65% of U.S. parents believe their children face barriers to ideal pathways after graduation

MONTREAL, Feb. 27, 2023 – Paper™, the leading Educational Support System (ESS), today announced that it has acquired MajorClarity, a best-in-class Career & College Readiness (CCR) tool. Together, the companies will offer a comprehensive CCR platform that will support all students, regardless of their preferred path after high school

Today, most high schools and CCR programs are focused primarily on college preparation, despite the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reporting that in 2021, only 61% of high school graduates enrolled in college—a 20-year low for college enrollment.

These reports indicate that a growing number of high school graduates are enrolling in Career and Technical Education (CTE) or trade schools, enlisting in the military, or going directly into the workforce. However, these students have fewer career readiness tools at their disposal than their counterparts who plan on attending college.

According to a Gallup report, nearly half (45%) of U.S. parents want more non-college paths for their high school students. About two-thirds of parents (65%) say their student faces barriers to their ideal pathway post-graduation. Those barriers included “a lack of finances, information or availability, as well as more systemic challenges, including the preparation provided by their child’s school.”

“85% of the jobs that will be needed in 2030 didn’t exist in 2018,” said Philip Cutler, Paper co-founder and CEO. “It is critical that we develop better ways to connect students to career opportunities that meet their personalized interests, strengths, and ambitions.”

Unfortunately, most districts don’t have the resources to provide meaningful academic planning for all students, and school counselors often struggle to support non-college pathways. MajorClarity by Paper provides the necessary support for all students, regardless of their path after graduation. The new combined CCR platform includes customized academic pathways, career exploration tools, workforce micro-credentialing, a resume builder, and a cover letter review tool. For students attending college, there is a college essay review tool, a college application management, and a scholarship search.

“Career exploration not only gives purpose and meaning to academics—it’s also the key to building the professional skills every student needs, regardless of their career goals,” said Joe Besterling, CEO of MajorClarity by Paper. ” And in a world with rising student debt and changing workforce needs, rethinking career readiness is more imperative than ever.”

“Paper and MajorClarity are both companies focused on academic success for all students. Bringing career readiness and academic support together in one place means students have the tools to discover the “why” behind their education—then get the learning support they need to accomplish their goals,” Belstering added.

The launch of MajorClarity by Paper is a part of the company’s rapidly expanding Educational Support System. Earlier this month, Paper announced a new suite of learning tools that includes products addressing math skills, literacy, after-school programming, and college and career readiness. Those offerings, plus on-demand virtual tutoring and writing review, are currently available to over three million students nationwide.

“Recent trends highlight the decreasing number of students attending two- or four-year colleges. This creates a two-fold challenge for educators. We need to better support students who elect alternative paths after graduation while also increasing the number of students who continue their academic journey through post-secondary education,” Cutler concluded.

Mission-driven educators founded Paper to help all students reach their full potential and gain confidence in life. Paper provides an unlimited, on-demand Educational Support System (ESS) that includes 1:1 virtual tutoring; a Review Center for writing assignments; MajorClairty College & Career Support; Paper Missions, a gamified math skills tool; and PaperLive, a streaming service featuring interactive after-school programming. Paper’s highly qualified educators provide an instructional framework emphasizing inquiry-based learning to empower students to pursue lifelong learning and prepare for college and career success. Paper’s multilingual academic support is available in English, Spanish, French, and Mandarin. Paper supports over three million students at over 300 unique school districts in more than 40 U.S. states and Canada. Paper employs more than 2000 educators and tutors nationwide. Learn more or request a demo at paper.co.

SOURCE Paper

NAPA, Calif., Jan. 31, 2023 — CropX Technologies, a global leader in digital solutions for agronomic farm management, today announced its acquisition of Tule Technologies, a precision irrigation company based in California. This acquisition brings new data capture technologies to the CropX Agronomic Farm Management System and expands its market in California drip-irrigated specialty crops.

Effective immediately, all Tule employees will join CropX, adding expansive on-farm and client service expertise in the specialty crop and drip irrigation space, as well as technology talent to CropX’s growing global team.

“We are excited to welcome Tule to CropX, expanding our offerings to our customers to solve agronomic problems. With Tule’s canopy data incorporated into the CropX system, CropX is adding a new and powerful dimension to the world’s most complete precision irrigation solution,” said Tomer Tzach, CEO of CropX Technologies.

“At Tule, we’ve admired CropX for their agronomic expertise, engineering excellence, and global ambition,” said Dr. Tom Shapland, CEO of Tule Technologies. “We couldn’t be more thrilled to join the CropX team.”

The acquisition comes at a time of increasing demand for precise watering technologies in agriculture. “The farming industry is at the frontlines of global challenges to balance food security with water and other natural resources,” said Dr. John Gates, Senior Vice President and Global Head of Product at CropX. “We are committed to helping our customers manage water confidently and efficiently with technology. Tule’s unique tech and vast experience with California vineyards and orchards are a perfect fit.”

