Carnegie Learning President Named Outstanding Entrepreneur by the Pittsburgh Venture Capital Association

PITTSBURGH, June 14, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The Pittsburgh Venture Capital Association has honored Dennis Ciccone, president of Carnegie Learning, with the 2012 Outstanding Entrepreneur Award. Recognized as a prolific entrepreneur, Mr. Ciccone led a national venture capital firm and guided several Pittsburgh-based start-ups through high growth and successful acquisition.

Mr. Ciccone is currently leading Carnegie Learning, a developer of adaptive mathematics instruction for middle school, high school, and higher education students.  He joined the company as chief executive officer in January 2005 and, in the first fiscal year of his leadership, revenue grew by 50 percent. Carnegie Learning was acquired by Apollo Group (NASDAQ:APOL) in September 2011 and continues to operate as a wholly owned subsidiary.

Before joining Carnegie Learning, Mr. Ciccone was a founder and the managing partner of Lycos Ventures, a $70 million fund investing in start-up companies providing internet content and services to the Lycos search engine web site.  He also served as vice president of mergers and acquisitions for Lycos, Inc. In that capacity, Mr. Ciccone held a seat on the Board of Directors of Carnegie Learning and several other Lycos Ventures portfolio companies. In the late 1990's, he was president and chief operating officer of WiseWire, an internet company purchased by Lycos in 1998. Earlier in his career, Mr. Ciccone worked for 12 years with Simon & Schuster in New York as Director of Sales and Marketing.

"I appreciate the value of Pittsburgh's venture capital community in helping the regional economy to transition and grow over the last 20 years, and I am pleased to have contributed to the success of the entrepreneurial spirit in Pittsburgh," said Dennis Ciccone. "I have been fortunate for the opportunity to support and grow some exciting ideas alongside very smart, hard-working teams of technologists and business minds."

A native of Aliquippa, Pennsylvania, Mr. Ciccone was honored with the award at Pittsburgh's Duquesne Club on June 12 along with Donald Jones, managing director of Draper Triangle Ventures who received a Lifetime Achievement Award for his influence on innovators, entrepreneurs, and business leaders throughout Western Pennsylvania.

About Carnegie Learning, Inc. (www.carnegielearning.com)

Carnegie Learning is a publisher of innovative, research-based mathematics software and textbooks for middle school, high school, and post-secondary students, aligned to the Common Core State Standards. Providing differentiated instruction in schools across the United States, Carnegie Learning is helping students to succeed in math as a gateway to graduation, college, and the 21st century workforce. Carnegie Learning, a wholly owned subsidiary of Apollo Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:APOL), is located in Pittsburgh.

About The Pittsburgh Venture Capital Association (www.thepvca.org)

The Pittsburgh Venture Capital Association was founded in 1982 and has become the leading voice of private equity investors in Western Pennsylvania and among the most prominent in the Mid-Atlantic region. Through a wide range of programs, the PVCA facilitates quality deal flow, encourages investor collaboration, and fosters important business relationships with key service providers. This is the seventh anniversary of Entrepreneur of the Year Awards.

SOURCE Carnegie Learning, Inc.

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