Financing supports expanding content and growing sales effort for edtech startup.
Listen Current, an edtech company which curates the best of public radio to keep teaching connected to the real world and build student listening skills at the same time, announced today it has raised a $950,000 seed round from a mix of angels and institutional investors, led by Launchpad Venture Group, the largest angel investment group in the Northeast.
The seed round was also financed by impact investing groups NewSchools Venture Seed Fund, Investors Circle, and the Patient Capital Collaborative as well as individual angels and the Angel Investor Forum.
Founded by award-winning public radio reporter Monica Brady-Myerov, Listen Current is the leading provider of non-fiction audio news stories in the classroom. The management team includes distinguished education technology veteran Karen Gage, a former Blackboard and Pearson executive. Listen Current is a graduate of the inaugural cohort of the LearnLaunch Accelerator, a premier edtech accelerator in Boston.
“There is a tremendous need for classroom content that connects what students are learning to the real world,” said Brady-Myerov, who is also Listen Current’s CEO. “And schools are really lacking literacy resources that can be easily integrated across the curriculum, especially for listening. The rapidly growing number of teachers using our products report high engagement and focus.”
“Listen Current is the first powerful and easy-to-adopt solution for teaching students the critical listening skills they need to succeed, and we believe CEO Monica Brady-Myerov’s deep background in public radio gives her a unique understanding of this challenge,” said Launchpad Venture Group Managing Director Christopher Mirabile.
“Research shows that listening comprehension correlates with improved reading comprehension. However, few education tools are actually devoted to teaching students these listening skills. NewSchools is proud to support Listen Current – a company that is bringing curated public radio stories to classrooms to help educators teach these listening skills with relevant, timely content,” said Shauntel Poulson, Principal at NewSchools Seed Fund.
Listen Current will use the financing to expand its sales effort, increase the amount of content on the site, and add specialty features to help English Language Learners and struggling readers.
