The telehealth company working hand-in-hand with families and schools to diagnose, treat and empower students, closes new round only five months after launch; plans for national expansion and adds behavioral and speech therapy to current suite of services
Parallel Learning (Parallel)—the digital health platform that provides a new way to test, diagnose, and empower students with learning and thinking differences—today announced $20M in Series A funding and an expansion to its suite of teletherapy services. This round was led by Tiger Global with additional participation from Obvious Ventures, Barry Sternlich’s JAWS and existing investor, Vine Ventures. This news comes only five months after Parallel’s official launch alongside $2.8M in previous financing, bringing the company’s total capital raised to $22.8M. The new funds will be used to accelerate Parallel’s national expansion to deliver an end-to-end suite of psychoeducational services for students. Parallel’s services go beyond initial psychological evaluations to offer ongoing support to students including skill-based tutoring, executive function coaching, and as of today, behavioral therapy as well as speech and language therapy. Services are available directly to families as well as to school districts as part of the company’s enterprise offering.
With Parallel, services begin within days, instead of the typical wait of months, and cost a fraction of the price of traditional services. Parallel offers specialized care at a quicker, more convenient and affordable rate compared to traditional care options. The company employs licensed psychologists, learning specialists, behavioral health therapists and speech therapists in each state and matches students with providers based on their referral concern and desired services. Following the initial consultation, a student will be matched with a care team specifically assigned to ensure the student receives all recommended services.
“Our mission is to work hand-in-hand with school districts and families to deliver the highest quality developmental services to students across the nation,” said Diana Heldfond, Founder and CEO of Parallel Learning. “With 20 percent of children challenged by learning and thinking differences, we’re committed to offering lasting, effective and affordable solutions to help those students succeed in and out of the classroom.”
Parallel has grown its revenue 50 percent every month on average since its launch. The company has experienced 150 percent growth in its provider network since January with over 90 percent provider retention. The company also recently hired Susan Liu, former VP of Clinical Operations at online mental health platform Cerebral Inc., to serve as Chief Operating Officer, as well as Robert Stager, previously from Presence Learning and N2Y, to serve as Director of Partnerships.
“Parallel’s tech-enabled approach is solving the most pressing psychoeducational issues with extreme efficiency, scalability, and quality of care,” said Jay Chen, Partner, Tiger Global. “By partnering with schools and families to not only assess students, but also provide best-in-class ongoing support virtually, Parallel is building an end-to-end digital platform that delivers better outcomes at lower costs.”
“As we prioritize investing in world positive businesses, we’re proud to support Parallel as it continues to grow and provide opportunities for students in the U.S. to thrive,” said James Joaquin, Co-Founder and Managing Director of Obvious Ventures. “Parallel is first and foremost committed to acting in the interest of helping students. Through its innovative, industry-first platform, Parallel increases access to care and helps children unlock their fullest potential in an attainable, accessible and affordable way.”
Parallel has been a leader in assisting the nation’s largest school districts and addressing one of the most prominent issues facing the American education system: teaching shortages and lack of accessibility for students in need of behavioral care. As one in five students have a learning or thinking difference and 44 percent of U.S. schools reported having at least one teaching vacancy as of January 2022, special education was identified as the teaching position with the most vacancies, leaving children in need of the right support and resources to help them succeed. Parallel—which is already active in dozens of states across the U.S.—is on track to be available in all states in the U.S. by early 2023 to increase access to special education services nationwide.
To learn more about Parallel Learning, visit parallellearning.com.
For a breakdown of Parallel’s current products and services, please click here.
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