Apangea Learning Announces Agreement with Mon Valley Education Consortium; Company to Provide Hybrid Tutoring Solutions to 25 Member Schools to Improve Student Performance in Math

INDIANA, PA -- Jan. 28, 2005 -- Apangea Learning, Inc., a privately-held provider of educational software and services, today announced that it has signed an agreement with the Mon Valley Education Consortium (MVEC), a non-profit, community-based Local Education Fund which raises money, seeks out resources, designs initiatives and convenes community to respond to the challenges faced by school districts in southwestern Pennsylvania. Under the terms of the agreement, Apangea will provide its hybrid tutoring solutions to the 25 member schools that comprise the consortium to help improve the performance of their students in math. The agreement is part of an initiative to provide greater assistance to students performing below proficiency levels launched by the consortium with support from the Heinz Endowments.


"Like many districts across the country, the Mon Valley has a significant number of students who are struggling with math" said Linda Croushore, Executive Director of the MVEC. "Our goal is to provide each of these students with tools like Apangea SmartHelp that will help them build the skills necessary to improve their performance"

"We are pleased that the MVEC has chosen to leverage Apangea SmartHelp across its member schools" said Louis Piconi, Apangea Learning President and CEO. "With our solution, schools throughout the Mon Valley can ensure that every one of their students who needs a tutor receives one and achieves their maximum potential"

A research-based hybrid tutoring solution that combines intelligent software with live support from human tutors, Apangea SmartHelp creates a fully supportive environment in which students can learn a consistent, structured approach to solving word problems and improve their performance in math. Offered at a fraction of the cost of traditional tutoring solutions, SmartHelp enables schools to enhance the quality of the tutoring programs they deliver while lowering the cost of administering them.

"In an ideal world, schools would be able to provide a qualified, human tutor to every student who is struggling" said Gerry Balbier, a senior program officer with the Heinz Endowments, which provided a $150,000 grant to support the use of Apangea SmartHelp in Mon Valley classrooms. "The reality is, education budgets are tight and the supply of well-prepared tutors is small. Technology like Apangea SmartHelp addresses this problem by enabling schools to use existing resources to reach more students than ever before"

Among the first schools in the Mon Valley that will leverage Apangea SmartHelp to bolster their math tutoring programs are Laurel Highlands, McKeesport, Wesley Institute, Phase IV, Ringgold and East Allegheny. Using the software, the schools will be able to provide additional support to more than 500 students.

"The No Child Left Behind Act requires that every student in our district perform at or above proficient levels" said Dr. Gary Brain, Director of Curriculum at Laurel Highlands, where Apangea SmartHelp is already in use. "With tools like Apangea SmartHelp, we might just reach this goal"

About MVEC

The Mon Valley Education Consortium (MVEC) is a non-profit, community-based Local Education Fund which raises money, seeks out resources, designs initiatives and convenes community to respond to the challenges faced by school districts in southwestern Pennsylvania. The Consortium works with more than 100 schools, 55,000-plus students in grades K-12, some 7,000 public school employees, and 212 communities. To learn more about MVEC, please visit www.mvec.org

Apangea Learning

Apangea Learning, Inc. is a leading provider of hybrid tutoring solutions that combine intelligent software with live support from human tutors to help students improve their performance in math. Our hosted solutions create a fully supportive environment in which students can learn a consistent, structured approach to solving word problems. Through our offerings, schools can enhance the quality of the tutoring programs they administer while dramatically reducing the cost of delivering them. For more information on Apangea Learning and its solutions, please visit www.apangealearning.com

Contact Information

Karen Kovatch

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Kovatch Communications

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