Bellevue, Wash., education-software company DreamBox Learning has received a $130 million investment from private equity firm TPG. The money, more than triple what the company has previously raised in its 12-year life span, is intended to bring accessible math education to more schools across the world.
The investment is from TPG's division that invests in social impact companies, the Rise Fund, and will make it the majority stakeholder in the education-software company, which also counts Netflix CEO Reed Hastings among its investors.
DreamBox's technology is designed to teach math at a personalized level for students from kindergarten to eighth grade. The software measures each student's pace and advances accordingly, purposefully staying just challenging enough for students without overwhelming them.
The software is now used by nearly 3 million students in the U.S., Canada and Mexico, the company said.
CEO Jessie Woolley-Wilson said DreamBox spent a significant amount of time over the past couple of years building in insights for teachers to help them understand how each student is progressing and how they learn best.
"Teachers have to stay at the center of the learning experience," she said.
DreamBox had raised more than $40 million before the Rise Fund stepped in, not an inconsiderable amount, Woolley-Wilson noted. But with this much larger investment, the company can expand to more schools quickly and can test the product in more countries.
The company has had pockets of success, she said, but what she really wants is significance or proof and ability to expand the software to any school with repeated positive results.
"Success isn't enough if we want to transform learning opportunities for millions of kids," Woolley-Wilson said.
DreamBox has offices in Bellevue and Raleigh, North Carolina, and about 165 employees.
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