The EdTech Awards 2022 Deadline Approaching
Hear from past honorees — and enter now! Sept 30th deadline coming soon.
EDTECH AWARDS | by Victor Rivero
The edtech ecosystem is now more than 15,000 companies strong, with hundreds of thousands of educators and millions of students globally using technology to enhance, improve, and transform their everyday work. The EdTech Awards program was established in 2010 to recognize, acknowledge, and celebrate the most exceptional innovators, leaders, and trendsetters in education technology. More than US $50 Billion has been invested worldwide across the global edtech landscape in just the last several years.
Standing out from the crowd. Standing out from the crowd and being recognized and celebrated for hard work is invaluable, and precisely what honorees of The EdTech Awards receive and have achieved.
In good company. Past winners include Adobe, Blackboard, ClassLink, Coursera, Discovery Education, DreamBox Learning, Edmodo, Edthena, Flipgrid, Freshgrade, HoverCam, Promethean, Scholastic, Schoology, SMART Technologies, Smithsonian Learning Lab, and zSpace, among many others.
How we are unique. The EdTech Awards are unique in that we are very inclusive: small startups can compete alongside much larger companies. And unsung heroes are recognized alongside other leaders and visionaries. In other words: we look for promising people and ideas before they become well known. And we also recognize established, proven success stories.
“We look for promising people and ideas before they become well known. And we also recognize established, proven success stories.”
Now it’s your turn
Over the years, we have recognized hundreds of leaders in technology as well as innovative educators. Global audience exposure, validation, new business and professional relationships, a revitalization of purpose—these are a few of the reasons to enter. These reasons and more are what you’ll hear from the finalists and winners themselves, including those that follow here:
WORDS FROM PAST HONOREES:
SMART TECHNOLOGIES
“We’re proud that teachers use SMART Learning Suite as a dynamic learning space, with educators and students interacting actively to reach learning goals,” said SMART CEO Nicholas Svensson. “That makes being recognized as the premier ‘Collaboration Solution’ a particularlywelcome honor for our team. We’re excited to continue to support joyful, collaborative learning in the years ahead.”
STEMSCOPES
“Our mission is STEM education, and we are honored that our STEMscopes solutions have been recognized with Cool Tool Awards across so many categories,” said Dr. Reid Whitaker, founder and chief academic officer of Accelerate Learning. “We are proud to partner with preK-12 educators across the country and around the world to engage students in STEM and deepen their learning, increase scores, close the achievement gap, and inspire tomorrow’s STEM leaders.”
EDTECH DIGEST, A leading source of cool tools, interviews, and trends showcasing the future of learning — annually honors the best and brightest people, products and groups working in edtech with The EdTech Awards. Cool Tool, Leadership, and Trendsetter honorees span the K-12, Higher Ed, and Skills & Workforce sectors. ENTER NOW
BAIRES DEV
“We are a remote-first company because we believe that talent can come from anywhere”, says Nacho De Marco, CEO & Co-Founder of BairesDev, “and, for us, betting on education technology is a huge part of helping that talent grow”. “We’re extremely thankful and humbled by thisrecognition from The EdTech Awards. Our team has worked really hard to accelerate the digital transformation of education, and we are looking forward to bringing more high-quality software solutions to the edtech field in the near future.”
ILLUSTRATIVE MATHEMATICS
“We’re honored to be named finalists for The EdTech Awards Cool Tool and Trendsetter awards for the IM 6–12 Math curriculum and professional learning certified by Illustrative Mathematics. The IM Certified designation guarantees the curriculum is authored, reviewed, and updated by IM, and has the rigor, structure, and coherence as developed by the IM authors,” said Kristin Umland, president and co-founder of IM. “It also guarantees that the professional learning provides high-quality, impactful experiences based on the authors’ intent.”
CODERZ
“We would like to thank The EdTech Awards for recognizing CoderZ and our work to make robotics and programming accessible to everyone,” said Ido Yerushalmi, CEO of CoderZ. “With CoderZ, students can easily program real and virtual robots from anywhere in the world, at their own pace. As students interact with our engaging, gamified solutions and participate in challenges and competitions, they can develop a lifelong desire for learn coding as a life skill, acquire computational thinking and problem solving skills, and have fun at the same time.”
