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Education Dynamics

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

EducationDynamics (EDDY) is a privately held higher education management corporation. Founded in 2005, the firm provides market research, advertising agency, multichannel marketing, lead generation, and enrollment management for over 500 US colleges with a particular focus on adult online education. It also partners with private lenders who provide student loans, produces marketing research about adult online students, and hosts the InsightsEDU Conference, formerly known as (CALEM).[1]

History

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As a member of BMO Financial Group and Halyard Capital, the company was founded in 2005 as Halyard Education Partners. The company's first inquiry portal was eLearners.com, which works to pair prospective students with colleges and universities offering online programs.[2]

In 2006, it acquired Educational Directories Unlimited, owners of StudyAbroad.com, GradSchools.com, and StudentProspector.com.[3] That same year, the company launched a multi-platform US-based contact center.

In 2007, it acquired WorldClass Strategy, owner of EarnMyDegree.com.[4]

The firm rebranded as EducationDynamics in 2007.

In 2009, EducationDynamics acquired Aslanian Market Research, a leading market research firm focused exclusively on understanding adult, non-traditional, and online college students through primary and secondary research. Aslanian Market Research was founded by Carol Aslanian, who continues to lead the market research solutions offered by EducationDynamics.

In 2010, it acquired Education Connection;[5] in 2011, the Education Connection website reportedly had 350 colleges paying for leads, with 300,000 unique visitors per month and 40,000 signing up for help.[6]

In 2015, Halyard Capital sold EducationDynamics to an investor group including Muirlands Capital, KnowledgeShares and Prudential Capital Group.[7]

In 2016, EducationDynamics acquired EdPlus Holdings, which included Unigo.com and EStudentLoan.com.[8]

In 2018 it acquired JMH Consulting, Inc, a boutique provider of marketing and bundled Enrollment Management Services.[9]

In 2019, it purchased the digital marketing, search engine optimization, and call center businesses of Thruline, a higher education marketing agency based in Lenexa, Kansas.[10]

In 2019, NBC News reported that Education Dynamics was targeting military veterans through Military-colleges.com.[11]

In 2020, the firm purchased the Quinstreet higher education vertical, which included onlinedegrees.com, and schools.com.[12] In September 2020, it also received capital infusions of $80 million from Whitehorse Capital and $12.5 million from Encina Business Credit.[13] In November, 2020 the company announced the acquisition of the higher education portal classesUSA.[14]

In 2021, it announced a strategic relationship with Nuro Retention, a company using analytics to improve student persistence.[15]

EducationDynamics announced in October, 2021 that it had been purchased by Renovus Capital Partners.[16]

Leadership

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EducationDynamics is led by Bruce Douglas, who has served as CEO since 2015 and previously held the role of Chief Marketing Officer (CMO).[17] Prior to Douglas, the company was led by Tom Anderson.[18]

Services

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The company focuses on delivering marketing and related enrollment/student engagement support services for online and adult-focused college programs. The firm's multi-channel marketing services include search engine optimization (SEO), digital marketing, Over-the-Top (OTT) marketing, awareness media and creative services. It provides coaching services for prospective students and for student success. It manages multiple inquiry generation websites, including gradschools.com, schools.com, elearners.com, and educationconnection.com. The company also conducts primary and secondary research on behalf of clients and releases numerous annual reports, including the Online College Students Report, Higher Ed Landscape Report and Enrollment Management Benchmarks Report.[citation needed]

Unigo

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Unigo is a leading student search and scholarship site, acquired by EducationDynamics in 2016.[19] Unigo owns the student loan marketplace estudentloan.com and provides student loan information for Bankrate.com.[20] Unigo Student Funding partners with colleges to originate and service student loans. [21]

Research

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EducationDynamics produces research and reports about online adult education, with information on marketing trends, consumer demand, industry changes, and student retention. The reports include the annual Online College Students Report, and 2020 & Beyond Student Survey and Report.[22] The Online College Students Report was part of a joint effort between EducationDynamics and Wiley Education Services(a subsidiary of John Wiley and Sons).[23]

