Renaissance Learning's leadership team not only possesses deep industry knowledge and experience, but has a well-rounded business perspective to meet today's challenges. But above all, the team is thoroughly committed to accelerating learning.
Chief Executive Officer
John “Jack” J. Lynch Jr. has over 20 years of management experience in the software and information industry and is highly respected in the field of education technology. He was the founding CEO of bigchalk.com where he created an education network serving 40,000 schools. He later was president and CEO of the Pearson Technology Group. Most recently, he was on the executive board of Wolters Kluwer, a global leader in professional information services. He holds a bachelor of arts from Boston University.
Chief Financial Officer
Mike joined Renaissance Learning with more than 30 years of experience in key leadership roles, most recently serving as senior vice president and general manager of Pearson’s K12 reading and math businesses. During his 12 years at Pearson, Mike led the company’s transition from traditional print to emerging digital platforms, taking on increasingly challenging roles and engineering significant growth. Prior to joining Pearson, he held senior financial and general management positions at BigChalk, The Food Network, and Primedia, Inc. Mike earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Maryland and subsequently became a CPA.
Executive Vice President of Sales
Samir Joglekar came to Renaissance Learning from the Carnegie- and Gates Foundation-sponsored inBloom, Inc. There he served as senior vice president of Sales and Business Development. Prior to joining inBloom, he was senior vice president of Worldwide Sales for eInstruction. Early in his career, Samir worked for Apple as a sales engineer and account manager. At Dell, he extended his sales career and rose to various sales leadership roles in Europe and the US. He received his BS in electrical engineering from The George Washington University and went on to graduate studies in biomedical engineering at The Johns Hopkins University.
Chief Marketing Officer
Tracy joined Renaissance Learning with more than 20 years of experience developing modern, performance-driven marketing programs, building successful digital marketing strategies, and optimizing complex marketing operations. Most recently, she was chief marketing officer at Tealium, Inc., where she elevated its niche tag management system to a comprehensive customer data platform. She also built the brand and message platform to establish a growing thought leadership program. Prior to joining Tealium, she was senior vice president of marketing for CA, Inc., where she managed a broad portfolio of IT management products. She also worked at NetApp, most recently as vice president of marketing. Tracy earned a bachelor of arts in communication from Mills College, Oakland, CA, and a master of arts in technical and professional writing from Northeastern University in Boston.
Chief Technology Officer
Mark A. Angel most recently served as general manager and vice president of Multi-Channel Solutions for Nuance Communications, Inc. Prior to that, he was executive vice president and chief technology officer of KANA Software and was general manager and chief technology officer for Kanisa Inc., a subsidiary of Ernst & Young, LLP. Angel was the founder and chief executive officer of Papyrus Technology, a Silicon Valley start-up company, which grew to become a global leader in graphical trading workstations and is now owned by Ernst & Young, LLP.
Vice President and Chief Academic Officer
Gene M. Kerns, PhD, is a third-generation educator with teaching experience from elementary through the university level, in addition to his K12 administrative experience. He is currently chief academic officer for Renaissance Learning. He has bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Longwood College in Virginia and a doctor of education degree from the University of Delaware. Informative Assessment: When It’s Not About a Grade is his first publication.
Chief Psychometrician
James R. McBride, PhD, is vice president and chief psychometrician for Renaissance Learning. He has been instrumental in the practical application of item response theory and has conducted test development and personnel research for a variety of organizations. He is co-editor of a leading book on the development of computerized adaptive testing (CAT) and has authored numerous journal articles, professional papers, book chapters, and technical reports.
Senior Vice President of Strategic Partnerships
A dedicated career focused on the needs of students and educators gives Paula O’Gorman deep knowledge of K12 education. Her understanding of key issues and passion for education, combined with her business acumen, make Paula a strong contributor on the leadership team. She has also served Renaissance Learning in a senior vice president capacity in research and development, content development, and government affairs. Paula joined Renaissance in 1999 as part of the company’s acquisition of Humanities Software, where she was CEO at the time. During her nine years at Humanities, she also held key roles in sales, marketing, and product and content development. Prior to that, she was a special education teacher. Paula earned bachelor’s degrees in psychology and physiology from the University of Minnesota.
