AT&T Selects 6 Startups for Ed-Tech Accelerator

AT&T is working with six ed-tech startups for its second Aspire Accelerator class. The startups come from Colorado, Georgia, Washington, D.C., Illinois and California.

The program is part of the Dallas-based company’s $350 million commitment to help students succeed in school. The six-month program, launched last year, offers $100,000 of AT&T investment and $25,000 to cover costs of the program, access to AT&T and other education and tech mentors, inclusion in the AT&T Aspire initiative, as well as the ability to participate from their respective locations.

• Here’s a look at the six startups, four of which were founded by women:
  Bitsbox (Boulder, Colo.) – monthly subscription to coding projects that teach grade-schoolers to program apps
• Cogent Education (Athens, Ga.) – this interactive case study software has students acting like scientists, learning science concepts and honing problem solving skills
• CommonLit (501(c)3 / Washington, D.C.) – a free digital platform that helps teachers find and plan engaging lessons and track student progress in reading
• Couragion (Denver, Colo.) – an engaging app that exposes students to STEM careers using videos, games and self-reflection quizzes
• TalkingPoints (501(c)3 / San Francisco, Calif.) – a multilingual texting platform that connects teachers, families and students via mobile technology
• The Graide Network (Chicago, Ill.) – an online platform connecting teachers with on-demand teaching assistants to grade and provide thorough feedback on student work