ApprenNet

ApprenNet is a Philadelphia-based educational technology startup company founded in 2011 by Emily Foote and Drexel University School of Law Professor Karl Okamoto. The company provides apprenticeship-like job experiences online.[1]

ApprenNet
TypePrivate
IndustryEducation
Founded2011 (2011)
FounderEmily Foote, Karl Okamoto
HeadquartersPhiladelphia
Number of employees
7
Websitehttp://info.apprennet.com/

AppreNet's first release was LawMeets, an online experience similar to a moot court competition.[2][3] With LawMeets, students enact their response to a legal problem, and can not only then review their own performance, but also receive feedback, including critiques by experts.[1][3] According to the Journal of the American Bar Association, LawMeets "quickly [became] a very big deal."[4]

ApprenNet next added K12Meets, a program enabling teachers to practice their classroom techniques, and created a training program for employees at a Philadelphia restaurant.[1][3]

In 2013, ApprenNet was one of five startup companies selected to participate in the University of Pennsylvania's Education Design Studio Inc. (EDSi), an innovation incubator dedicated to funding and launching education technology companies.[5][6]

Grants

In 2012, the National Science Foundation awarded Okamoto a $500,000 grant to expand LawMeets' approach to learning in other disciplines.[1][3] Okamoto told an interviewer that ApprenNet technology could be applied to many fields, not only training teachers and restaurant employees, but even musical training. "We'll take care of law first," said Okamoto, "and then use it in lots of different places. Why can't we crowdsource violin?"[7]

By 2015, after ApprenNet hired Columbia Business School graduate Rachel Jacobs as CEO, the start-up had received more than a million dollars in Small Business Innovation Research grants.[8][9] Jacobs was hired to lead ApprenNet in an expansion from its original focus on educating lawyers to applying its online teaching technology in training health care professionals, college level instructors, and K-12 teachers.[8]

Merger

Following Jacobs's death in May 2015, ApprenNet merged with Handsfree Learning of California.[10][11]

In June 2016, ApprenNet changed its name to Practice and announced a $4 million Series A fundraising round.[12]

References
  1. McBride, Dara (14 August 2012). "Drexel law professor creates a virtual venue for getting real-world experience". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved 19 May 2015.
  2. Reyes, Juliana (26 July 2012). "ApprenNet: online law education startup to build open web course on M&A with $500k from National Science Foundation". Technically Philly. Retrieved 19 May 2015.
  3. McDonough, Molly (14 August 2012). "Drexel Law Prof to Use $500K Grant to Expand LawMeets, an Online Lawyering Skills Platform". ABA Journal. American Bar Association. Retrieved 19 May 2015.
  4. Carter, Terry (4 September 2013). "You know about moot court—but Karl Okamoto wants students to practice moot deals". ABA Journal. Retrieved 19 May 2015.
  5. Schaffhauser, Dian (31 October 2013). "U Penn School of Ed Launches Ed Tech Incubator". Campus Technology. Retrieved 19 May 2015.
  6. Baker, Brandon (7 November 2013). "ApprenNet Takes Teaching to a Higher Level". Philadelphia Region's Business. Retrieved 20 May 2015.
  7. Spolan, Sue (20 March 2012). "Transforming the law school experience with ApprenNet out of Drexel". Flying Kite Media. Retrieved 19 May 2015.
  8. Reyes, Juliana (6 April 2015). "ApprenNet just hired a new CEO. Here's why that's a big deal". TechnicallyPhilly. Retrieved 19 May 2015.
  9. "People in the News". The Philadelphia Inquirer. 31 March 2015. Retrieved 19 May 2015.
  10. "ApprenNet merges with SF edtech startup, but Philly office is here to stay - Technical.ly Philly". Technical.ly Philly. 2015-07-23. Retrieved 2017-10-13.
  11. Blumenthal, Jeff (22 July 2015). "Local tech firm that lost CEO in Amtrak crash merges with California firm". Philadelphia Business Journal. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
  12. https://www.edsurge.com/news/2016-06-08-video-learning-platform-apprennet-gets-a-name-change-and-a-4m-series-a
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