Schoology makes the grade with $15m

Schoology, a Washington University education startup, has closed its series C at $15m. The round was led by Intel Capital, who was joined by new investors Great Oaks Venture Capital and Great Road Holdings. Existing investors FirstMark Capital and Meakem Becker Venture Capital also participated.

Founded in 2009 by Jeremy Friedman during an entrepreneurship course, the company’s total funding now stands at $25.1m. Previously, the 2012 series B raised $6.8m, and the 2010 series A $2m. The company also raised $300,000 in seed funding in 2009 and $1m in equity funding in 2012.

The fundraising is the latest in a series of successes for the startup, as it was named top education technology at the 2014 Codie Awards – awarded by the US Software & Information Industry Association. Uruguay has selected the startup for all 620,000 students in its national education initiative, while Colorado State University’s online university Global Campus is collaborating with the company on a learning management system.

Schoology, which currently counts five million users across 50,000 schools across the globe, has developed tools for instruction and curriculum management. The startup offers dedicated mobile apps, access to an integrated global learning community, advanced analytics and reporting, and an open platform for third-parties to build on top of its product.

As part of the investment, Intel Capital’s Sumeet Jain will join Schoology’s Board of Directors.

Jeremy Friedman, CEO of Schoology, said: “We are in a golden age for education technology, and Schoology is at the forefront, driving innovation in the market. We continue to receive praise from our users, as well as industry accolades, for our work in building a unified platform that is helping to improve the learning experience for students of all ages. Intel is one of the largest names in global education, and their investment represents significant validation for the work we are doing.”