Chris brings more than 20 years of leadership experience to his role at Renaissance. Most recently, he served as CEO of myON, which is now part of Renaissance’s comprehensive suite of digital literacy solutions. Prior to myON, Bauleke helped grow and scale leading healthcare services and information technology companies, serving as CEO of Healthland, and in various leadership roles at McKesson. Bauleke earned an MBA from University of Saint Thomas and his bachelor of arts degree in Business Management from Hamline University.

A driven sales and operating executive with more than 20 years of achievements in public and private equity-structured organizations, Ryan Blackwell joined Renaissance in 2020. Most recently, Ryan served as Global Head of Revenue Operations/Enablement at Refinitiv. Prior to joining Refinitiv, Ryan was an operating executive at Cerberus Capital Management. In both roles, he was responsible for improving sales and revenue growth within Refinitiv and Cerberus’s wide range of portfolio companies. Ryan has been instrumental in sales transformations and core product growth as both a sales and operating executive. He holds a BSBA from the school of Industrial Technology at Eastern Michigan University.

Kim leads our people-focused activities at Renaissance – from recruiting and onboarding to development and total rewards. She brings deep experience in making organizations’ Human Resources and Talent Management functions a strategic capability and differentiator. Kim joined Renaissance from Centura Health where she led the non-profit hospital system’s Talent Management organization. She also worked in senior Human Resources roles at First Data Corporation, and led her own Talent Management practice, VeriCarta Consulting. Kim earned her master’s degree in education from Colorado State University, and her bachelor of arts from Regis University.

Todd is an education technology innovator with more than 25 years of experience. Most recently, he helped create myON, a personalized literacy platform that is part of Renaissance’s literacy portfolio. Previously, Todd served as Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer for PLATO Learning, President and COO of Learning Elements, and Education Program Director for MCI WorldCom. Todd also spent eight years as a technology leader in schools. In 2014, he was awarded the prestigious Lamp Lighter Visionary Award by the Association of American Publishers and was named the 2017 Lifetime Achievement Award Recipient by SIIA Company CODiE Awards.

Sarah brings over 20 years of leadership experience to Renaissance. Most recently, she served as vice president of marketing for myON. Prior to joining myON, Sarah was vice president of business development for Barnes & Noble. In her role she was responsible for Barnes & Noble’s K-12 division, national events and initiatives and the educator loyalty program. Sarah was instrumental in launching the NOOK in Education program that was adopted in several large school districts across the country. She holds a BSBA in marketing from the University of Denver.

Chris Dragon joined Renaissance in 2017 and has over 20 years of executive leadership experience, including previous roles as both CTO and CEO. Chris brings a deep understanding of leading large organizational efforts from reshaping go-to-market strategies and supporting new-product initiatives to executing mergers and acquisitions. In his role as COO, Chris is responsible for all aspects of business operations and operational excellence for Renaissance. Prior to his current role, Chris was the SVP of Product Development for Pearson Learning Services (K-12 North America) and oversaw the R&D and project management teams. He also served as the President of Pearson Digital Learning. Chris is a veteran of the U.S. Navy and a graduate of Southern Illinois University, where he earned his bachelor’s degree.

Neal Dittersdorf joined Renaissance in 2021 and has more than 21 years of experience as a general counsel and chief legal officer for privately held and publicly traded technology and data companies. Before Renaissance, Neal was General Counsel of iCIMS, a talent acquisition cloud technology provider. He also has served as Chief Legal Officer of Intersections, a publicly traded provider of identity protection and other digital risk management products, and General Counsel of Credit Management Solutions, a publicly traded pioneer in online lending technology. Neal also has been a law firm partner and counsel specializing in technology and intellectual property litigation and transactions, and a trial attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice. Neal earned his BA from Brandeis University and JD from the New York University School of Law.

Mary was appointed Managing Director of Renaissance International in June 2023. She had previously been the Managing Director of GL Education, after several years as Sales and Marketing Director, following the acquisition of the company by Renaissance. This followed an extensive career in sales and marketing, largely in the telecoms sector.

At GL Education, Mary was instrumental in ensuring that teachers and their students are at the heart of GL’s proposition. Mary aims to build on the success and reputation of both GL Education and now Renaissance International, too, by offering schools and school groups around the world more advanced tools and integrated solutions to help them improve student progress.

In her earlier career, before branching into technology, Mary worked in the publishing sector after leaving Loughborough University. Outside of work, Mary supports a number of charitable bodies. She is a governor at Prior’s Field Girls School and a member of the Worshipful Company of Educators.

Alex combines six years of experience in diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) work with a teaching background in Human Resource Management to design programs and facilitate trainings that contribute to building a more inclusive culture at Renaissance. Alex oversees diversity and inclusion, culture, and employee engagement at Renaissance. He is the chair of the Renaissance Inclusion Council, and has assisted with the creation of Employee Resource Groups (ERGs). Prior to joining Renaissance, Alex worked for Paradigm Strategy as a DEI consultant, where he designed and delivered trainings on topics such as unconscious bias and allyship, as well as advised organizations on how to implement DEI initiatives. Alex holds a PhD in Organizations & Management from the University of California at Irvine Merage School of Business, and an MBA from the Loyola Marymount University College of Business Administration.

