Department of Education
400 Maryland Ave, SW, Washington, DC, 20202, United States
Overview
The U.S. Department of Education is the agency of the federal government that establishes policy for, administers and coordinates most federal assistance to education. It assists the president in executing his education policies for the nation and in implementing laws enacted by Congress. The Department's mission is to serve America's students-to promote student achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access. In 2007-08, the Department's elementary and secondary school programs served approximately 55 million students (pre-K through grade 12) attending some 100,000 public schools and 34,000 private schools. Department programs also provided grant, loan and work-study assistance to about 10 million undergraduate students. * When Congress created the Department in 1979, it declared these purposes: to strengthen the Federal commitment to ensuring access to equal educational opportunity for every individual; to supplement and complement the efforts of States, the local school systems and other instrumentalities of the States, the private sector, public and private educational institutions, public and private nonprofit educational research institutions, community-based organizations, parents, and students to improve the quality of education; to encourage the increased involvement of the public, parents, and students in Federal education programs; to promote improvements in the quality and usefulness of education through federally supported research, evaluation, and sharing of information; to improve the coordination of Federal education programs; to improve the management and efficiency of Federal education activities, especially with respect to the process, procedures, and administrative structures for the dispersal of Federal funds, as well as the reduction of unnecessary and duplicative burdens and constraints, including unnecessary paperwork, on the recipients of Federal funds; and to increase the accountability of Federal education programs to the President, the Congress and the public. (Section 102, Public Law 96-88)
- Total investments
- 1
- Lead investments
- 1
- Investments · 12mo
- 0
- Active investors
- 8
Sector focus
- Education
- Government
Investment portfolio
- Sokikom
Led · Grant · Jul 2014
Sokikom builds game-based math exercises and lessons for K–6 classrooms and homes, delivered online. The company is developing an online core math curriculum aligned to the Common Core State Standards using recent grant funding. It has been used by over one million students and teachers and claims users in more than 15,000 schools; paying school customers are reportedly renewing at 100%. Sokikom launched in 2008 and shifted from a freemium, direct-to-consumer model to selling directly to schools in order to generate sustainable revenue. The company has won multiple awards and uses efficacy research from past SBIR grants to support school contracts. Part of the current grant funding will also support teacher training and classroom integration to improve fidelity of use. Sokikom builds an adaptive, game‑based learning platform that teaches K‑12 math through a massively multiplayer online (MMO) game world divided into domains by math topic. The platform uses diagnostic assessments that adapt question difficulty and route students to targeted practice, with visual manipulatives, hints, and short animated instructional videos. Classes can play in real time on opposing teams, encouraging peer help and social motivation; teachers receive real‑time mastery reports on performance, time on task, and areas of struggle. Sokikom also offers a classroom management tool that awards “class cash” for positive behavior, which students can spend on virtual rewards and avatar customization in the game world. The product was tested in classrooms for about a year during beta and is now publicly launched. The team includes former math teachers and tutors and views math as the first subject with potential to expand into other areas such as computer science. Financially, the company announced a $2M seed package comprising both grant and angel funding.