Episode Details

Welcome to the EdTech Startup Showcase, an original series produced by the Be Podcast Network. This series is all about spotlighting and amplifying some of the most innovative emerging companies in edtech. 

We'll bring you the first five episodes of the series directly in this feed. To subscribe to the series, visit https://etss.bepodcast.network 

Today, Connected Class founder and CEO Christel Reaves shares the story of her company’s work to support education teams with engaging, research-based strategies for increasing student achievement. These include hands-on, interactive activities and technology-based resources to supplement language arts and math curriculum for grades K-8.

Hear about:

• Christel's journey from struggling student to EdTech Innovator
• The organic growth story of Connected Class
• The power of video in education
• Addressing academic gaps and social-emotional learning
• The impact and future of Learning Link
• Christel’s upcoming goals and what motivates her work

About Connected Class

We build communication between the classroom and home environment through exciting games, strategies, and activities to help students succeed academically. Learn more:

• www.connectedclass.com  
• https://twitter.com/connectedclass_
• https://www.instagram.com/connected_class 
• https://www.linkedin.com/company/connected-class 

About today’s guest

Christel Reaves, founder and CEO of Connected Class, is an enthusiastic educator dedicated to improving learning and equipping educators to succeed.  Her passion for ensuring family engagement throughout the learning process is evident and at the core of every product and service provided by Connected Class. She oversees a team of Instructional Specialists to support schools, focusing on helping educators analyze data, develop action plans, implement instructional strategies, and enhance family engagement for improved student achievement. 

Before Christel was the founder of Connected Class, she was a classroom teacher, county resource educator and district administrator. She worked closely with the state to remove low performing Title I schools from Intervene status. Over the past 25 years, she has helped many schools improve their student performance and engage families. 

About today’s host

Scott Schuette is a Learning and Development Executive with years of experience driving the creation of innovative, multi-million dollar learning platforms and education programs for major corporate enterprise companies. 

He is cohost of The Fabulous Learning Nerds, a podcast sharing new ideas, learning tools, approaches and technology that increase learner engagement and impact — All while having FUN! Listen to the show and subscribe here: https://fabulouslearningnerds.transistor.fm 

Learn more about today's sponsors, Playworks and IXL:

We’re proud to be sponsored by Playworks, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with evidence-based practices that help schools improve the health and well-being of children by increasing opportunities for physical activity and safe, meaningful play.

If you’re a school or district leader struggling with the challenge of chronic absenteeism, as so many are across the U.S., you may not realize that structured recess is a research-backed approach to keep kids in school. In fact, a UC Berkeley study of Title I schools found that those partnering with Playworks had significantly lower chronic absenteeism