READING PLUS
“This industry accolade reflects our team’s dedication to providing a comprehensive solution that meets the evolving needs of districts and schools,” said Steven Guttentag, CEO of Reading Plus. “Adaptive, effective, and engaging literacy learning tools not only support overburdened teachers, but also ignite growth and a love for reading in students.”
EPSON
“This past year has been filled with challenges for educators and Epson recognizes the importance of providing education technology for teachers and students that is not only reliable and enhances productivity, but also is not burdensome to operate and maintain,” said Alan Chen, product manager, Business Imaging, Epson America, Inc.
OSMO
“It’s a very pleasant surprise to hear that Osmo for Schools won The EdTech Awards 2021 for “Best Curriculum and Instruction Solution” and came in as a finalist in two other categories,” says Jan Richards, head of education sales and marketing at Osmo for Schools, the division of Tangible Play that promotes in-classroom usage of Osmo’s learning tools. “This validates our incredible, hard work to make Osmo for Schools’ educational products widely available and more visible to educators nationwide.”
EDMENTUM
“We would like to thank The EdTech Awards for recognizing our programs for their ability to deliver both innovative and engaging instruction to support continuity of learning during the pandemic,” said Edmentum Chief Product Officer Cheryl Dodge. “Through any challenge, we are dedicated to driving student achievement for all learners, wherever that learning may occur.”
LEARNING EXPLORER
“We are tremendously excited and honored to be recognized by EdTech Digest as a leader in the edtech industry for our all-in-one lesson planning, lesson delivery, curriculum management and learning object repository platform,” said Learning Explorer CEO, Jim Hurley. “Our team is focused on making it easy for preK-12 teachers to discover, build, manage, share, and deliver engaging, standards-based lessons anytime, anywhere. Ideal for in-person and remote learning, Learning Explorer has been designed to help educators successfully address some of today’s teaching challenges such as learning loss, curriculum equity, and student engagement.”
SOLVABLY
“We are committed to reskilling, upskilling, and best preparing all K-through-career learners for the specific needs of an increasingly competitive global workforce,” said Angelo Biasi, MassiveU Founder and CEO. “As an advocate of lifelong learner success, 21st century skill development and the act of continuously enhancing it with technology is at the core of all that we do. This recognition means a lot to us.”
myKLOVR
“It is a privilege to have been named a finalist for a second year in a row by the prestigious publication, EdTech Digest. This award further confirms the success of our personalized artificial intelligence and predictive analytics solution, as well as its direct and actionable application in the education world,” said Gustavo Dolfino, Founder and CEO of myKlovr.
CENGAGE
“This recognition is a perfect affirmation of the great work our team has done over the last year to support students, educators, and others who have been impacted by the pandemic and need reskilling opportunities,” said Cengage CEO Michael Hansen. “The pandemic has widened disparities in our society, but education is the path to a better way of life, and we’re proud our innovative technology is increasing access for learners.”
LEARNPLATFORM
“Winning for both Learning Analytics and Privacy Solution of the year is an honor, but, more importantly, proof that evidence-based decision-making can be safe and effective,” said Karl Rectanus, Co-founder and CEO of LearnPlatform. “This is a true testament to the hard work, investments and commitments our team has made to building unique, practical and mission-focused technology with districts, states and edtech providers who are committed to continuously improving their teaching and technology ecosystem to expand equitable access for all students.”
CARRUS
“Our focus and drive come from offering meaningful learning experiences that help people improve their lives through education and prepare to work in healthcare,” said Misty Frost, CEO of Carrus. “We are honored to receive this recognition and will continue to develop and offer innovative, cutting-edge training for our current and future learners.”
ST MATH
“This year more than ever, we are so appreciative to be recognized by EdTech Digest,” said Woudenberg. “Throughout the pandemic, we have ensured that as many students as possible continue their math learning with the support of ST Math. I am proud of the team at MIND that has helped meet the tremendous need of students, educators, and families to make learning happen and move our mission forward.”
