SchooLinks, a leading software platform providing College and Career Readiness (CCR) resources for K-12 students across the U.S., announced a minority growth investment led by Susquehanna Growth Equity (SGE). And additional investors who participated in the funding round include Stephens Group, Strada and ASA. This new funding will help SchooLinks expand its growing suite of CCR offerings and accelerate its product ecosystem that facilitates connectivity between K-12, higher education, and employers.
A drop in college and career readiness has been widely reported, with recent ACT scores showing that a small percentage of schoolers in the class of 2023 graduated ready to succeed in their core introductory classes in college.
SchooLinks addresses this gap through a CCR platform with a curriculum designed to engage students and help them understand post-graduation interests. And programs include engaging assessments, gamified lessons that teach financial literacy, scholarship applications and interactive video, along with individualized roadmaps for students and their families customized to their unique skills, interests, and goals for the future.
SchooLinks was launched in 2015 by Katie Fang, a Forbes 30 Under 30 entrepreneur, with a focus on democratizing access to important CCR resources and opportunities for students across the U.S. SchooLinks now operates across 40 states and has become the go-to platform for a growing number of public-school districts who are putting more emphasis on the resources they provide K-12 students to equip them for the future, well after graduation.
SchooLinks’ platform is a modern solution architected and customized to the precise needs of administrators, counselors, CTE, families, students, and the workforce. The platform also elevates student engagement beyond its peers in the space while seeking to advance the country’s workforce development at a deeper level than other CCR companies.
SchooLinks is growing rapidly, serving customers nationwide, and positioning itself to be the most trustworthy and reliable platform for school districts. Since its Series A funding round, this platform has served 15 times the number of districts and 10 times the number of students. It has evolved exponentially in the last three years to ensure a true student-centric college and career planning experience.
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“I’m thrilled to be partnering with mission and vision-aligned investors in our latest funding round. SGE brings a significant amount of experience to the table, including deep experience in SaaS and the education industry. We are constantly evolving our platform, including the additions of our workforce solutions, to aid school districts in ensuring that the experiences they provide students continue to be valuable after graduation. With these capabilities we are looking forward to expanding our impact from school districts to employers and this financing round will enable us to accelerate this evolution.”
-Katie Fang, Founder and CEO of SchooLinks
“SchooLinks has emerged as the leader in the CCR space by bringing district departments together with its intuitive platform, perfectly aligning with our mission to support essential software solutions. They’ve not only achieved product-market fit but also redefined CCR with a bold, transformative approach unseen in the last 25 years. We are thrilled to support Katie and her team as they enter this next phase of growth.”
-Josh Elser, Managing Director of SGE
“We laud the incredible execution made under Katie’s leadership that has led SchooLinks to explode in scale and impact while serving school districts, students, and organizations involved in workforce development, as well as an increasing number of employers. We think that the team’s execution skills and trajectory align with other SaaS businesses that have gone on to dominate their spaces. This financing round is a testament to the company’s exceptional progress to date and will enable SchooLinks to capitalize further on widespread interest in the CCR space. I am excited to continue to serve on the Board and follow the company’s impact and growth over the next few years.”
-Krishna Srinivasan, Founding Partner of LiveOak Venture Partners
“We are pleased to collaborate with Katie and the SchooLinks team to support its next phase of growth. We believe SchooLinks is poised to continue its leading product innovation and best-in-class customer service that has made it the premier college and career readiness platform for K-12.”
-Ryan Morrow, Managing Director of The Stephens Group
