Academic Merit LLC d/b/a Finetune Learning
News
Perseverance, passion, and product market fit
by John F. Burns
One warm, sunny autumn Saturday many years ago, I found my then 12-year-old daughter and a friend deeply engaged inside around a computer screen. They were using Literary Companion®, a Web-based software program designed to deepen students’ understanding of classic literary texts like Shakespeare by strengthening their vocabulary, reading-comprehension, and writing skills. Amazing.
The program had been developed by a father-son duo of respected and innovative educators, Ogden Morse Jr. and Ogden Morse III. Ogden III started Academic Merit, LLC (while still teaching) to pursue his passion for improving instruction and learning in the English Language Arts classroom in grades 6-12 by combining sound pedagogy with digital technology. The company struggled with the very challenging task of finding the right solution for the market need, but persevered and persevered. Leadership changed, personnel changed, product formulation went through various cycles, and the value proposition had to be continuously refined and updated.
Steve Shapiro joined Ogden and the company in 2014, and initially redirected the company toward partnerships and away from direct selling. On the strength of the revised vision and market direction, the strengthened team, including a strengthened board of directors with market experts, and the progress Ogden and team had made to that point, MVF and a university-affiliated angel group led the first meaningful equity round to fund the company’s efforts.
Its first big partnership was with the AP® division of The College Board, a partnership which proved to be highly beneficial for both parties and allowed the company, now re-branded as Finetune®, the means to further advance product development and market research on their own proprietary products. And develop they did: a product called Catalog™ uses artificial intelligence (AI) to tag learning and assessment content more accurately, deeply and meaningfully; and Generate™ uses AI to increase productivity, creativity and significantly speed up content-authoring.
Essentially, Finetune has developed important products, based on leading-edge technology, that transform the way assessment and learning content is created, classified, and delivered. The spirit, vision, passion and perseverance of this team, and the products they have developed, have been widely recognized, and have now resulted in an acquisition by Prometric, LLC, a leading provider of technology-enabled testing and assessment solutions.
Our hearty congratulations to Ogden Morse, Steve Shapiro, and the entire team and board at Finetune. We look forward to watching as these innovative and important products continue to flourish as part of Prometric.
Read 8/10/22 Press Release "Maine Venture Fund announces Finetune Learning acquired by Prometric"
About Maine Venture Fund
Maine Venture Fund invests in dynamic businesses that have the potential for significant growth and impact in Maine. For more information, visit maineventurefund.com.
Inquiries:
Terri Wark
Maine Venture Fund
(207) 924.3800
terri@maineventurefund.com
