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Cheryl Vedoe, CEO
As a software engineer, marketer, and executive for computer companies including Digital Equipment, Apollo Computer, and Sun Microsystems, Cheryl experienced the impact of innovative technologies across industries. It was at Apple in 1992, as the head of the K-12 education division, that she first became involved with technology in education. That experience sparked in Cheryl a passion to help educators integrate technology to create new solutions to the challenges confronting schools today.
Cheryl then joined the founding team and served as CEO of Tenth Planet, a leading developer of multimedia content for elementary math and literacy instruction. Following an exciting period as CEO of Post Communications, an early innovator in email marketing, she returned to Apple as vice president of education products and marketing, heading up marketing efforts for K-12 and higher education. She also served as president of PowerSchool, a leader in web-based K-12 student information systems, and in September 2002 Cheryl joined Apex Learning® as president and CEO.
Apex Learning is the leading provider of digital curriculum for secondary education. The company's comprehensive, standards-based online courses successfully engage all students in rigorous coursework and prepare them for high school graduation and beyond. Drawing on her experience in both technology and education businesses, Cheryl leads Apex Learning's efforts to help schools make learning more accessible, relevant, and effective for today's students.
Cheryl holds a BA in Mathematics from Wheaton College, in Norton, Massachusetts, and an MBA from Northeastern University, in Boston, Massachusetts. She serves as a trustee of Wheaton College and is on the board of directors of the Washington Technology Alliance.
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Chuck Lanphier, Client Services
Chuck brings more than 15 years of diverse experience in technology businesses to his current role as vice president of client services at Apex Learning. Chuck leads the team responsible for helping students, teachers, and administrators achieve their goals and objectives with the company’s digital curriculum solutions. Chuck and his team consistently drive high levels of client satisfaction by focusing on program design, implementation, professional development, instruction, and user support.
Since joining Apex Learning in 2001, Chuck has been a key member of the management team and, in several sales and marketing positions, has made significant contributions to the company’s evolution. Chuck came to Apex Learning with a strong foundation in marketing, product management, and sales developed during his tenure at Gateway Inc. and Avenue A. Chuck holds a BS in business administration from Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska.
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Cynthia Rogan, Marketing
Cynthia has had the pleasure of working for leading educational technology companies for more than 20 years. Throughout her career, Cynthia has focused on bringing to market tools and solutions that educators need in order to improve teaching and learning. She joined Apex Learning in April 2009; as vice president of marketing, she is responsible for marketing strategy and implementation.
Prior to joining Apex Learning, Cynthia was senior vice president of marketing of Wireless Generation; general manager of assessment at Scholastic; director of marketing for professional development at ETS; and vice president of marketing at LearningNetwork.com, an online unit of Pearson, Plc. Previously, she had served as vice president of sales and marketing at Tenth Planet, a developer of multimedia math and literacy content, and held various sales and marketing positions in the education division at Apple Computer. Cynthia holds a BS in business administration and a BS in accounting from Central Washington University.
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Brian Sharp, Sales
Brian Sharp joined Apex Learning in 2004, drawing on his diverse sales background in media and education to broaden the company’s market position with its expanding digital curriculum. In his initial business development role, he successfully defined a strategy that attracted early-adopter clients who were intent on implementing online learning programs to increase graduation rates.
Before coming to Apex Learning, Brian was honored as a sales manager of the year in Apple’s PowerSchool Division. Prior to his time at Apple, he was a leading producer for Viacom’s Infinity Promotions Group and was the top revenue generator for Full House Sports & Entertainment, the business arm of the NBA’s Seattle SuperSonics. Brian holds a BA in sports administration from Arkansas State University.
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Jean Sharp, Content Development
Jean has 25 years of leadership and management experience in the education and software publishing industries. Her expertise includes software design, project management, technology implementation, curriculum strategy and development, and instructional design. As Vice President of Content Development at Apex Learning, Jean oversees the teams responsible for creating original curriculum solutions.
Prior to joining Apex Learning, Jean served as Vice President of Curriculum and Instruction for AdvancePath Academics, where she was responsible for overseeing curriculum design, implementation, and efficacy. Previously, Jean was Vice President of Curriculum Development at PLATO Learning Inc. Among her credits are numerous award-winning educational software products published for both school and consumer markets.
Jean holds a Masters Degree in Educational Technology and Instructional Design from the University of Oklahoma.
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Ed Harris, Business Development
Ed Harris helped establish Apex Learning during the initial development of the company by serving as its chairman from 2000 to 2002. Ed recently rejoined the company from Insight Schools, a leading operator of online high schools. Ed helped found Insight in 2005 and served as executive vice president, finance and strategy, and as a member of the board of directors.
Prior to his time at Insight, Ed was the founder and CEO of Razor Capital LLC, a private financial advisory company. Through Razor, Ed served on the boards of directors of several public companies, including Edison Schools, a New York-based operator of charter schools, and Click2Learn, a leading corporate e-learning company.
Before joining Razor, Ed was one of the senior members of a team of investment professionals at Vulcan, Inc., where he was responsible for managing the portfolio of Paul Allen, co-founder of Microsoft. While at Vulcan, Ed directed investments in numerous innovative technology and service companies and served on several corporate boards, including that of Apex Learning.
Before joining Vulcan, Ed served as CFO of Starwave, a pioneering Internet firm that was acquired by the Walt Disney Company for $800 million, and as CFO of Claircom, an affiliate of McCaw Communications, which was acquired by AT&T for $400 million. Ed began his career as an investment banker at Salomon Brothers in New York, where he worked on numerous financing and merger and acquisition transactions for major global corporations.
Ed received a BA in Economics from Rutgers University in New Jersey and an MBA from Columbia University in New York.
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Tom Stanton, Technology
Tom came to Apex Learning from Gale, a Cengage Learning company, where he held several key technology positions over nearly a decade. Most recently, as the senior director of product platforms he led the migration effort to a new technology platform for the Thomson Learning division. As senior director of network engineering for Thomson’s Global Resources division in Switzerland, Tom managed a $21 million platform development program and software asset portfolio for Thomson Learning.
Prior to joining Gale, Tom worked for National Geographic Interactive, where he became the vice president of operations after serving as the director of product management responsible for the delivery of content on CD-ROM. He has also held management positions at Media Station, a developer of edutainment products, and Cimage Corp., which developed engineering workflow and document management systems.
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Pete Papano, Finance
Pete Papano is a seasoned financial executive working with high growth companies in domestic and international markets. Prior to joining Apex Learning, he was the chief financial officer at four technology companies.
Pete was the chief financial officer of Captaris (CAPA) a software company in document management. Prior to Captaris, Pete was the chief financial officer of Evant, Inc., a venture-backed, software company with demand forecasting and merchandise planning products; QRS Corporation (QRSI), which hosted a catalog for multi-location retailers and their vendors; and The Dialog Corporation, a content development and search company. Pete began his business career in the telecommunications markets with GTE Corporation and with Sprint Corporation.
Pete has a Bachelor of Science degree in business with an emphasis in finance and a Masters of Business Administration degree in accounting from the University of Colorado, Boulder. He is a licensed CPA. Pete is on the board of Elder and Adult Day Services (EADS), a not for profit providing day services to frail seniors and developmentally disabled adults.
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