the safety and comfort of home.
“Summer is normally a time when students and parents get a break while keeping an eye on the fall semester. This year, everything is different,” said Peter Waller, CEO of C2 Education. “For most parents, summer has felt like a mad scramble to find new information and connect with other parents online. Parents are just trying to make the very best decisions they can for their children. Every parent has a million questions, so we’ve focused our efforts on virtual education and building a hub of content, resources, and webinars for students and parents who are cooped up at home. By focusing on delivering valuable information online about learning at home, testing, and college prep, we can support our mission to help students achieve their academic goals.”
C2 Education has also worked to develop programming to help explain “the new normal” in terms that kids can really understand—while using it as an opportunity to invite kids into the conversation. “We partnered with industry experts, like Lauren Block, MD, author of Kelly Stays Home, The Science of Coronavirus to help parents navigate teaching their children about what’s happening,” said Peter. “We’ve also offered free test prep events and continue to publish information as the entire US testing sector issues new updates about these tests that determine so much for our students.”
USATestprep: Equitable Access to Education Through Digital Standards-Based Learning
In early March, USATestprep quickly responded to the onset of the pandemic with the COVID-19 School Relief Program, giving free access to standards-aligned educational materials to subscribers and non-subscribers alike. The USATestprep team has worked closely with educators and districts to address the sudden need to rapidly move to distance and blended learning.
Source: USATestprep
“Our focus has been making teachers lives’ easier while trying to mitigate learning gaps from these 4-5 months away from normal school settings,” said Will Clemens, CEO. “With a comprehensive catalog of subjects, regular webinars, personalized training and even training and support for students and parents, we want to be a guiding light for educators and parents who are trying to keep their students on track amidst this pandemic.”
“As a company founded by teachers for teachers, we have our ear to the ground, launching initiatives, publishing resources, and offering hands-on support to as many teachers as we can—with detail and care.”
As schools closed, USATestprep focused on helping teachers conduct distance learning courses. They also integrated with Google Classroom and Canvas LMS, to help schools integrate USATestprep with their overall digital environment in April. The team has also worked to help teachers provide education to students who don’t have access to WiFi. (Printable resources are key!)
USATestprep is helping teachers prepare for the coming school year amidst all the uncertainty. This includes giving teachers the Day One Diagnostics framework for assessing students, identifying gaps, and ensuring equitable access for all students through individualized remediation that helps kids get up to the grade level or state standards—wherever they need to be. “I think that word—equitable access—is one of our north stars throughout this crisis. The core benefit USATestprep offers teachers is delivering personalized interventions for each child through the use of technology. Our goal is to help as many students as possible stay on track despite all the district closures and move to distance learning. That’s 100% what we’re focused on right now,” said Will Clemens.
Source: USATestprep