Sylvan Learning, Inc. (formerly Sylvan Learning Corporation) consists of
franchised and corporate supplemental learning centers which provide personalized instruction in
reading
Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch.
For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...
,
writing
Writing is a medium of human communication which involves the representation of a language through a system of physically Epigraphy, inscribed, Printing press, mechanically transferred, or Word processor, digitally represented Symbols (semiot ...
,
mathematics
Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...
, 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 en ...
for college entrance and state exams. 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
Works
* ...
and
secondary
Secondary may refer to: Science and nature
* Secondary emission, of particles
** Secondary electrons, electrons generated as ionization products
* The secondary winding, or the electrical or electronic circuit connected to the secondary winding i ...
education.
History
Sylvan Learning began in
Portland, Oregon
Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...
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 has variously been characterized as a s ...
. In 1986, having over 500 franchises, Sylvan went public on the
NASDAQ
The Nasdaq Stock Market () (National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations Stock Market) is an American stock exchange based in New York City. It is the most active stock trading venue in the US by volume, and ranked second ...
exchange and used funds to develop corporate learning centers in key cities. By July 1987,
KinderCare, 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 global private-equity firm. It provides investment management and invests in credit, private equity, and real assets. As of March 31, 2022, the company had $512 billion of assets under management, i ...
from Sylvan Learning Systems Inc., its parent company.
(Sylvan Learning Systems Inc. shifted focus to
post-secondary education
Tertiary education, also referred to as third-level, third-stage or post-secondary education, is the educational level following the completion of secondary education. The World Bank, for example, defines tertiary education as including univers ...
, and to reflect that change was renamed
Laureate Education
Laureate Education, Inc. is a corporation 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 ...
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. With these closings in mind, Sylvan has made efforts to work with franchisees to open more centers. At the end of 2014, over 25 franchisees stated they would open one new location in the following year. Sylvan Corporate also planned to open 200 locations in total. Many of these new locations utilize a digital learning system called SylvanSync, which provides lessons on tablets with instructor oversight.
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