LECTERA
“It is a great honor for me and for my entire team to be among the finalists of The EdTech Awards. This shows that the global educational market recognizes the tremendous work and innovation that we have carried out. I am thrilled that in Lectera great people from different countries have an opportunity to create, express themselves and work globally”.
GENIALLY
“Empowering teachers and students to create and communicate has always been at the core of our mission” said Juan Rubio, CEO at Genially. “Genially is rapidly becoming an essential part of educators’ toolkits worldwide, even more so now with the transition to hybrid learning models,” added Rubio. “We are happy and grateful to see we are making a difference.”
EVEN MORE WORDS FROM PAST HONOREES:
Be part of something bigger
AN ENCOURAGING SIGN
“As the largest recognition program in education technology, it’s a special honor to receive four awards across such a diverse range of categories,” said John Campbell, CEO of Cambium Learning. “Dynamic technology is foundational to our DNA at Cambium and recognition like this is an encouraging sign that we’re making a meaningful difference for teachers and students.”
MAKING AN IMPACT
“Participate is thrilled to be recognized alongside amazing organizations making an impact on educators, students and all adult learners,” said Mark Otter, Participate CEO. “We’re thankful for the partners who have helped us get to this place, and we look forward to continuing to grow our mission of creating a space where the world learns together.”
ON THE 2020 EDTECH AWARDS ROSTER
“On behalf of the entire CB&A team, thank you. We’re proud of our accomplishments, and are grateful to be listed alongside so many inspiring innovators on the 2020 EdTech Awards roster,” said Charlene Blohm, President & CEO.
A TRAILBLAZING TEAM
The School District of Palm Beach County’s Teaching with Technology Trailblazers Program has received the 2020 EdTech Trendsetter, Group Setting a Trend Award from EdTech Digest. “Thank you to the entire EdTech team for building this award-winning program together. Everyone in the group is deserving of this recognition,” said Adam Miller, the District’s Director of Educational Technology. The Teaching with Technology Trailblazer program launched in May 2017. Teachers in both elementary and secondary schools undergo extensive training to bring their skills to the classroom and train other teachers on their campus on how to integrate technology into their classrooms.
OUR SOLUTIONS RECOGNIZED
“We’re thrilled to see our edtech solutions recognized by the largest and most competitive awards program in the industry,” said MobyMax co- founder Glynn Willett.
A WELL-DESERVED RECOGNITION
“One of my great joys is seeing companies like PowerSchool and leaders like Hardeep Gulati leverage technology to make a transformative impact on our world,” said Robert F. Smith, Founder, Chairman & CEO of Vista Equity Partners. “It’s wonderful to see Hardeep’s vision of creating a unified platform for education technology come to life, and the EdTech Digest CEO of the Year award is a well-deserved recognition of these important efforts.”
HONORED TO BE RANKED #1
“We are honored have to have Adobe Connect ranked #1 In the category
of Best Collaboration Solution as well as one of the top Corporate Training Solutions,” said Alna Patel, Senior Marketing Manager for Adobe Connect.
STANDING OUT
“We are proud and grateful to be chosen by EdTech Digest, the industry opinion leader behind The EdTech Awards program celebrating its 10th anniversary this year. This distinction once again makes Robo Wunderkind stand out as a highly effective educational solution with a big learning value and numerous learning outcomes, supported by worldwide awards and trusted by thousands of customers and educational institutions worldwide,” said Anna Iarotska, (pictured) CEO of Robo Wunderkind.
In a time of transition, promote!
AS REMOTE LEARNING TAKES CENTER STAGE
“K-12 school districts are increasingly adopting G Suite and Microsoft 365 applications, especially as remote learning takes center stage. The demand to secure these apps will continue growing as districts realize the need to do so,” said Charlie Sander, Chief Executive Officer of ManagedMethods. “We’re proud to be recognized by EdTech Digest as a leading security product that is setting a trend in K-12 education.”
