All posts by imreal

Science: Biology

Piper Companies Sustains Growth Momentum

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“Given the current overall economy and dynamic job market, there has been an element of complexity while navigating success in the staffing industry in recent years,” said Chris Dale, the President of Piper Companies. “We recognize how difficult things have been during this ever-changing time and are proud of our people—they are the key differentiator in demonstrating the value we deliver to our clients.”

Of the tens of thousands of companies that have applied to the Inc. 5000 over the years, Piper Companies is among the 19% who have made the list two times. The Class of 2023 represents businesses that drive rapid revenue growth while also navigating inflationary pressures, the rising costs of capital, and the seemingly intractable hiring challenges. In all, this year’s Inc. 5000 companies have added nearly 1.2 million jobs to the economy over the past three years.

SIA—the global research and advisory firm focused on staffing and workforce solutions—also recognizes the industry challenges. “The staffing industry has weathered a pandemic and is now managing a completely different landscape that continues to shift, with this year providing a more challenging business environment than last year,” said SIA President Barry Asin. “Through all this fast-paced change, congratulations to this year’s qualifying firms for their resilience and persistence in the ever-evolving world of work.”

Piper’s organizational growth reflects the remarkable ability of its employees to exemplify passion, integrity, creativity, and the perseverance to connect people with new opportunities. “National recognition by the Inc. 5000 and the industry experts at SIA is an incredible achievement and would not be possible without our extraordinary team and the partnerships they have developed with our amazing clients and consultants,” Dale added. “We will continue to experience rapid growth within the staffing industry by placing high-caliber professionals within high-demand sectors like life sciences, information technology, healthcare, and government services.”

About Piper Companies:

Piper Companies is an elite staffing agency and human capital solutions firm specializing in information technology, life sciences, and clinical solutions. Since company inception in 2011, Piper Companies has been committed to developing collaborative partnerships with clients and consultants. It is at the core of the business to support clients in building high-performing teams while connecting premier talent with exceptional opportunities. Headquartered in McLean, Va., Piper Companies maintains offices in Raleigh, NC; Columbia, MD; Conshohocken, PA.; and Charlotte, NC. For more information about Piper’s services, visit Piper Companies.

About Inc:

The world’s most trusted business-media brand, Inc. offers entrepreneurs the knowledge, tools, connections, and community to build great companies. Its award-winning multiplatform content reaches more than 50 million people each month across a variety of channels including websites, newsletters, social media, podcasts, and print. Its prestigious Inc. 5000 list, produced every year since 1982, analyzes company data to recognize the fastest-growing privately held businesses in the United States. For more information, visit www.inc.com.

Inc. 5000 Methodology:

Companies on the 2023 Inc. 5000 are ranked according to percentage revenue growth from 2019 to 2022. To qualify, companies must have been founded and generating revenue by March 31, 2019. They must be U.S.-based, privately held, for-profit, and independent–not subsidiaries or divisions of other companies–as of December 31, 2022. (Since then, some on the list may have gone public or been acquired.) The minimum revenue required for 2019 is $100,000; the minimum for 2022 is $2 million.

About Staffing Industry Analysts:

Founded in 1989, SIA is the global advisor on staffing and workforce solutions. Our proprietary research covers all categories of employed and non-employed work including temporary staffing, independent contracting, and other types of contingent labor. Known for award-winning content, data, support tools, publications, executive conferences, and events, SIA helps both suppliers and buyers of workforce solutions make better-informed decisions that improve business results and minimize risk. Learn more at staffingindustry.com.

Media Contact

Julie Gonsalves, Piper Companies, 1 (703) 972-2994, [email protected], https://www.pipercompanies.com/

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SOURCE Piper Companies



Science: Biology

CenterGate Capital Partners with Leading Managed Print Services Provider to the U.S. Federal Government

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CEO Colin Murphy, who will continue to lead CTI, said, “I am proud of what the CTI team has been able to accomplish as one of the premier managed print service providers to the federal government. We are excited to partner with CenterGate in our next phase of growth. CenterGate’s investment will provide us the capital and strategic resources to continue our growth trajectory while increasing productivity for our customers.”

Tim Liu, Managing Director at CenterGate Capital, added, “Colin and the CTI team have grown the Company by providing an innovative, technology-enabled service to its customers who require the highest levels of service and security. We are excited to partner with CTI to help them continue the execution of their growth plan.”

CenterGate Capital was represented by McGuireWoods LLP in the transaction.

DC Advisory served as exclusive financial advisor to CTI in the transaction.

About CTI
CTI is a leading managed print services provider to the federal government. The Company services over 200 unique customers spanning some of the most well-known agencies in the U.S. government. Over its 33-year history, the Company has developed unmatched expertise in managed print services for federal agencies, stemming from deep customer relationships and specialized technical know-how, backed by technology-enabled service.