Gene is a third-generation educator with teaching experience from elementary through the university level, in addition to his K–12 administrative experience. He is currently chief academic officer for Renaissance. He has bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Longwood College in Virginia and a doctor of education degree from the University of Delaware. He is the co-author of three books, including Literacy Reframed: How a Focus on Decoding, Vocabulary, and Background Knowledge Improves Reading Comprehension (2020).

Darice Keating started her education career in the classroom, teaching middle school in two Midwest states. Today, she brings more than 20 years of leadership experience to her role as Senior Vice President of Government Affairs at Renaissance. Prior to her current role, she served as president for ACT Aspire and also led the State Services business unit at Pearson. She holds an MPA from Drake University and BA in Education from Buena Vista University.

Catherine N. Close, PhD, joined Renaissance in 2011 upon the completion of her graduate studies. Since then, she has applied her extensive background in both classical and modern test theories to building and improving the Renaissance computer-adaptive Star Assessments. Catherine earned her doctorate in educational psychology with a focus on statistics and psychometrics from the University of Minnesota.

Scott McConnell, PhD, has been a teacher, program director, researcher, and professor interested in preschool and early elementary education for more than 40 years. In addition to his work at Renaissance, he is Professor of Educational Psychology at the University of Minnesota. Prior to joining Renaissance, he was part of a multi-university team that developed Individual Growth and Development Indicators (IGDIs), and he has conducted research on their use in preschool classrooms. He earned his bachelor’s degree in psychology at Portland State University and his master’s degree in school psychology and his doctorate in educational psychology at the University of Oregon.

Michelle Hosp, PhD, has over 25 years of experience working in education. She has worked directly with students, educators, families, and researchers as a school psychologist, professor, and Director of the Iowa Reading Research Center. In addition to her work at Renaissance, she is an Associate Professor of Special Education at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, with a focus on reading, assessment, and data-based decision making. Prior to joining Renaissance, she developed KeyPhonics, and is the lead author of a best selling book “The ABCs of CBM: A Practical Guide to Curriculum-Based Measurement (2nd Ed)”. Michelle earned her Master of Science in School Psychology from the Rochester Institute of Technology and her Doctorate in Education and Human Development from Vanderbilt University.

Jason Brein is a partner with Francisco Partners and focuses on investments in the application software and education technology sectors. Prior to joining Francisco Partners in 2012, Jason worked at Elevation Partners, a technology-focused private equity fund in Silicon Valley. Prior to this, Jason was an investment banker at Goldman Sachs in New York, where he worked on M&A and financing transactions in the insurance and banking industries. Jason also worked at Permira Advisers, a large-cap global private equity firm, in its Technology, Media, and Telecommunications group. Jason serves on the board of directors of Civitas Learning, Discovery Education, NMI, Renaissance, and Verifone. Jason formerly served on the board of directors of Capsilon, Corsair, CoverMyMeds, Metaswitch Networks, myON, and Paymetric.

Ezra Perlman is a co-president at Francisco Partners and focuses primarily on investments in the software and services sectors, with a specific emphasis on healthcare technology. Prior to joining Francisco Partners in 2003, Ezra was a venture capitalist with Battery Ventures, where he was involved in identifying, executing, and managing private equity investments in software companies. Ezra serves on the board of directors of Avalon Healthcare, HealthcareSource, Kyruus, Landmark Health, QGenda, and Renaissance. He formerly served on the board of directors of Aconex, AdvancedMD, API Healthcare, Attachmate, Attenti, eSolutions, Healthland, LYNX Medical Systems, Nextech, Quadramed, Quantros, RedPrairie, SMART Modular, TRC Healthcare, and T-System.

Dr. Vicki Philips is CEO at the National Center on Education and the Economy and education executive and strategist for drvickip, LLC. She has tirelessly championed students’ rights to a high-quality education through myriad leadership roles, including as a high school teacher, a state-level policymaker, nonprofit leader, the superintendent of Portland Public Schools, the Pennsylvania chief state school officer, and a K–12 education director. Vicki holds an EdD in international leadership, educational leadership, and management from the University of Lincoln in the United Kingdom; an MA in school psychology from Western Kentucky University; and a BS in elementary education and special education, K–8, K–12, from Western Kentucky University.

Steve Ellis is co-managing partner of The Rise Fund, the $5B global impact investing fund founded by global alternative asset firm TPG. Prior to joining TPG in 2015, Steve was the CEO of Asurion, the world’s leading provider of technology protection services with over $6B in revenues. Prior to Asurion, Steve served as the global managing partner for Bain & Company. Steve is a graduate of UC Berkeley and Stanford Business School, where he is a regular guest lecturer. He also serves on the boards of The Bridgespan Group, InStride, Dreambox Learning, EverFi, and Charles Schwab.

