Baltimore company’s expansion supported by its latest round of funding led by Brown Advisory
BALTIMORE MD – Oct. 11, 2017 -- Baltimore EdTech company Workbench has appointed two of its key employees to leadership positions in its sales and compliance divisions. This is part of a company-wide expansion that will bring Workbench’s project-based learning platform to even more schools, districts and libraries nationwide.
The current expansion plan is supported by Workbench’s latest round of seed funding which was led by an investment from Brown Advisory.
The current expansion plan is supported by Workbench’s latest round of seed funding which was led by an investment from Brown Advisory.
The promotions are:
● Becky Webster was promoted to VP of Sales to lead Workbench’s growing sales team. She previously was Director of Business Development. “Workbench simplifies the process of creating project-based, standards-aligned lessons that reinforce 21st Century skills,” said Webster. “Districts want that and I’m looking forward to helping even more schools, districts and libraries create and access these types of lessons.”
● Jennifer Klepper was promoted to Chief Compliance Officer in charge of tracking and implementing state, federal, and international privacy measures and standards. She previously was Workbench’s Director of Operations. Workbench is already a Student Privacy Pledge Signatory and has gained FTC “Safe Harbor” status in keeping child data protected. Klepper, an attorney and one of the first Workbench employees, is excited to move from what was a broader role to one that is focused on maintaining student online safety and building the company’s expertise on internet privacy. “We’ve always held child internet safety as a priority,” said Klepper. “Now we can focus on continuing compliance with standards set forth by COPPA, FERPA, SOPIPA and even the EU standards coming in 2018. This is incredibly important to school districts.”
“We have grown our operations to support more partner companies and to help them, and us, focus on child-safety and compliance standards. Becky and Jennifer have been an integral part of that growth,” said Chris Sleat, CEO of Workbench. “The investment from Brown Advisory will help us continue to improve upon the tools we build and expand our team, allowing us to grow and scale our offerings at the same pace that we are helping districts, schools, and teachers scale their use of hands-on learning and projects.”
“Brown Advisory is excited to participate in Workbench’s current funding round,” said Keith Stone, who leads the firm's venture investing efforts. “We look forward to partnering with Chris and the Workbench team to make hands-on, experiential and project-based learning readily accessible to schools, colleges and libraries on a national scale.”
Workbench is the leader in building career- and college-ready students through project-based learning. It works directly with districts and education technology partners to build engaged communities where teachers can share programs, lessons and experiences in order to drive interactive, hands-on learning in the classroom.
“Schools need to have students using 21st Century tools in their learning, and they need to protect student privacy,” added Webster. “Teachers need tools to make it sustainable for them to manage both. Workbench offers that.”
About Workbench
The Workbench mission is to make Project-Based Learning (PBL) accessible and scalable in schools, districts, and libraries across the globe. The solution reduces the burden on teachers who want to teach PBL by providing a straightforward framework for project authoring, delivery, and sharing coupled with a library of easily accessible projects teachers can leverage every day. This allows districts to move away from direct instruction as they embrace the PBL approach. The solution is supported by high-touch implementation, including professional development and gear/hardware sourcing which maximizes a district’s investment in PBL.
Workbench not only provides districts with equipment for maker education and a secure hub to implement and share projects, it also serves as the backbone for many of the Maker Education Industry’s top learning communities including Sphero, Parrot, Makey Makey, and SparkFun Electronics.
For more information, visit https://www.workbenchplatform.com/.
● Becky Webster was promoted to VP of Sales to lead Workbench’s growing sales team. She previously was Director of Business Development. “Workbench simplifies the process of creating project-based, standards-aligned lessons that reinforce 21st Century skills,” said Webster. “Districts want that and I’m looking forward to helping even more schools, districts and libraries create and access these types of lessons.”
● Jennifer Klepper was promoted to Chief Compliance Officer in charge of tracking and implementing state, federal, and international privacy measures and standards. She previously was Workbench’s Director of Operations. Workbench is already a Student Privacy Pledge Signatory and has gained FTC “Safe Harbor” status in keeping child data protected. Klepper, an attorney and one of the first Workbench employees, is excited to move from what was a broader role to one that is focused on maintaining student online safety and building the company’s expertise on internet privacy. “We’ve always held child internet safety as a priority,” said Klepper. “Now we can focus on continuing compliance with standards set forth by COPPA, FERPA, SOPIPA and even the EU standards coming in 2018. This is incredibly important to school districts.”
“We have grown our operations to support more partner companies and to help them, and us, focus on child-safety and compliance standards. Becky and Jennifer have been an integral part of that growth,” said Chris Sleat, CEO of Workbench. “The investment from Brown Advisory will help us continue to improve upon the tools we build and expand our team, allowing us to grow and scale our offerings at the same pace that we are helping districts, schools, and teachers scale their use of hands-on learning and projects.”
“Brown Advisory is excited to participate in Workbench’s current funding round,” said Keith Stone, who leads the firm's venture investing efforts. “We look forward to partnering with Chris and the Workbench team to make hands-on, experiential and project-based learning readily accessible to schools, colleges and libraries on a national scale.”
Workbench is the leader in building career- and college-ready students through project-based learning. It works directly with districts and education technology partners to build engaged communities where teachers can share programs, lessons and experiences in order to drive interactive, hands-on learning in the classroom.
“Schools need to have students using 21st Century tools in their learning, and they need to protect student privacy,” added Webster. “Teachers need tools to make it sustainable for them to manage both. Workbench offers that.”
About Workbench
The Workbench mission is to make Project-Based Learning (PBL) accessible and scalable in schools, districts, and libraries across the globe. The solution reduces the burden on teachers who want to teach PBL by providing a straightforward framework for project authoring, delivery, and sharing coupled with a library of easily accessible projects teachers can leverage every day. This allows districts to move away from direct instruction as they embrace the PBL approach. The solution is supported by high-touch implementation, including professional development and gear/hardware sourcing which maximizes a district’s investment in PBL.
Workbench not only provides districts with equipment for maker education and a secure hub to implement and share projects, it also serves as the backbone for many of the Maker Education Industry’s top learning communities including Sphero, Parrot, Makey Makey, and SparkFun Electronics.
For more information, visit https://www.workbenchplatform.com/.
