Diversity & Inclusion

Baltimore education innovators are diving into the ‘Shark Tank’

It won't be on TV, but the event, hosted by EdSurge and the Gates Foundation, figures to have a national audience.

Not this tank. (Photo by Zac Wolf via Wikimedia Commons)

Baltimore will be well-represented at a “Shark Tank”-inspired event focusing on teacher professional development this week.
The virtual competition, organized by Edsurge and the Gates Foundation, is set for 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 8. Three companies will pitch four educators. But it’s the audience who decides the winner.
Register
The companies were chosen as the organizers set out to find startups “producing effective, easy to consume professional development” materials.
One of the companies set to pitch is Lessoncast Learning. Cofounder Nicole Tucker-Smith is set to pitch the Towson University incubator company. The startup recently developed a platform specifically for the Baltimore Teachers Union to help teachers grow in specific areas that will be evaluated, said cofounder Khalid Smith.
A pair of educators from Baltimore will be hearing the pitches. Jenna Shaw, who is the technology director at Liberty Elementary School in Northwest Baltimore is one of the “sharks.” According to Liberty Principal Joe Manko, Shaw teaches design thinking (what’s design thinking, you ask?) in the school’s Idea Lab, and provides technology assistance to the rest of the school through workshops, projects and other support. Emmanuel Andre, who works as an instructional coach and pairs teachers with specific professional development experiences in Baltimore County Public Schools, will also be in the tank.

Engagement

Join our growing Slack community

Join 5,000 tech professionals and entrepreneurs in our community Slack today!

Donate to the Journalism Fund

Your support powers our independent journalism. Unlike most business-media outlets, we don’t have a paywall. Instead, we count on your personal and organizational contributions.

Trending

How Ballard Spahr helps startups navigate common legal questions

Baltimore reports more tax revenue and big-ticket development deals in 2024

Everything you need to know about immigrant work visas under the Trump administration 

Investors’ immigration experiences led to DC’s new $56M fintech fund

Technically Media