Dive Summary:
- The Minerva Project, a San Francisco-based startup aiming to bring an Ivy League education to the internet, has announced the launch of the Minerva Academy and Minerva Prize.
- The Minerva Prize will grant $500,000 to a "distinguished educator who is driving innovation to deliver extraordinary student learning experiences for the 21st century."
- The Minerva Academy is "an elite society of educators" that promotes innovation in teaching and awards the Minerva Prize; the Academy will headed by Dr. Roger Kornberg, a 2006 Nobel Laureate in chemistry.
From the article:
"... As student debt climbs and more question the value of a high-priced college education, startups of all kinds are emerging with different models for online education. In attempting to lure both top students and top professors who might otherwise gravitate to the country’s leading brick and mortar institutions, Minerva has an audacious vision.
But beyond raising $25 million from Benchmark Capital, Minerva, which is led by founder and CEO Ben Nelson (the former CEO of Snapfish), has attracted the support of several high-profile leaders. Former Harvard president and Treasury Secretary Larry Summers is an advisor and former U.S. Senator and Governor Bob Kerrey (D-NB) leads Minerva’s Institute for Research and Scholarship."