Senior Vice President of Products
John Flora has more than 15 years of experience in online, mobile, enterprise, and desktop software development. He came to Renaissance from Blackhawk Networks where he led the growth and development of the company’s digital stored-value and payments products. John served in several product leadership capacities at Intuit where he led more than 20 new-product launches for Intuit Financial Services and well-known brands like Quicken and QuickBooks. He earned his bachelor of science from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo.
Chief People Officer
Kim Mitchell leads our people-focused activities at Renaissance Learning – 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.
Senior Vice President, International
Erez has extensive experience in international education and heads international operations for Renaissance. He came to Renaissance from Kaplan Inc., where he had several roles including Senior Vice President, New Business Initiatives and Managing Director, Kaplan International English. He led the growth of Kaplan’s English business to become an industry leader with 45 colleges providing English language courses, study abroad programs, and unforgettable experiences. Erez previously set up a British education company in China and has a background in corporate law practice. Erez holds an LLB from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and an MBA from INSEAD.
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Tarim Wasim is a managing director at Hellman & Friedman. In addition to serving on the board of directors of Renaissance Learning, he is a director of Internet Brands. He was active in the firm’s investment in Artisan Partners Limited Partnership. He was also formerly a director of AlixPartners, LLP. Prior to joining Hellman & Friedman in 2005, Mr. Wasim was employed by Bain Capital in Boston and worked as a consultant in the Boston office of Bain & Company. Mr. Wasim graduated summa cum laude from Dartmouth College and earned an MBA from the Harvard Business School where he was a Baker Scholar.
Anupam Mishra is a managing director at Hellman & Friedman. In addition to serving on the board of directors of Renaissance Learning, he is chairman of the board of Applied Systems, Inc., and a director of Ellucian. He was formerly a director of Kronos Inc., Intergraph Corporation, and GeoVera Insurance Group Holdings, Ltd. He was also active in the firm’s investment in PARIS RE Holdings Ltd. Prior to joining Hellman & Friedman in 2004, Mr. Mishra was employed by Bain Capital in San Francisco, Nextset Software in Palo Alto, California, and The Boston Consulting Group in Los Angeles. Mr. Mishra graduated magna cum laude from Harvard College and earned an MBA from the Harvard Business School.
Gene Frantz is a general partner at Google Capital. Previously, he was a partner at TPG Capital for 13 years, where he was responsible for multiple technology and telecom investments. In addition to serving on the board of directors of Renaissance Learning, he is also a director of Emulex and served on the boards of Alltel, Avaya, Freescale Semiconductor, MEMC Electronic Materials, Network General, Paradyne Networks, Seagate Removable Storage Solutions, and SMART Modular Technologies. Mr. Frantz has a BS from the University of California at Berkley and an MBA from Stanford Business School.
John Katzman is the founder and CEO of The Noodle Companies. He also serves on the boards of Woodrow Wilson Foundation, the National Association of Independent Schools, and the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools. Prior to founding Noodle, Mr. Katzman founded and ran both The Princeton Review and 2U. He is often invited to speak on topics related to education and the measurement of academic achievement. He received his BA from Princeton University in 1981.
Derek Zanutto is a principal at Hellman & Friedman. Prior to joining Hellman & Friedman, Mr. Zanutto was a vice president at TPG Capital in San Francisco focused on the internet & digital media sector. Previously, he was employed by Irving Place Capital and Morgan Stanley & Co. in New York. Mr. Zanutto graduated cum laude from Harvard College and earned an MBA from the Harvard Business School where he was a Baker Scholar.
Deepak Advani is a managing director at Hellman & Friedman and is focused on helping the Firm drive value by improving the operational effectiveness of H&F’s portfolio companies, with a particular focus on software & technology. Prior to H&F, he spent nearly 20 years in the software and technology sector with IBM. He also served as the Global Chief Marketing Officer and SVP of eCommerce for Lenovo. Mr. Advani graduated from Michigan State University, earned a MS in Computer Engineering at Wright State University, and earned an MBA from University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School of Business.