Kauffman Labs Education Ventures Program Unveils Inaugural Class

Monika Jansen Jun 11, 2011 Tweet

This past week, the Kauffman Labs for Enterprise Creation Education Ventures hosted presentations by 23 founders of education companies who just completed a four-month incubation program.  You can learn more about the program in this video interview with Nick Seguin that we took at SXSW.

The 16 business concepts that presented at the reception were winnowed down from more than 1,000 applicants.  Three of the entrepreneurs were recently named among nine finalists competing for $50,000 in startup funds in the Milken PennGSE Education Business Plan Competition, while one Kauffman Labs participant was selected for the Imagine K-12 education incubator, inspired by Y Combinator, and another team was chosen for Good Company Ventures’ Social Impact Incubator.

Here’s a look at a four of the companies:

ChildRoad uses a Netflix-inspired business model to revolutionize how children and parents worldwide access children’s books by providing an online digital library in several languages.

Irynsoft is a mobile software company that has built a software platform to turn inexpensive Android tablets into powerful educational tools, creating a superior alternative to the iPad at less than half the price.

Wishbone.org is a non-profit that connects at-risk high school students to donors online who can help fund afterschool and summer programs.

MindBlown Labs is a next-generation web and mobile platform that combines aspects of social gaming with hands-on money management experience to provide financial literacy instruction for students aged ten through eighteen.