MORE IMPORTANT NOW
“At Canvas, our mission has always been to make teaching and learning easier, and as a former educator, I recognize how much more important it is now to give teachers powerful tools that help students continue to learn,”
said Melissa Loble, Chief Customer Experience Officer for Canvas. “We are humbled and grateful to be part of teachers’ heroic efforts to keep students on track.”
PRODUCTS RECOGNIZED
“We are honored to have Lexia products recognized for the innovative way they empower teachers to individualize and personalize learning, engage students with compelling and rigorous content, and ensure students achieve the academic success and personal literacy growth they need to excel in today’s world,” said Nick Gaehde, president of Lexia Learning.
HONOR AND ADDED BONUS
“It’s an honor to receive a leadership award in the education field because I started my career as a teacher and consider it my number one job to educate people about the importance of new-school security awareness training and simulated phishing,” said KnowBe4 CEO Stu Sjouwerman. “Recognizing one of our most popular training modules – Kevin Mitnick Security Awareness Training – as a cool security tool is an added bonus. I commend all of the organizations that have had to adapt their learning to an online format in a short period of time, yet continue to succeed.”
GRATEFUL AND OPTIMISTIC
“We’re grateful to EdTech Digest for this award, especially at a time when educators are doing such impressive work transitioning to online courses,” said Ken Meyers, CEO of GoReact. “We remain optimistic about the future. Students still need skills, and they need teachers to help acquire those skills. GoReact removes the headaches of teaching performance-based courses online so teachers can focus on teaching, not their technology.”
LOOKING AHEAD AND LEADING
“As a spring semester defined by an emergency transition to remote learning comes to a close, colleges and universities are looking ahead to a fall semester that will likely take place entirely or partially online. Faculty need technologies that can support the creation of immersive, engaging learning environments unique to the online experience,” said Fred Singer, founder and CEO of Echo360. “We’re honored to once again be recognized as the leading video-based learning solution and a flexible, powerful platform that institutions can rely on in the months ahead.”
NOW MORE THAN EVER
“We are thrilled to be recognized for the unique value and benefits that Leo provides to academic medicine and health sciences education. This honor is such welcome news as we work to meet the challenges of a global pandemic that is changing the way we all do business,” said Allison Wood, co-founder and CEO of DaVinci. “Now more than ever, we’re so proud to help educate the country’s future healthcare providers.”
DEEP SENSE OF PRIDE
“We feel a deep sense of pride in being recognized for our success in continuing to support students, teachers, staff and parents as they expand learning practices during this immediate global shift to Distance Learning,” said Andrew Herman, CEO and Founder of Alma. “At Alma, we work tirelessly to build critical SIS tooling that’s creating the best generation of educators – and we’re absolutely thrilled to receive such an amazing distinction from EdTech Digest. I couldn’t be prouder of our team for bringing an innovative spirit to supporting students, teachers and parents – especially now.”
AMONG THE BEST AND BRIGHTEST
“Whether teachers are in the classroom or working with students remotely, they need thoughtfully designed resources that provide them with the tools to offer effective,
differentiated instruction to reach every learner. With Learning A-Z’s blended learning solutions, teachers have instant access to a library of reading, writing, science, and vocabulary resources that can be easily customized for individual, small-group, and whole-class instruction,” said Lisa O’Masta, president of Learning A-Z. “We thank The EdTech Awards for recognizing our solutions as being among the best and brightest in ed tech, and we give special thanks to all of the teachers and parents who are working diligently to support students in innovative ways during these unprecedented times.”
When? Now is the time
MORE IMPORTANT THAN EVER
“With the major disruption to schooling caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, it is more important than ever that students have consistent high-quality support for learning mathematics,” said Dr. Steve Ritter, Co-Founder and Chief Scientist at Carnegie Learning. “We’re proud that our AI-based approach has been recognized for its ability to personalize instruction and transform students’ lives.”
