Sylvan Learning, Inc. (formerly Sylvan Learning Corporation) consists of
franchised
Franchise may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Media franchise, a collection of related creative works, such as films, video games, books, etc., particularly in North American usage
* "Franchise" (short story), a 1955 short story ...
and corporate supplemental learning centers which provide personalized instruction in
reading
Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of symbols, often specifically those of a written language, by means of Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch.
For educators and researchers, reading is a multifacete ...
,
writing
Writing is the act of creating a persistent representation of language. A writing system includes a particular set of symbols called a ''script'', as well as the rules by which they encode a particular spoken language. Every written language ...
,
mathematics
Mathematics is a field of study that discovers and organizes methods, Mathematical theory, theories and theorems that are developed and Mathematical proof, proved for the needs of empirical sciences and mathematics itself. There are many ar ...
, study skills, homework support, and
test preparation
Test preparation (abbreviated test prep) or exam preparation is an educational course, tutoring service, educational material, or a learning tool designed to increase students' performance on standardized tests. Examples of these tests include ...
for college entrance and state exams. Some centers also offer STEM courses in robotics and coding. Sylvan provides personalized learning programs and primarily serves students in
primary
Primary or primaries may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels
* Primary (band), from Australia
* Primary (musician), hip hop musician and record producer from South Korea
* Primary Music, Israeli record label
Work ...
and
secondary education.
History
Sylvan Learning began in
Portland, Oregon
Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...
in 1979 at the Sylvan Hill Medical Center Building. It was founded by former school teacher W. Berry Fowler, who had also worked with the educational company The Reading Game. By 1983, Sylvan had dozens of franchises and moved its headquarters to
Bellevue, WA
Bellevue ( ) is a city in the Eastside region of King County, Washington, United States, located across Lake Washington from Seattle. It is the third-largest city in the Seattle metropolitan area, and the fifth-largest city in Washington. ...
. In 1986, having over 500 franchises, Sylvan went public on the
NASDAQ
The Nasdaq Stock Market (; National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations) is an American stock exchange based in New York City. It is the most active stock trading venue in the U.S. by volume, and ranked second on the list ...
exchange and used funds to develop corporate learning centers in key cities. By July 1987,
KinderCare
KinderCare Learning Centers, LLC is an American operator of for-profit child care and early childhood education facilities founded in 1969 and currently owned by KinderCare Education based in Portland, Oregon. The company provides educational pro ...
, then based in Montgomery, AL, owned the majority of stock and moved the company to Alabama. Most of the staff did not relocate.
In 1991 the company was taken over by R. Christopher Hoehn-Saric and Douglas L. Becker. In 1997 the company had an annual revenues of $246 million, and in addition to tutoring centers, Sylvan had expanded to offer teacher training, computerized testing, distance learning, and other services.
In 2003, Sylvan Learning was purchased by
Apollo Management
Apollo Global Management, Inc. is an American Asset Management, asset management firm that primarily invests in alternative assets. , the company had $548 billion of assets under management, including $392 billion invested in credit, including ...
from Sylvan Learning Systems Inc., its parent company.
(Sylvan Learning Systems Inc. shifted focus to
post-secondary education
Tertiary education (higher education, or post-secondary education) is the educational level following the completion of secondary education.
The World Bank defines tertiary education as including universities, colleges, and vocational school ...
, and to reflect that change was renamed
Laureate Education
Laureate Education, Inc. is a company based in Miami, Florida, United States. The firm owns and operates Laureate International Universities, with campuses in Mexico and Peru.
The company is publicly traded on the Nasdaq.
Corporate history Beg ...
in 2004.)
In 2016, John McAuliffe was named as Chief Executive Officer.
Over 28 franchised centers located in multiple states closed between 2008 and 2012, some very suddenly. Most Sylvan locations utilize a digital learning system called SylvanSync, which provides lessons on tablets with instructors teaching lessons, which become more independent if the student progresses.
Sylvan employs standardized assessments to place and monitor students and to evaluate instructors.
See also
*
Storefront school
A storefront school is a school that uses rented space, typically originally intended for retail, instead of a dedicated, purpose-built school building. They are often used for continuing education and upgrading by mature students or other stud ...
References
Bibliography
*
External links
* {{official website, http://www.sylvanlearning.com/locations
Companies based in Baltimore
Education companies established in 1979
Education companies of the United States
Learning programs
Test preparation companies
1979 establishments in Oregon