Wireless Generation & Writer Express: “teacher developed content” brought to scale through acquistion of nonprofit education innovation

By Josh Cohen on December 18, 2009

In October of 2009 a leading education company called Wireless Generation acquired the assets of a non-profit organization called the Writers Express (WEX).  http://www.wgen.net/assets/pdf/releases/2009/WEX_Announcement.pdf

We at City Light have been tracking Wireless Generation and think it’s a terrific company. 

Wireless Generation’s acquisition of WEX was interesting to us for two reasons we’d like to share here.  Both reasons illustrate trends we believe are likely to continue into the future and which are vital to improving education. 

The first reason the acquisition of WEX is important is because WEX is a learning application developed by two teachers.  WEX was founded in 1994 by Deborah Reck and Arthur Unobskey, two history teachers whose students were struggling because they couldn’t read or write well.  Reck and Unobskey quickly learned there were no satisfactory answers to questions like, “What is the best sequence of writing skills, and what are they?” and, “How can you tell that students have truly mastered the skills that mattered?”  Thus began a rigorous process of classroom observation and refinement of process and curriculum.  The media industry has seen an explosion of so-called “user-generated content.”  The content of the education industry has traditionally been developed by publishers and teachers and selectively brought to scale through the education publishing industry.  WEX is an example of “teacher generated content” brought to scale outside of the traditional publiching pipeline.  The introduction of the Internet and rich media applications have greatly increased the ability of teachers to develop, produce and distribute new learning applications.  But, the development, study, distribution, and monetization of systems for this flood of new content has yet to be fully realized.  Companies and individuals which stimulate, shape and direct this flood of new learning applications represent a tremendous opportunity for educational impact and financial return.  The growth of WEX was one such opportunity that Wirelss Generation recognized.

The second reason Wireless Generation’s acquisition of WEX is important is because it demonstrated an emerging trend in the education sector that can also be seen in other markets – a for-profit buying a non-profit.  The development of WEX was executed in a non-profit model.  The scaling of WEX through Wireless Generation will now be done through a non-profit.  Product innovations developed in a non-profit structure and then scaled through a for-profit organization represent a promising trend for the future.  Non-profits can afford to take risks and focus on the effectiveness of a given product or service.  A for-profit can efficiently scale and monetize a product that had proven its worth on a more limited usage.  This new innovation and scaling ecosystem represents an essential development in education – and in sectors such as energy conservation. 

The deal works for both parties. WEX brings Wireless a nationally recognized expertise in writing instruction and a best-in-class program that complement and enhance our ability to address English Language Arts. For WEX, Wireless provides them with additional routes to both distribution and capital. This will increase the reach and impact of their solution and bring additional financing expertise and capital. In this market, where nonprofits are having a harder time raising money, thinking outside of the box is more important than it ever has been before.

What do you think about “teacher generated content?’  Do you think that non-profit innovations and for-profit acquisitions of non-profits are important trends for the future?  Why don’t we hear about more strategic acquisitions and mergers in the nonprofit world? Why shouldn’t organizations focused on the solving the same or comparable problems figure out a way to combine resources for a public good? Do you have other examples?  Please share, we would love to hear you thoughts.

Josh & Jamie