IMPORTANCE OF VIRTUAL LEARNING
Tiffany Godbout, President of the 114th Partnership, said, “Given the importance of virtual learning and educational access at this time of national crisis, I am proud of the work Spark 101 has done to help teachers, parents, students and jobseekers explore STEM careers from the safety of their homes. For many years we have admired the work EdTech undertakes to highlight advancements in the field of education technology, and we are honored to be selected as the Cool Tool Winner in the Open Educational Resource category.”
HISTORIC TIME IN EDUCATION
“This is a historic time in education where districts need solutions that ease issues around accessing and using digital learning tools. We’re honored that ClassLink has been recognized for continuously striving to support digital learning efforts for administrators, technology teams, teachers, students, and families,” said George Perreault, Chief Academic Officer, ClassLink.
RECOGNITION FOR OUR SUPPORT
“Our end-to-end, tech-enabled service has provided substitute teachers with job opportunities at more than 2,500 schools,” said Mike Teng, CEO of Swing Education. “We are committed to supporting our substitute teachers, as well as our school partners, in every way possible – both now during school closures and once in-person school resumes. This support is at the heart of what we do and we’re honored to be recognized for it.”
THANKFUL IN CHALLENGING TIMES
“…[W]e are incredibly thankful for all who continue to move learning forward in these challenging and uncertain times,” said Sam Cressman, Marketing Coordinator at Knowre Math. “We understand that both administrators and teachers are currently struggling to enable distance learning, and for many states, distance learning may continue through the fall. In early March, we began to offer free access to Knowre Math to any school or district in need of support through the duration of the school year.”
NEVER MORE IMPORTANT
“Digital learning safety has never been more important for students, and we’re honored to be recognized by EdTech Digest for all the ways Relay is protecting students and helping schools,” said Lightspeed Systems VP of Marketing, Amy Bennett.
AN OUTSTANDING AWARD
“TrueLearn is honored to be recognized as a winner for such an outstanding award as EdTech’s, especially when their mission is at the utmost importance with challenges students and learners are facing during these unprecedented times,” said Dr. Joshua Courtney, founder of TrueLearn.
Get recognized for your value
RIGOROUS PROCESS
“We’re humbled to have Imagine Language & Literacy named as Best Reading/Literacy Solution as part of The EdTech Awards 2020,” shared Jeremy Cowdrey, CEO of Imagine Learning. “We know the rigorous process the EdTech Digest Awards Committee puts in place to vet the value of K-12 edtech programs, and we’re honored to be recognized for the quality and efficacy of Imagine Language & Literacy.”
EXTREMELY HONORED
“More than ever, innovation in education and training is critical to the success of learners and educators nationwide. We are extremely honored for Cirrus to be recognized for its pedagogical workability, efficacy, support and value,” said Chad Chandlee, president and chief operating officer of Paradigm.
THRILLED AND VALIDATED
“EdTech Digest reviewed some of the best edtech offerings on the market,” explained Chrissy Wostmann, n2y CEO. “We are thrilled that our Unique Learning System was named the ‘Best Special Needs Solution.’ Since its founding, n2y has remained dedicated to serving the needs of special education. This honor … validates all that we do.”
CALIBER OF FINALISTS
“We’re thrilled that WURRLYedu was recognized for providing a highly- engaging product that provides every child access to a high-quality music education, powered by the latest technologies, particularly when you look at the caliber of the finalists,” said Nadine Levitt, CEO and Founder of WURRLYedu.
OUR CONTINUED SUCCESS
“I am honored to receive this EdTech Leadership Award, a distinction which would not have been possible without the hard work and ongoing contributions from across the entire Edgenuity network,” said Edgenuity CEO Sari Factor. “Our vision at Edgenuity has always been about bringing high-quality educational opportunities to more students in more ways. Our continued success is a testament to our wonderful team and to the strong partnerships with schools and districts we’ve built over the years.”
TESTAMENT TO HARD WORK
“The PAPER academic team has worked incredibly hard over the last year to constantly bring the quality of our tutoring up. This means training, retraining, upskilling and mentorship — to be recognized as the Best Tutoring Service is truly a testament to their hard work,” said Philip Cutler, Chief Executive Officer of PAPER. “Hundreds of thousands of students and teachers depend on our support each year. We have no choice but to be excellent and strive every day to continuously improve. Earning this award is affirmation that the hard work is paying off and, ultimately, the students are receiving the equitable top quality education they all deserve.”
