Contact: Joe Ventura, (415) 615-6862/ [email protected]
OAKLAND, CA – July 31, 2012 – NewSchools Venture Fund CEO Ted Mitchell congratulated NewSchools Partner Jordan Meranus on his move to lead Ellevation, an innovative education technology startup. Ellevation helps teachers, schools and districts improve their service to students who are learning English. Ellevation will help a significant and notably underserved group, English Language Learners (ELLs), by developing and distributing tools that support the programs in schools that serve ELLs. Jordan is set to begin as CEO of Ellevation in September.
In eight years at NewSchools, Meranus helped to establish NewSchools as a leader in education technology and in the turnaround of chronically low-performing schools. In each of these areas, Jordan has raised investment funds, identified and invested in leading organizations, and worked with elected officials and policy leaders. During this time Jordan has worked closely with a range of leading organizations, including Mastery Charter Schools, New Classrooms, BetterLesson, and Presence Learning. Through investment funds and management support, NewSchools supports entrepreneurs seeking to improve education in low-income communities.
“Jordan is one of the smartest, most thoughtful, and most trusted leaders in the world of education entrepreneurship, and he has been an essential element of NewSchools success over the last eight years,” Mitchell said. “He was an entrepreneur before joining NewSchools, and while it’s bittersweet to see him leave to start a new company, it’s in his DNA. No one is better equipped to lead an education technology firm to success. We all look forward to working with Jordan in his new role.”
Previous to coming to NewSchools, Meranus was a co-founder of Jumpstart, a national nonprofit organization that provides intensive early intervention to preschool-age children in low-income communities. In addition, Jordan helped launch and lead MoversGuide Online, an early e-government business that was acquired by Pitney-Bowes.
“At NewSchools I have had the opportunity to work with entrepreneurs that are leveraging technology to meet the needs of underserved students. As the number of English Language Learners increases across the country, I am excited about the opportunity to use the power of technology to help teachers and administrators save time and better serve these students,” said Meranus, who co-founded Ellevation and has served as a board member for the past nine months. “We have a unique opportunity to build a leading company and serve a student population that too often is overlooked.” Meranus will join co-founder Teddy Rice in leading a growing team of ELL specialists and technologists dedicated to serving the needs of English Language Learners.
An experienced group of leaders at NewSchools will oversee the firm’s education technology investment strategy and portfolio. Gloria Lee, NewSchools’ COO, Jennifer Carolan, the Director of the NewSchools Seed Fund, and Kristi Ransick, NewSchools Principal and an experienced education technology operator, will lead the work, with continued support from members of NewSchools’ Board of Directors and Leadership Council.
About NewSchools Venture Fund
NewSchools Venture Fund is a national nonprofit venture philanthropy firm that aims to transform public education for underserved children by supporting education entrepreneurs who create nonprofit and for-profit organizations. Its investments are designed to make a significant systemic impact in some of the nation’s most challenged urban communities, including New York City, Chicago, Washington D.C., New Orleans, Los Angeles, and Oakland, California. The NewSchools portfolio includes some of the most innovative and high-impact organizations working to improve education for low income children today.
About Ellevation
Ellevation is a mission-driven software company focused exclusively on the needs of English Language Learners and the professionals that serve them. Ellevation’s core application is a data management software tool that helps school ELL Coordinators and teachers organize, share, and report data. Ellevation currently serves approximately 1,000 teachers in 11 states.