St. Petersburg startup Presence has been acquired by a Toronto-based learning platform for an undisclosed amount.
Presence, founded in 2012, was acquired by Toronto-based Modern Campus, the company announced Thursday.
Presence is a campus engagement and learning platform for higher education institutions. It is founded and run by Reuben Pressman, a longtime entrepreneur who serves as the city of St. Petersburg's entrepreneur-in-residence.
Under the acquisition, Presence will work with Modern Campus' 1,400 universities and college partners. According to officials, Presence previously worked with more than 250 higher education institutions across North America.
"We’ve grown quickly because of our product innovation and focus on customer happiness; partnering with Modern Campus now affords us the opportunity to fuel both while also deepening our campus relationships,” Pressman said in a statement.
Pressman will join Modern Campus' executive team, with the company's CEO Brian Kibby remaining at the helm. Presence will remain in St. Petersburg and Pressman said all the local employees will stay on the new deal.
Modern Campus is also a learner engagement platform, allowing institutions to give students personalized experiences through a "learner to earner" pathway. The deal is the company's third acquisition of the year.
"Learner engagement means everything to modern higher ed institutions because highly engaged learners graduate on time and are far more likely to view their post-secondary education as a lifelong partnership," Kibby said in a statement. “Not only does Presence offer the best student engagement platform, but they’re also equally obsessed with customer success, which makes them both a perfect product and cultural fit for Modern Campus.”
The Tampa Bay startup scene has had a record year for acquisitions, with Presence's latest deal bringing the total amount up to 15. Fellow education technology startup Script was among them, getting acquired in April. Seven companies were bought in the entirety of 2020.
“When we began researching potential campus engagement solutions, Presence quickly emerged as the clear leader in the segment," Stephen Rice, principal at The Riverside Company, said in a statement. The Riverside Company is Modern Campus' equity partner. "Adding Presence to the Modern Campus modern learner engagement platform is a perfect match.”
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