Proximity
I had the great honor to listen to Bryan Stevenson from the Equal Justice Initiative speak at last week’s NewSchools Summit. Bryan is an attorney who has dedicated his life to not only ensuring equal justice to those who have been written off by their community, but to helping this country consider how we can truly work together across racial, socioeconomic, and geographical lines to ensure that we all reach our greatest potential and support each other along the way.
News Release – NewSchools Venture Fund Board names Stacey Childress as CEO
Oakland, Calif.—May 13, 2014—NewSchools Venture Fund today announced that its Board of Directors has named Stacey Childress as Chief Executive Officer to lead the venture philanthropy’s support of innovation in K-12 education.
Game Developers Experiment With More Open-Ended Apps
A new group of developers is trying to tackle the educational app market, which has huge potential for profits, but has been hard to crack because of parent and teacher skepticism about what’s actually considered educational. Zynga, an established commercial game company responsible for hits like Farmville and Words with Friends, is hosting the non-profit accelerator […]
News Release – NewSchools Venture Fund CEO Ted Mitchell takes on Under Secretary Position at U.S Department of Education
NewSchools leader’s decade of strong leadership sets up organization for future success Oakland, CA—May 8, 2014—Ted Mitchell, the chief executive officer who led a dramatic expansion of the NewSchools Venture Fund over the past decade, was confirmed today as Under Secretary of Education at the U.S. Department of Education. Providing seed capital and sound counsel […]
Summit 2014: Keep the Conversation Going
“Mr. Say ain’t nothin’. Mr. Do is the man.” — Junebug Jabbo Jones This year at Summit, 205 organizations who care deeply about education have committed to diversifying their leadership. To push forward with this important work we’ve created a forum for those of you who have made this commitment as well as for those of you who might be compelled […]
What’s race got to do with it? Everything, as topic eclipses ed-tech talk at NSVF Summit
After two major education conferences in a row, I expected aggressive promotion of digital tools and products at last week’s NewSchools Venture Fund Summit, along with requisite promises of their potential to change teaching and learning forever.
Read the full story on Hechinger Report
A Tale of Different Deals: Diving into Early Stage Edtech Investments
VCs are more active than ever, but no two deals are alike Read the full story on EdSurge
It’s Time To Talk About Race
This year’s NewSchools Venture Fund Summit turns toward a different kind of conversation
Read the full story on EdSurge
News Release – Deputy Secretary of Education Addresses Philanthropy, Business And Education Leaders on Diversity in Leadership Ranks of Education Reform
Jim Shelton, the deputy secretary, called on the nearly 1,000 educators gathered at the NewSchool Venture Fund’s 2014 Summit to act urgently to diversify their own leadership ranks. Joined by D.C. Public Schools Chancellor, Kaya Henderson; TFA Co-President, Elisa Villanueva Beard; KIPP Foundation CEO, Richard Barth; and John Rice, founder and CEO of Management Leadership for Tomorrow, Shelton cautioned that a large and growing gap between the demographic composition of America’s student population, and its education leaders, threatens efforts to close the achievement gaps between poor students of color and their affluent, largely white peers.
NSVF: Spotlights Innovator Teachers and Entrepreneurs for Annual Awards
On the Tuesday evening before its grand annual education Summit, the NewSchools Venture Fund convened a dinner for the schools and companies that NewSchools has supported during its 15 year history. It was an emotional meeting, particularly because long-time NSVF head, Ted Mitchell, will be leaving the group to become deputy secretary of education in […]