Michigan EdTech Pitch Contest awards $22,000 to 5 schooling innovators

LANSING, Mich. — Edtech innovators from Spelling Safari have been chosen because the winners of the second annual Michigan EdTech Innovation Pitch Contest, sharing $22,000 in enterprise startup grants and authorized and inventive startup help with 4 different finalists. The ideas developed from the remaining pitches will likely be used to enhance Michigan school rooms by innovation, expertise and firsthand educator expertise. 

“All of our teams did an awesome job and this wasn’t simple. 5 minutes isn’t a very long time to current and this was a troublesome alternative for our judges,” defined Matthew Okoneski, a contest choose from Pink Cedar Ventures. “Startups are onerous and I wish to commend our members for his or her determination to focus on this area to unravel a few of our communities’ greatest issues.” 

The primary-place prize went to Jonathan Marceau, a trainer at Monfort Elementary within the Utica Neighborhood College district, who will obtain $10,000 in enterprise startup grant funding, plus branding and brand design assist, and authorized session for Spelling Safari. Spelling Safari is a spelling curriculum reinvention and software program resolution offering elementary college students with enjoyable and adaptive studying. 

“Analysis exhibits mastery-based studying is linked with constructive scholar attitudes and better scholar achievement charges for all college students,” stated Marceau. “Information from the system in my classroom exhibits college students in any respect ranges greater than tripled the variety of phrases they had been uncovered to and greater than doubled the variety of new phrases discovered.” 

The second-place winner was Jessie Feliz from Detroit who created Spanish S.W.A.G., an on-demand language studying program designed to make language acquisition enjoyable, interactive, and accessible to all.  She is going to obtain $6,000 in enterprise startup grant funding, plus brand design assist and authorized session. 

“With Spanish S.W.A.G., we’re not simply educating Spanish, we’re igniting a ardour for language, fostering cultural connections, and empowering college students to develop into international residents who can confidently talk, join and thrive in an ever-expanding world,” stated Feliz.

The third-place profitable crew was Advait Paliwal and David Yu, college students at Michigan State College, who offered YouLearn, an adaptive studying mannequin that enables educators to add curriculum for college kids to work with AI tutors. YouLearn will obtain $4,000 in enterprise startup grant funding, plus brand design assist and authorized session. 

“College students have advised us how YouLearn has helped them to raised perceive lecture movies, and professors have an interest within the transparency and the perception they will acquire into college students’ studying processes,” stated Paliwal.

The finalist groups of eKinomy and BiPSE will every additionally obtain start-up grants of $1,000 for his or her remaining spherical pitches. 

The Michigan EdTech Innovation Pitch Contest is the results of a partnership between   Michigan Digital. Michigan State’s Burgess Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, Spartan Improvements, a subsidiary of MSU Analysis Basis, and Michigan SBDC to carry educators’ concepts to life on methods to unravel frequent classroom issues. Sponsorship is generously supplied by Michigan Artistic, Foster Swift, Shoppers Vitality, Meemic, Michigan Training Affiliation, Case Credit score Union, and LearningMate. 

“For the second yr in a row, the finalists on this contest proceed to astound me. Michigan college students and faculties are extremely lucky to have progressive, forward-thinking leaders similar to these winners in our school rooms,” stated Jamey Fitzpatrick, President and CEO of Michigan Digital and a pitch contest choose. “The profitable pitches maintain a lot potential for schooling shifting ahead and I’m so looking forward to our future with their concepts main the way in which.”

The 2023 contest was open from March 20 by Could 14, and finalists had been notified in late Could. All contest members and all different Michigan edtech innovators are eligible to attend a free Innovation Bootcamp the week of July 17. The Bootcamp is designed to assist members additional discover and develop a enterprise mannequin round their concept whereas additionally introducing them to assets and helps which are obtainable to entrepreneurs and innovators in Michigan, in addition to alternatives to carry entrepreneurial and innovation classes into faculties and school rooms

To be taught extra concerning the contest, go to michiganvirtual.org/edtech-pitch-contest.  

About Michigan Digital

Michigan Digital is a nonprofit academic group that’s main and collaborating to construct studying environments for tomorrow. Pushed by scholar success, we’ve got a robust file of supporting Michigan schooling that spans greater than 20 years. Whereas many know us for our research-based, high quality on-line studying choices for college kids {and professional} improvement for educators, we additionally do quite a lot of work behind the scenes to conduct authentic analysis, check improvements in studying, and supply consulting partnerships to advertise efficient practices. 

Training is altering quicker than ever. Find out about new fashions and assets to maneuver studying ahead at michiganvirtual.org. For current information and press releases, go to michiganvirtual.org/information. 

eSchool Media workers cowl schooling expertise in all its points–from laws and litigation, to finest practices, to classes discovered and new merchandise. First revealed in March of 1998 as a month-to-month print and digital newspaper, eSchool Media offers the information and knowledge crucial to assist Okay-20 decision-makers efficiently use expertise and innovation to rework faculties and schools and obtain their academic objectives.

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