NY EdTech Week: Top 5 reasons tech investors should attend

As we approach the end of the year, there is one more event that tech investors should be sure to include in their 2016 calendars: the NY EdTech Week innovation festival, December 19-21 at NYU Steinhardt.

The conference will connect education leaders, edtech investors, startup founders, and Fortune 500 executives to address the challenges and opportunities of education in the 21^st century.

Catalyst senior associate Mia Hegazy is a member of the host committee for the upcoming NY EdTech Week and will be participating as a “Shark Tank” judge. Here she shares why tech investors should attend the conference. Be sure to make it to all the way to #5 for some great conference discount codes!

 

1. The Education Sector is Huge & Still Growing – The global education market is now larger than $5 trillion (!!!), and education spend represents more than 6% of US GDP. Despite its size, only 2% of the market is digitized, largely due to a complex regulatory environment (see more in this EdTechXGlobal / IBIS Capital report). Recent trends such as increased mobile penetration, expanded broadband access and growing acceptance of online/mobile solutions have enabled further digitalization of education, and the edtech market is projected to grow 17% annually through 2020. Project Tomorrow and Blackboard reported that more than 9 out of 10 administrators say that the effective use of technology within instruction is important for achieving their school or district’s core mission of education and preparation of students – this sector deserves attention!

 

2. Take a Crash Course in Education Trends – We have been focused on the edtech space for a few years now (see our research pieces, Sesame Street Cred: eLearning in the Age of Iggy Azalea and We’ve Got Skills – They’re Multiplyin’, for more on our theses). It has taken several conferences, meetings with hundreds of companies and investors, and countless discussions with educators and administrators to understand the intricate dynamics of the edtech industry. If you’re not an education investor, here is your chance to get a crash course on the industry. The event features deep-dive workshops across Early Education, K-12, Higher Ed and Corporate sectors and covering Efficacy, Credentialing, Learning Technology, Transformative Models, and more. There are dozens of exciting speakers, including Jim Shelton, Head of Chan Zuckerberg Initiative’s Education division. Jim is seeking exponential improvement in education, and his perspective will prove to be insightful for any investor in education. Other education experts slated to speak include Larry Berger (CEO of Amplify), Alicia Glen (NYC Deputy Mayor), and Andy Hamilton (President of NYU), among others.

 

3. Network & Connect with People from All Across the Industry – Over 1,000 education experts, enthusiasts and investors will be in attendance. You could find your next investment opportunity or co-investor at the event. At Catalyst, we’re growth stage investors, so we find it particularly helpful to connect with the earlier stage investors (like our friends at New Markets Venture Partners, Rethink Education, SJF Ventures and University Ventures, among others) to discuss the trends they’re seeing among the companies that are beginning to scale up to our mandate. Investors across stages will have the opportunity to meet the most innovative entrepreneurs in education. The festival will feature a Gallery of Innovation where investors will have the opportunity to have one-on-one or small group meetings with entrepreneurs.

 

4. Actively Engage in Creative Formats – This is not another lecture-listen-repeat event. After all, teaching techniques are evolving! There are various formats for attendees to engage in programming, including:

• Workshop Roundtables– Watch and participate in debate-style discussion format by topic area such as Early Childhood: This is Not Child’s Play, K-12: What’s App-ening to Our Schools, Big Data, Efficacy & Accountability: Who Measures Up?, and Credentials & Promises: Scouts Honor and Merit Badges.
• Open Education Labs – An extended version of the festival features small group sessions on NYU campus and around NYC to showcase the latest entrepreneurs, cutting edge research, and novel organizations.
• Gallery of Innovation – As mentioned above, it’s a great opportunity to network.

 

5. These Promo Codes! – A ticket at one-tenth of the price is too good to pass up!

• CatalystFullFestInvest – access to the $99 ticket for investors.
• CatalystDay2Invest – free ticket to Day 2 only (Dec. 20) for investors.
• CatalystFullFest – 50% off the full festival ticket price for Catalyst Investor network.

 

Enter promo codes here: http://nyedtechweek.com/#tickets

Note: the price of a full festival ticket is $995.

I hope to see you at the event! If you’re an edtech company looking for growth capital, email me at mia at catalyst dot com and let’s be sure to connect. For those unable to attend, let’s grab coffee another time.