This is the fourth acquisition CropX has made since 2020 and the second US-based company. CropX acquired Nebraska-based CropMetrics in the first quarter (Q1) of 2020, New Zealand-based Regen in Q4 of 2020, and Netherlands-based Dacom Farm Intelligence in Q3 2021, in each case adding expertise, technologies, customers, data and expanding markets.

About CropX Technologies

CropX Technologies is one of the fastest growing providers of agribusiness farm management solutions in the world, deployed in over 60 countries and across all arable continents. The CropX Agronomic Farm Management System synthesizes data from the earth and sky to offer advanced soil and crop intelligence and a suite of digital decision support and planning tools, all on an easy-to-use app capable of tracking multiple farms and fields. CropX is backed by the world’s leading agribusinesses and VCs, who recognize that CropX’s precision-ag technologies set new standards for best practices in environmental sustainability and farm productivity. Learn more at www.cropx.com.

About Tule Technologies

Founded in 2014 with backing from Y-Combinator and others, Tule (pronounced “too-lee”) combines proprietary technology, agronomic expertise, and cutting-edge artificial intelligence to provide farmers with irrigation decision support solutions. Their unique in-field sensor, developed at the University of California, Davis, is the only commercially available device for measuring Actual Evapotranspiration (i.e., the water use of a farm field). The company’s customers include the winemakers who tend to coastal California’s most prized vineyards to the agronomists who farm thousands of acres of tree crops in California’s inland valleys.

Media Contact:

Hanna Day-Woodruff

Communications Specialist

hanna.dw@cropx.com

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SOURCE CropX

Hometown Food Company, (“Hometown Foods“) home to an iconic portfolio of American baking brands, controlled by Brynwood Partners VIII L.P., has completed the acquisition of Birch Benders from Sovos Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ: “SOVO”) (“Sovos Brands“), a public company listed on the NASDAQ exchange. The terms of the transaction are not being disclosed.

Founded in 2011, Birch Benders Pancake & Waffle Mixes, Toaster Waffles, Pancake and Baking Cups, Baking Mixes and Frostings, Cookies and Syrups have it all: convenience, deliciousness, and quality. Birch Benders offers an expansive portfolio of keto, paleo, and organic options that are sold at grocery and mass retailers, as well as through the E-Commerce channel, nationally.

Hometown Food Company is home to baking brands including Pillsbury Baking®, Funfetti®, Hungry Jack®, Arrowhead Mills®, White Lily®, Jim Dandy®, Martha White®, and De Wafelbakkers®. They believe that, like a favorite recipe, great things come from the right mix of ingredients, years of expertise and plenty of care.

“We are thrilled to announce the acquisition of Birch Benders into Hometown Food Company,” said Henk Hartong, Chairman and CEO of Brynwood Partners. “Birch Benders was a pioneer in the health and wellness space and natural baking channel and we are excited to further our commitment to the pancake and baking mix categories. This acquisition is complementary to our existing brand in the space, Arrowhead Mills®, and reinforces our commitment to and industry position in the better-for-you category.”

“The Birch Benders acquisition is a wonderful addition to Hometown Food Company’s portfolio of brands and it increases our footprint in the better-for-you, breakfast and baking categories,” said Tom Polke, President and CEO of Hometown Food Company. “We are truly delighted to have the opportunity to support Birch Benders in its next phase of growth.”

Brynwood Partners’ portfolio includes Harvest Hill Beverage Company, Carolina Beverage Group, Hometown Food Company, Buitoni Food Company, and Great Kitchens Food Company. Birch Benders increases the total Brynwood platform to more than $2.3 billion in annual sales.

Hometown Food Company, based in Chicago, IL, was formed by Brynwood Partners in June 2018 to acquire a portfolio of brands from The J.M. Smucker Company. The portfolio includes the exclusive U.S. rights to the iconic Pillsbury® brand’s shelf-stable baking products, including Funfetti®, along with the Hungry Jack®, Arrowhead Mills®, White Lily®, Jim Dandy®, Martha White® and De Wafelbakkers® brands. Pillsbury®, Funfetti® and Hungry Jack® are leading national brands in the shelf-stable baking and breakfast categories and White Lily®, Jim Dandy® and Martha White® are regional brands known for flour, cornmeal and grits. Hometown Foods manufactures the majority of its products from its 650,000 square foot facility in Toledo, OH where the company employs 255 full-time employees. 

Brynwood Partners, founded in 1984 and based in Greenwich, CT, is an operationally-focused private equity firm that makes control investments in North American-based lower middle market companies. The firm targets non-core brands or companies operating exclusively in the consumer sector. Brynwood Partners currently manages more than $1 billion of private equity capital for its limited partners, which include U.S. and international pension funds, fund-of-funds, endowments, foundations, high net worth family investment offices and financial institutions.