Chaka Booker serves as a managing director on the senior leadership team at The Broad Center, a national organization focused on leadership development in public education. He is a member of the advisory board for the National Head Start Association as well as the National Association of Charter School Authorizers. In addition, Chaka is a Pahara Fellow at the Aspen Institute and a Forbes contributor on leadership and entrepreneurship. He holds degrees in economics and psychology from UCLA and an MBA from Stanford University. Chaka is the author of two books: Mastering The Hire: 12 Strategies to Improve Your Odds of Finding the Best Hire and The Empowered Candidate: The Power You Have to Land the Job You Deserve.

Alan Ni is a principal with Francisco Partners. Prior to joining Francisco Partners, Alan worked as an analyst with J.P. Morgan in the Technology, Media, and Telecommunications group, where he focused on advising public and private technology companies in the software sector. Alan serves on the board of directors of Comodo, iconectiv, and Renaissance. He formerly served on the board of directors of Sectigo.

Courtney della Cava is a Senior Managing Director and Global Head of Portfolio Talent & Leadership. She is involved with improving organizational and leadership effectiveness across the portfolio, including building and enhancing executive leadership teams and boards through C-suite assessment, recruitment, coaching and development, and high-impact organization and culture initiatives.

Before joining Blackstone in 2021, Courtney served as a Partner at Bain & Company in its Leadership & Talent/Organization practice. With 20 years of global management consulting experience at Bain & Company across multiple sectors and geographies, Courtney most recently advised corporate and private equity clients on CEO succession, CEO and board effectiveness and broader organizational talent strategies and solutions, and she also built and led several of the firm’s global human capital teams and capabilities. She also served as a Partner and Managing Director for Russell Reynolds Associates, a global executive search and talent assessment firm, and European Marketing Director for M&M Mars. Earlier, she held product and marketing roles with Toyota/Lexus and began her career at WPP/Hill and Knowlton.

Courtney earned an MBA from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and graduated from The University of California, Los Angeles, with a B.A. in Economics. She currently serves on the boards of Mphasis and Renaissance.

Michael Puopolo is a Principal in Blackstone’s Private Equity Group focusing on new investment opportunities in Technology across Internet and Software. Since joining Blackstone in 2018, Mr. Puopolo has been involved in the execution of the firm’s investments in Bumble, Ellucian, Liftoff/Vungle, Paysafe, Renaissance Learning, Simpli.fi and UKG (Ultimate Software / Kronos). He currently serves as a director of Liftoff/Vungle, Renaissance Learning and Simpli.fi.

Prior to joining Blackstone, Mr. Puopolo worked in Private Equity at The Carlyle Group and as an investment banker at Bank of America Merrill Lynch.

Mr. Puopolo holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Harvard College and a Master of Business Administration from The Wharton School at The University of Pennsylvania, where he was a Palmer Scholar.

Eli Nagler is a Senior Managing Director in the Private Equity Group, where he focuses on investments in the Technology and Financial Services sectors. Since initially joining Blackstone in 2007, Mr. Nagler has been involved in the execution of the firm’s investments in Alight Solutions, BankUnited, Bayview Asset Management, Dynamo Software, Ellucian, Exeter Finance, IntraFi Network, Lendmark Financial Services, MB Aerospace, Paysafe, Refinitiv, Renaissance Learning, Sphera, Tradeweb, Viva Capital, Vivint, and Vivint Solar. He currently serves as a Director of Ellucian, IntraFi Network, Paysafe, Renaissance Learning, and Sphera.

Before rejoining Blackstone after the completion of an MBA, Mr. Nagler worked at the United States Treasury Department in the Office of Capital Markets.

Mr. Nagler received an AB magna cum laude from Harvard College and an MBA with distinction from Harvard Business School, where he graduated as a John L. Loeb Fellow. He is also a Term Member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

Sam serves as a non-executive director at Goldman Sachs International. He also serves on the board of Oxford University Innovation, the spin-out arm of the University that commercialized Vaccitech, the technology platform behind the Oxford/Astra Zeneca Covid-19 vaccine. Alongside his board roles, Sam is a venture partner at Lakestar Advisors, a pan-European multi-stage technology venture capital fund.

Before returning to business in 2020, Sam was a UK politician, serving as the Member of Parliament for East Surrey from 2010 through to 2019. During his time as a lawmaker, Sam was Parliamentary Private Secretary to Prime Minister David Cameron in Downing Street, attended Cabinet, and was a government minister in four departments including Education, the Cabinet Office, Justice, and as Minister for international Science, Technology, Innovation and Higher Education.

Born in the UK, and brought up in Ghana, Sam began his career in Investment banking at Goldman Sachs, after which he was an angel investor in and developed a number of early-stage businesses. He earned an MA in Philosophy, Politics and Economics from the University of Oxford in 1999.