About CenterGate Capital
CenterGate Capital is a private equity firm managing over $740 million. We focus on growing lower middle market companies. Our goal is to partner with management to create value for all stakeholders of our portfolio companies. CenterGate possesses flexible capital, enabling us to tailor each investment to a company’s ownership goals and growth strategies. We structure transactions to enable owners to monetize their equity while also positioning the company for future growth. For more information, visit http://www.centergatecapital.com.

Media Contact

MEDIA CONTACT, CenterGate Capital, (512) 717-7100, [email protected], www.centergatecapital.com

SOURCE CenterGate Capital

Home and Family: Marriage / Relationships

New President & CEO Announced for Women In Technology (WIT)

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Most recently Rocker served as the Global Head of Operations for Amazon’s Alexa Prize program, an innovative AI competition for universities. In addition to her professional achievements, she holds a Bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering from Georgia Tech and actively contributes to civic leadership roles.

“We are excited to welcome Heather back to WIT as our new President and CEO,” said Tracy Aldworth, WIT Board President and Chief Transformation Officer at RNDC. “Heather’s journey from our inaugural executive director in 2007 to her remarkable accomplishments since in the technology and nonprofit sectors, coupled with her steadfast community involvement are exactly why she was selected to lead WIT into our next exciting chapter of growth. We extend our heartfelt thanks to the interview committee for their dedication to the CEO selection process for WIT.”

“I am honored to serve as the incoming CEO for Women in Technology. My vision for the organization will build on the many years of incredible work by the WIT leaders before me,” said Heather Rocker, WIT President and CEO. “I wholeheartedly believe in WIT’s mission because we cannot afford to leave any talent untapped. We need to support girls and women in pursuing S.T.E.A.M education and careers. We must challenge stereotypes, provide mentorship, and support every step of the journey – from the classroom to the boardroom. It’s not just about increasing the number of women in the tech industry; it’s also about ensuring that women thrive and reach leadership positions. Because when women and girls succeed, our communities and businesses also succeed. “

In addition to the announcement of Rocker, Aldworth wanted to thank former President and CEO, Penny Collins, for her years of service with WIT. “We also want to express our deep appreciation to Penny for her outstanding leadership and dedication in guiding WIT through its previous chapters. Penny’s contributions have been instrumental in getting us to this point, and we look forward to her continued support in new capacities as we embark on this exciting journey with Heather.”

Rocker’s first day will be 10/30/23.

About Women In Technology (WIT)

Women In Technology (WIT) empowers girls and women to excel in Science, Technology, Engineering, The Arts, and Math (STEAM) from the classroom to the boardroom. We do this by providing female students in middle school, high school, and college with education, exposure and experience. By sharing the stories of successful professionals across the STEAM fields, we encourage all generations of girls and women to write their future. Today, WIT has over 20,000 members in Georgia, 48,000 members worldwide and our team of more than 250 volunteers deliver professional development and networking opportunities to each of our professionals and programs at no charge to more than 4,000 students. WIT is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, and we are committed to making Georgia the state with the highest percentage of women in the STEAM workforce by partnering with our community to provide opportunities that champion women throughout their education and career.

Media Contact

Paula Bolton, Women In Technology, 7703774539, [email protected]

SOURCE Women In Technology

Science: Biology

Introducing Tynker Copilot – The First-Ever LLM-Powered Coding Companion for Young Coders

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Tynker’s introduction of the Copilot feature marks a significant industry milestone. Until now, the capabilities of LLMs have not been fully utilized for the younger age group. Tynker Copilot empowers children as young as 6 to input text commands like “Design a space-themed knock-knock joke” or “Teach me how to build a Fruit-ninja style game” and receive block code outputs with step-by-step instructions. Moreover, when debugging existing projects, students can submit block-code snippets and benefit from LLM-generated natural language explanations.

“Our ethos at Tynker is grounded in innovation and breaking boundaries,” stated Srinivas Mandyam, CEO of Tynker. “We’re exhilarated to channel the latest advancements in AI technology to serve our youngest learners, fostering an environment of curiosity and growth. While the potential for such a tool is vast, our prime objective remains to employ it as an empowering educational aid, not a shortcut.

Developing Tynker Copilot posed challenges distinct from standard LLMs, which typically handle text-based code. Our focus was visual block coding tailored to kids’ unique programming preferences. With insights from millions of submissions in Tynker’s repository, ranging from pet dress-up games to platformer adventures and Minecraft mods, we fine-tuned Llama2. This rich, child-centric data helped us adapt the model to generate visual block coding programs, making Tynker Copilot a specialized tool designed around the creative tendencies of young coders.

“Bringing LLMs into Tynker’s dynamic visual block coding ecosystem presented unique challenges,” commented Kelvin Chong, CTO of Tynker. “We fine-tuned Llama2 with AI and ML techniques to align with young coders, supporting parallel scripts, visual actors, and kid-centric features such as Physics, AR, sound effects, and Minecraft modding. As coders grow, they’re naturally transitioned towards Python.”

