03 Jun High ed and high tech heavyweights join the StudyBlue board
MADISON – Former Chancellor of the University of Wisconsin John D. Wiley and serial entrepreneur Eric Apfelbach join the StudyBlue Board of Directors. They will be joining current board members Charles S. Wallman, a securities analyst and a primary investor in StudyBlue, and CEO Becky Splitt.
According to StudyBlue website, the company got its start in 2007, when a computer science student and a business student at the University of Wisconsin at Madison created a website that offered students an easier way to study for exams and prepare for class. StudyBlue is an online academic network available to students and teachers at both high schools and colleges. The Web site provides a variety of study and organizational aids, course management features, academic networking capabilities, tutor matchmaking and other functions to assist students in improving their academic performance and help them study more efficiently. These tools also allow users to become part of a class-based, online, academic network enabling collaboration through the site to enhance the academic experience.
Former chancellor John Wiley will bring his 30-plus years of academic expertise to the StudyBlue team. Wiley started out as a UW-Madison faculty member in 1975 and became the Dean of the Graduate School and University’s senior research officer from 1986-1989. He was Chancellor at the University of Wisconsin from 2001-2008, Provost and Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs from 1994-2000.
Eric Apfelbach is the CEO of M2E Power, CEO Emeritus of Virent Energy Systems, founder of Alfalight, and serves as a Board member of M2E power, National Electrostatics (NEC) and Graphene Solutions. Apfelbach provides StudyBlue with expertise in investor relations and extensive experience launching and growing emerging high tech businesses. Apfelbach is a member of the Board of the Wisconsin Technology Council and is an advisor for multiple venture capital firms. Apfelbach’s thorough understanding of start-up financing and organizational evolution are unparalleled assets for StudyBlue.
Becky Splitt, who joined the company as CEO in January, says “With the exceptional talents of both John and Eric, StudyBlue rounds out a team with deep expertise across key areas critical to the company’s success. We couldn’t have found two better additions to the StudyBlue board.”
The recent additions to the StudyBlue team will help grow the academic network and cultivate StudyBlue’s base of investors and strategic partners. StudyBlue understands that today’s college students are the savviest Internet users in the market and believes that the company is developing the most comprehensive tools to help college student’s study most effectively.