Marketplace for College Courses Raises $11.92m as the Popularity of 'Course Sharing' Grows Among Learners and Institutions

News provided by

May 24, 2023, 09:30 ET

Hundreds of U.S. colleges now share courses through Acadeum; platform gives students access to in-demand courses from institutions and employers nationwide

AUSTIN, Texas, May 24, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Acadeum, creator of the largest course-sharing platform used by more than 460 U.S. colleges, including the Texas A&M University System, Benedict College, University of Central Missouri, and Community College of Baltimore County, today announced the close of its $11.92m Series B funding round. The round was led by Green Street Impact Partners, the fund's first investment, along with ECMC Group's Education Impact Fund and Pearson Ventures.

"This is about matching the vast potential of existing, high quality courses taught by talented, engaging faculty with learners who often struggle to access the classes they need to graduate on time and persist," said Amy Bevilacqua, Managing Partner of Green Street Impact Partners. "Acadeum is changing the game for institutions working to fulfill and expand their academic mission. It is enabling learners to chart a more direct—and affordable—pathway through college."

An April report from the National Student Clearinghouse found the number of Americans with some college credit and no degree is now 40.4 million. Research continues to indicate that course access and the class schedule are a significant barrier to learners completing their degree. Nearly a quarter of all courses are overfilled and so-called "bottlenecks," and more than a quarter of adult learners are unsatisfied with the times of courses offered. Meanwhile, research indicates learners are interested in accessing more workforce relevant courses and certifications, while new programs remain costly and difficult for institutions to create on their own.

"Our partnership with Acadeum not only helps our students access needed courses in convenient online modalities, but also enables us to strengthen the value of our liberal arts-based education by adding additional workforce-aligned offerings," said Dr. Marc M. Camille, president of Albertus Magnus College. "The platform has enabled us to offer cutting edge, stackable microcredentials in high demand career fields, taught by industry experts."

In addition to facilitating the sharing of courses from hundreds of individual colleges and universities, Acadeum's trailblazing technology platform supports sharing across national and regional consortia, including The Council of Independent Colleges Online Course Sharing Consortium, The League for Innovation in the Community College Online Course Sharing Consortium, and the Southern Regional Education Board's HBCU-MSI Course-Sharing Consortium. Acadeum has also partnered with Coursera to allow institutions to expand their offerings of professional certificates aligned with immediate workforce needs.

"Today's learners are older, and more likely to be parents or working, than at any point in our nation's history. That new majority of learners are putting pressure on institutions to align course offerings with the realities of their schedules and responsibilities beyond the classroom," said David Daniels, CEO of Acadeum. "At a moment when some are questioning the role and relevance of American colleges, we're building tools to leverage the collective strength of our nation's higher education system to unlock new opportunities for both institutions—and students."

To learn more about Acadeum, please visit www.acadeum.com.

ABOUT ACADEUM
Acadeum helps colleges and universities create academic partnerships with like-minded institutions to support student progress and equitable access to workforce opportunity. Today, more than 460 higher ed institutions use Acadeum's course-sharing network to place students in in-demand online courses they need to stay on track for timely graduation. Institutions improve retention and completion, while also unlocking new revenue to increase financial sustainability. Acadeum's platform enables seamless access to high quality online college courses for a wide range of learners including those in high school and working full time. To learn more about Acadeum, please visit acadeum.com.

ABOUT GREEN STREET IMPACT PARTNERS
Green Street Impact Partners is a sector-specific private equity fund that invests growth capital in companies leveraging technologies to catalyze innovation across the education lifecycle, from K-12, to higher education, to workforce learning. As experienced investors and operators–including former policymakers, educators, and college leaders–our focus is the intersection of learning and economic mobility. For more information, visit https://gsimpactpartners.com/.

SOURCE Acadeum