Participated · Series A · Apr 2024

Abre provides a software platform that integrates data from hundreds of EdTech platforms across a school district to deliver a 360-degree view of students across social-emotional well-being, enrollment, attendance, intervention, academic performance, and more. The platform aims to minimize effort required from administrators and building staff while consolidating disparate data sources. Led by CEO James Stoffer, Abre intends to use the Series A proceeds to accelerate innovation in data intelligence, build out data-as-a-service (DaaS) capabilities, and drive technology consolidation for school districts. The company plans to expand its market reach, strengthen its team across key departments, and capitalize on emerging opportunities in the EdTech landscape. A new governing board was also announced, reflecting an effort to broaden strategic oversight as the company scales.

Participated · Seed · Jan 2024

OnStation is a Cleveland, OH-based provider of a collaborative digital stationing platform tailored to the heavy highway industry. Its mobile app centralizes communication and delivers location-based project records from bid to close, with instant jobsite stationing, milepost, and LRS capabilities. Users can overlay design layers on project maps and communicate via a custom chat platform that organizes and records project events at their locations. The platform is designed to boost productivity, enhance worker safety, and improve project quality across civil engineering and roadway projects. OnStation is available on the Apple App Store and Google Play and is supported on desktop systems. The company intends to use the newly raised funds to accelerate growth, expand its customer base, and enhance its platform. OnStation is a mobile application that enables better communication, location-based documentation, and streamlined issue tracking for road construction projects. The app serves as a complementary plugin to larger road construction tech solutions and provides access to project design files and contract documents. It is currently in use in 23 states and reports its customer base grew seven-fold over the past seven months. OnStation plans to use new funding to scale nationally, hire sales professionals and additional developers, and automate the project onboarding process. Leadership credits JumpStart Cleveland for four years of mentorship and support, and the product was built by founder and CTO Jake Bailosky based on his experience at the Ohio Department of Transportation. The company intends to add functionality and grow headcount to meet anticipated demand if federal infrastructure funding increases roadway projects.

Participated · Equity · Oct 2020

Fiveable started as a free online learning community focused on helping high school students pass AP exams through livestreamed “cram shops,” study guides and an active Discord. The company is evolving into a broader social learning platform that enables student-directed spaces and multiplayer study experiences. It acquired Hours, a virtual study platform, to incorporate shared timers, task lists and study-session features into its roadmap. Fiveable prioritizes growth over monetization for now and keeps its platform entirely free to users. The startup reports more than 7.3 million students have used the platform with 3x year‑over‑year growth, a Discord community of over 25,000 users, and when it previously charged for access it granted more than 3,000 scholarships. The team includes over 50 paid student interns and a diverse staff, and the new funding will be used to grow the team and build more student-led online spaces. Fiveable combines educational content, community, and collaboration to support high school students with a focus on social learning. The platform hosts more than 5,000 pieces of content—study guides, live streamed lessons, and Q&A forums—and serves 1.5 million high school students. Students who studied with Fiveable achieved a 92% pass rate on Advanced Placement exams. The company offers Fall and Spring Fiveable Courses covering all 38 AP subjects with live instruction, practice assignments, feedback, and TA support. Fiveable is building a reimagined social learning community to address isolation and motivation, with an 800-student “Founding Members” team informing product design and a beta community planned for launch this winter. The recently secured funds will be used to propel that social learning experience and expand community offerings. Fiveable builds live-streamed learning sessions and online communities to help high school students prepare for Advanced Placement exams. The company was one of eight startups selected for AT&T’s Aspire Accelerator, which pairs mentorship with exposure to AT&T’s 5G capabilities. As part of the accelerator Fiveable will receive $125,000, including a $100,000 investment from AT&T Aspire, and the program culminates in a December demo day. Earlier, Fiveable won a $25,000 investment in a virtual competition run by ECMC Foundation and Chloe Capital. Founder and CEO Amanda DoAmaral said the company is positioned for growth as remote and online learning expand. The article notes the accelerator connected Fiveable with other top-tier investors and that additional funding is likely. Fiveable is a social learning platform that provides interactive test-prep content, live-streamed lessons, trivia review games, study guides, and a community forum with live support. The company recently dropped its paywall and launched a free, student-first platform while aiming to reach 100,000 student users this spring. Fiveable serves nearly 40,000 students who have achieved a 92% AP exam pass rate using the platform, and it employs more than 180 active content creators. Core offerings include weekly live streams, personalized dashboards, and paid “Cram Passes” for intensive pre-exam review sessions. The company plans to expand the number of AP subjects it covers and to add test-prep resources for the SAT and ACT. Fiveable was founded in 2018 by Amanda DoAmaral and is based in Milwaukee.

Participated · Series C · Mar 2017

Promentis Pharmaceuticals is developing therapies to treat central nervous system (CNS) disorders, with its lead compound SXC-2023 designed to engage System Xc- to address glutamatergic dysfunction and oxidative stress. The company reports a compelling preclinical profile for SXC-2023 across a range of studies. Promentis has obtained an exclusive license from Marquette University and the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee Research Foundation to related intellectual property. The company intends to use the Series C proceeds to advance SXC-2023 through a Phase 2 clinical proof-of-concept study. Leadership named in the filings includes Klaus Veitinger (CEO, Chairman), Tom Beck (Chief Medical Officer), Daniel Lawton (President) and Chad Beyer (Senior VP, R&D). The company has raised a total of more than $31M to date. Promentis Pharmaceuticals develops novel compounds aimed at modifying brain chemistry to treat schizophrenia, Parkinson’s disease and pediatric disorders including autism. Founded in 2007 by Chad Beyer, Ph.D., M.B.A., who serves as president and CEO, the company is based in Milwaukee, WI. Its lead programs target central nervous system disorders and have received support from grants from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) and the Michael J. Fox Foundation. The company raised nearly $3M in a Series B financing to advance its development plans. Promentis intends to use the funds to secure investigational new drug (IND) status for two lead compounds and advance these programs into human clinical testing over the next 24 months.

Led · Equity · Aug 2009

Flex Biomedical, founded in 2007 and led by CEO Sal Braico, is developing innovative treatments for orthopedic diseases. Its lead product, the Flex Polymer™, is a synthetic polymer designed to treat osteoarthritis. The company has said it will use the newly raised funds to continue advancing Flex Polymer toward commercialization. In November 2010 Flex Biomedical received a $244,479 award from the IRS Qualified Therapeutic Discovery Project grant program. The company closed an $866,000 financing round with participation from both new and existing investors. No operating metrics or revenue figures were disclosed in the article. Flex BioMedical is an orthopedic pharmaceutical startup developing a polymer-based joint lubricant intended to reduce pain and increase mobility for osteoarthritis patients. The product is meant to replace hyaluronic acid injection treatments, which can provide relief for six months to a year but sometimes do not work. The company relocated from Boston to Madison, Wisconsin after securing public and private funding. It received a $150,000 loan from Wisconsin’s Technology Venture Fund and $835,000 in private investment. Flex has filed with the SEC seeking to raise up to $1.25 million in private equity. The company hopes to enter clinical trials on the product no later than 2011.