Edtech platform Clipboard, which helps school manage students’ extracurricular activities, has raised $3.1 million.
The round was led by SaaS-focused Sydney VC EVP, with support from existing backer Jelix Ventures and Sprint Ventures.,
Clipboard is an online attendance system that streamlines timely communication for staff, students, and parents when students travel for extracurricular activities, such as sports, music, and field trips.
Jelix backed the venture earlier in 2020 with an $850,000 raise.
Ed Colyer and Sam Clarke developed the idea in 2017 while in college coaching sports at their old school and dealing with manual systems to track students.
Hired co-entrepreneur Christiaan Hind to develop Clipboard, now used in 100 Australian schools.
Colyer, head of product at Clipboard, said they pioneered a new category in edtech called “EMS” (Extracurricular Management System).
“We were a young team in the unique position of knowing the challenges students and families face as well as working as basketball coaches,” he said.
“That experience gave us the insights we needed to improve extracurricular delivery for students, parents and schools. It’s just impossible to have an exceptional experience for hundreds or thousands of participants when using paper forms and Google Sheets.”
Colyer said the company is now answering questions from schools abroad, but the new capital is for new positions and hiring for business development.
“Until recently, we didn’t have a sales force at all, and our entire business was built on referrals from customers who loved our product,” he said.
EVP partner Daniel Szekely joins Jelix’s Alon Greenspan on the startup’s board. He said they like a business of students and teachers for students and teachers.
“Most of us can probably remember coming to a field trip with an envelope full of cash and some paper forms, only to be told you forgot one of the forms,” he said.
“Educational organizations have always lagged behind when it comes to adopting new technologies, but in the case of Clipboard, the obvious demand for efficiency and safety by parents and students is driving rapid adoption. Clipboard ultimately increases the quality of extracurricular programs and enrollments in a beneficial cycle that leads to revenue for schools and higher quality activities for students.”