A Dallas-based education startup that has created an “educational metaverse” has secured $3.25 million in funding to invest in its products.
STEMuli connects K-12 students with companies virtually. Students interact with executives at companies including Microsoft, IBM, Thomson Reuters and CVS Health in a game-based virtual reality setting. The funding is co-led by Slauson & Co and Valor Ventures, with participation from Draper Associates.
As the pandemic began, there was a push for students to go to the virtual classroom and many took up gaming, said Taylor Shead, STEMuli’s CEO.
In August 2021, the company launched its platform at the first hybrid school in Texas, Dallas Hybrid Preparatory at Stephen J. Hay in Oak Lawn.
“By December 2021, we got results that actually said the students were outperforming the rest of their peers across science, math, English, language arts and reading as well,” Shead said. “And so we were like, ‘OK, we’re absolutely doing something right.’”
The funding will allow Shead to “turn the lights on” when her firm is ready to take its products national.
A fundamental part of her company is accessibility, Shead said. She wants to serve disadvantaged populations through her platform. Shead is one of 95 Black women to raise more than $1 million in seed funding, in a field where Black women historically receive less than 0.3% of total venture capital investments, according to STEMuli.
“Whether you’re a student that wants to learn about a career at Twitter or Apple, you can jump into a digital headquarters and meet their employees and engage,” Shead said.