OUR DRIVE FOR MEANINGFUL INNOVATION
“This recognition truly celebrates our drive for meaningful innovation and mission to reimagine school interactions,” said RYCOR CEO Ryan Kerr. “It is amazing for our vision and hard work to be recognized by such a distinguished panel of judges and among so many innovative companies. We are truly honored for this recognition, and we will continue working hard to deliver meaningful technology solutions for the education sector.”
YOUR CAREFUL REVIEW
“Discovery Education is honored by The EdTech Awards’ recognition of our digital services,” said Scott Kinney, Discovery Education President of K-12 Education. “With so many school systems depending on innovative edtech services to maintain their students’ continuity of learning, we are proud to be counted among the best in the field. Thank you to The EdTech Awards judges for their careful review of all the entrants, but more importantly, thanks to all the educators in school systems across the country who are using these resources in their instruction during this incredibly trying time.”
AWARDS HIGHLIGHT LEADERSHIP
“We thank EdTech Digest and the judges for recognizing Untangle as the solution of choice for school IT departments,” said Scott Devens, (pictured) CEO at Untangle. “These awards highlight Untangle’s leadership in simplifying the complexities of comprehensive network security for the K-12 and higher education markets.”
For those shaping the future
RECOGNIZED FOR EMPOWERING TEACHERS
“We are honored to have StudySync recognized for the dynamic way it empowers teachers to personalize learning, engage students with relevant content, and ensure academic success whether students are learning in school or at a distance,” said Robert Romano, CEO, StudySync. “Our focus has always been to leverage the power of technology to meet students where they are.”
STANDING OUT AMONG SO MANY
“It is exciting that a top professional publication for teachers, EdTech Digest, awarded the hard work and innovation that we put into creating our K-5 science curriculum from the ground up to help teachers address the complexity and creativity of the NGSS in Smithsonian Science for the Classroom,” said Dr. Brian Mandell, Division Director of Curriculum at the Smithsonian Science Education Center. “As always in designing our programs, an extensive field-test in partnership with teachers was an essential part of our process to incorporate feedback from the classroom in a range of schools with diverse populations. The curriculum was developed by teachers and in consultation with teachers at every stage of development.” // Jim Parrish, President and CEO at Carolina Biological Supply Company, said: ”Carolina is very proud of Smithsonian Science for the Classroom for standing out among so many of the best instructional school products to win the Cool Tool Award 2020, as well as for helping teachers inspire the next generation of scientists every day in their classrooms. Smithsonian Science for the Classroom provides teachers with a high-quality, hands-on curriculum kit that engages students, through phenomena-based, hands-on science investigations led by students.”
SHAPING THE FUTURE OF LEARNING
“When teachers are given flexible, powerful curriculum resources to deliver effective differentiated instruction, every student benefits— no matter what the subject area. We are honored that our blended learning resources for reading, science, and writing were recognized in this year’s EdTech Awards for lighting the way in edtech and shaping the future of learning,” said Patrick Marcotte, past president of Learning A-Z. “We thank EdTech Digest for this recognition, and we share this honor with the more than 500,000 teachers around the world who use our products to personalize instruction and create a greater impact on students’ learning.”
Hundreds more finalists and winners have benefitted over the past decade of The EdTech Awards recognition program.
Whether you are returning or new to the program—stand out of from the crowd and be recognized for your work in education.
TESTAMENT TO THE WORK. “Our vision is a world where every student graduates confident and prepared. Having our platform recognized by EdTech Digest is a testament to the work and commitment that the Course Hero team demonstrates every day to help make that vision a reality,” said Andrew Grauer, (pictured) Co- Founder and CEO of Course Hero.
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Victor Rivero is the Editor-in-Chief of EdTech Digest and program manager for The EdTech Awards. Write to: victor@edtechdigest.com
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