Clearlake Capital-Backed Discovery Education Acquires Pivot Interactives

Charlotte, NC — Discovery Education, a global edtech company backed by Clearlake Capital Group, L.P. (together with its affiliates, “Clearlake”), announced it has acquired Minneapolis, MN-based Pivot Interactives SBC. Led by a team of science teachers, practitioners, and students, Pivot Interactives develops dynamic cloud-based activities and labs that actively engage students in the authentic exploration of real scientific phenomena. Terms were not disclosed.  

The acquisition of Pivot Interactives supports Discovery Education’s mission to prepare learners for tomorrow by creating innovative classrooms connected to today’s world. Pivot Interactives will complement Discovery Education’s other successful digital services supporting science education, which include  Discovery Education’s K-12 platform,  Mystery Science, the  Science Techbook series, and  STEM Connect. 

Pivot Interactives is Discovery Education’s second acquisition this month, having also acquired  DoodleLearning. 

“Discovery Education empowers teachers and inspires students worldwide through digital content delivered on our platform,” said Discovery Education Chief Executive Officer Scott Kinney. “Unlike other digital interactives on the market, Pivot Interactives explores concepts using real-life experiments, not animations, allowing teachers to include phenomena-based learning at any stage of the learning cycle. Through our acquisition of Pivot Interactives, Discovery Education is now better positioned to broaden our impact by providing our partner school systems access to phenomena-based, active learning tools.” 

Peter Bohacek, Chief Executive Officer of Pivot and physics teacher, and Matthew Vonk, Chief Science Officer for Pivot and physics professor, founded Pivot Interactives by developing a library of interactive video-based activities funded in part by a grant from the National Science Foundation. The co-founders began working with their own students to develop direct measurement videos that allow teachers and students to break out of classroom constraints.  

Now, teachers worldwide are using Pivot Interactives to engage over 1 million students with phenomena and science practices. Under the Discovery Education family of services, Pivot Interactives’ award-winning platform will continue innovating to revolutionize science education. 

 “We’re thrilled to be joining the Discovery Education family,” said Mr. Bohacek. “Back in 2012, I began to experiment with integrating interactive video into my classroom practice. The results were so promising, I was compelled to continue to explore how to expand the capability of interactive video and that led to the founding of Pivot Interactives. I am excited about this next chapter and the opportunity to scale the impact of these resources.” 

“The Pivot Interactives team shares Discovery Education’s mission to prepare all learners for future success, and I believe that as part of Discovery Education we will be in an even better position to improve science education across the country and around the world,” said Mr. Vonk. “Echoing Peter’s sentiments, we’re excited to join Discovery Education.” 

For more information about Discovery Education’s award-winning digital resources and professional learning services, visit  www.discoveryeducation.com, and stay connected with Discovery Education on social media through  Twitter and  LinkedIn.  

About Discovery Education 
Discovery Education is the worldwide edtech leader whose state-of-the-art digital platform supports learning wherever it takes place. Through its award-winning multimedia content, instructional supports, and innovative classroom tools, Discovery Education helps educators deliver equitable learning experiences engaging all students and supporting higher academic achievement on a global scale. Discovery Education serves approximately 4.5 million educators and 45 million students worldwide, and its resources are accessed in over 100 countries and territories. Inspired by the global media company Discovery, Inc., Discovery Education partners with districts, states, and trusted organizations to empower teachers with leading edtech solutions that support the success of all learners. Explore the future of education at  www.discoveryeducation.com.  

About Clearlake 
Clearlake Capital Group, L.P. is an investment firm founded in 2006 operating integrated businesses across private equity, credit, and other related strategies. With a sector-focused approach, the firm seeks to partner with management teams by providing patient, long-term capital to businesses that can benefit from Clearlake’s operational improvement approach, O.P.S.® The firm’s core target sectors are technology, industrials, and consumer. Clearlake currently has over $72 billion of assets under management, and its senior investment principals have led or co-led over 400 investments. The firm is headquartered in Santa Monica, CA with affiliates in Dallas, TX, London, UK and Dublin, Ireland. More information is available at  www.clearlake.com and on Twitter  @Clearlake. 

eSchool Media staff cover education technology in all its aspects–from legislation and litigation, to best practices, to lessons learned and new products. First published in March of 1998 as a monthly print and digital newspaper, eSchool Media provides the news and information necessary to help K-20 decision-makers successfully use technology and innovation to transform schools and colleges and achieve their educational goals.

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