Conference

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EducationDynamics hosts the annual InsightsEDU conference. The conference was previously known as the Conference on Adult Learner Enrollment Management and changed names after the 2021 conference.[24] InsightsEDU offers higher ed leaders the opportunity to come together and discuss the latest trends and insights on attracting and engaging career-focused non-traditional students. The conference offers three tracks: Marketing, Enrollment Management, and Leadership.[citation needed]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "InsightsEDU Conference for Higher Education Professionals to be Held February 25-27 in Denver, CO". AP News. August 18, 2021. Retrieved 22 October 2021.
  2. ^ "Halyard Capital Acquires Majority Interest in eLearners.com". www.elearners.com. Archived from the original on 2007-08-17. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
  3. ^ "Halyard Capital Acquires Majority Interest in Educational Directories Unlimited" (PDF). www.halyardeducationpartners.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-07-09. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
  4. ^ "HALYARD EDUCATION PARTNERS ACQUIRES WORLDCLASS STRATEGY" (PDF). www.halyardeducationpartners.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-07-09. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
  5. ^ "EducationDynamics Acquires Education Connection Services". www.careercollegecentral.com. Retrieved 13 March 2021.
  6. ^ Pappano, Laura (4 November 2011). "The Online-College Crapshoot". The New York Times. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
  7. ^ "Halyard Capital Announces Sale of EducationDynamics to Investor Group led by Muirlands Capital, KnowledgeShares and Prudential Capital Group". www.prnewswire.com (Press release). Retrieved 14 March 2021.
  8. ^ "EducationDynamics Announces the Acquisition of Unigo and EStudentLoan.com". PRWeb. Retrieved 14 March 2021.
  9. ^ "EducationDynamics Announces the Acquisition of JMH Consulting". GlobeNewswire. June 12, 2018. Retrieved 22 October 2021.
  10. ^ Collins, Leslie. "Thruline Marketing sells off two business units". www.bizjournals.com. Retrieved 13 March 2021.
  11. ^ Przybyla, Heidi; Strickler, Laura (14 April 2019). "Veterans could be first to pay as DeVos rolls back for-profit college oversight". www.nbcnews.com. NBC News. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
  12. ^ "EducationDynamics Acquires QuinStreet's Higher Education Vertical". newyork.citybizlist.com. Retrieved 13 March 2021.
  13. ^ "FocalPoint Advises EducationDynamics on Refinancing by WhiteHorse and Encina". www.abfjournal.com. Retrieved 24 March 2021.
  14. ^ "EducationDynamics Acquires Higher Education Portal ClassesUSA". PR Newswire (Press release). PR Newswire. Retrieved 22 October 2021.
  15. ^ "EducationDynamics and Nuro Retention Form Partnership". www.prnewswire.com (Press release). PR Newswire. Retrieved 22 March 2021.
  16. ^ "EducationDynamics Announces Acquisition by Renovus Capital Partners". PR Newswire.
  17. ^ "Bruce Douglas CEO Of EducationDynamics". EducationDynamics. Retrieved 2022-07-20.
  18. ^ CSG (2012-01-17). "EducationDynamics Names Bruce Douglas Chief Marketing Officer". GlobeNewswire News Room (Press release). Retrieved 2022-07-20.
  19. ^ "EducationDynamics Announces the Acquisition of Unigo.com and EStudentLoan.com". PRWeb. Retrieved 2022-07-20.
  20. ^ "New Partnership Simplifies Student Loan Process with One-Stop Shopping". Reuters. 2015-04-28. Archived from the original on 2015-04-28. Retrieved 2022-07-20.
  21. ^ "Index". www.kccllc.net. Retrieved 2022-07-20.
  22. ^ "MARKET RESEARCH". www.educationdynamics.com. Education Dynamics. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
  23. ^ "Wiley Education Services and Aslanian Market Research Offer Universities Insights to Forge a Path Forward with Online Learning". www.businesswire.com. Business Wire. 18 June 2020. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
  24. ^ EducationDynamics. "InsightsEDU Conference for Higher Education Professionals to be Held February 25-27 in Denver, CO". www.prnewswire.com (Press release). Retrieved 2022-07-20.