All educators and home users will be notified when this innovative feature becomes generally available in the product. In the meantime, for more insights into its capabilities and to view examples of its potential use, visit the Tynker blog.

About Tynker:

Tynker is a leading K-12 creative coding platform that empowers children worldwide to develop coding skills for designing animations, games, and a wide range of real-world applications. With a focus on critical thinking and problem-solving, Tynker’s acclaimed curriculum is used by 1 in 3 U.S. K-8 schools, 150,000 schools globally, and over 100 million kids across 150 countries. Partners include renowned brands like Apple, Google, Microsoft, and NASA. Accessible on computers and mobile apps, Tynker offers free and paid subscriptions. In 2021, Tynker was acquired by BYJU’S, the world’s largest edtech company. For more info, visit www.tynker.com.

Media Contact

Teri Llach, Tynker, 1 6505756913, [email protected], https://www.tynker.com/

SOURCE Tynker

Science: Biology

Republic Business Credit Provides E-Commerce Asset Based Line of Credit to Fancy Sprinkles

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Fancy Sprinkles has previously been featured on The Today Show, BuzzFeed and Bon Appétit for its unique confectionary products.

The asset-based loan Republic Business Credit provided had an accordion feature of up to $6 million, which leveraged Fancy Sprinkles’ inventory and receivables across its e-commerce and wholesale business. Fancy Sprinkles is experiencing rapid growth with key retailers and sought a scalable working capital facility to expand inventory ahead of its upcoming national rollout.

Republic was impressed with the philosophy, culture and partnership mindset of the Sterling team, starting with its Chairman and Co-Founder, Steven Taslitz and Vice President, Courtney Altman. “We are thankful for Republic’s support and believe this partnership will generate continued success for Fancy Sprinkles,” said Taslitz.

“This partnership will enable Fancy Sprinkles to grow its brand and manage rising demand,” said Altman, who played a major role in the deal.

Fancy Sprinkles CEO Kiley Anderson shared, “We appreciate the line of credit extended by Republic and are confident that this newfound relationship will help us to reach new goals and milestones as a company.”

Eric Dorner, VP, Business Development, at Republic was a proponent of the initial partnership between the companies. “It was exciting to close this first deal with Sterling Partners, especially given their incredible reputation investing across the consumer-packaged goods industry, of which we continue to build an incredible portfolio of brands,” Dorner shared.

“It is exciting to partner with brands that are well-supported by their equity partners and combine Sterling’s forty-plus years of experience with entrepreneurial-minded capital,” said Republic President, Robert Meyers.

About Republic Business Credit
Republic Business Credit is a nationally recognized commercial finance company supporting the working capital requirements of companies nationwide, including private equity and entrepreneurial businesses. Republic provides asset-based lending, ledgered lines of credit, traditional factoring, factoring and Fast AR Funding. Republic partners with its clients to provide up to $15 million in senior credit facilities to rapidly growing businesses, start-ups and companies experiencing recoverable distress. Republic is recognized by the Secured Finance Network as one of the largest finance companies in the United States of America. Republic is proud to be headquartered in New Orleans with additional offices in Chicago, Los Angeles and Houston. Republic is a wholly owned subsidiary of Renasant Bank.

About Sterling Partners
Sterling Partners (“Sterling”) is a diversified investment management platform founded in 1983 and based in Chicago. The firm started with four young entrepreneurs, who went on to build one of Chicago’s most prominent private equity firms. Today, the firm has expanded beyond its strong private equity practice into several other investment strategies. Complementing its institutional fund practice, Sterling invests in a wide variety of companies in various stages of growth – from early-stage, high-growth businesses to mature, profitable companies – on a deal-by-deal basis. These investments cross several industries, and the firm makes control, non-control, and preferred equity investments. Sterling adds value to its portfolio companies and the founders with whom it partners with its entrepreneurial roots, deep domain expertise, focus on transformational growth, and access to world-class executive talent. For more information, please visit http://www.sterlingpartners.com. 

Media Contact

Emma Amorose, Respublica Group, 412.807.9236, [email protected], republicbc.com

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SOURCE Republic Business Credit



Legal / Law: Criminal Law

FHU’s Third Annual Servants’ Day Sends Students to Help the Community

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Servants’ Day was first instituted in order to address the needs in the local community and match tasks with volunteers who are willing to tackle them. The service projects were largely organized by the FHU staff, in conjunction with various academic groups and social clubs, to provide students with the chance to spiritually enrich the lives of others.

Instead of attending their regular classes, each student signed up for a service project commissioned by the local community or the university itself. Between playing games with Southern Oaks residents, painting a mural at The Wall, cleaning campus facilities and helping organize a Chester County school storage facility, the students certainly had plenty of opportunities to choose from this year.

One group of students worked with Chester County Elementary fine arts teacher, Becky Hartle, by cleaning and organizing a theater storage facility as well as by moving heavy piles of wood and trash to the Chester County recycling center. “The students were great. They had positive and willing attitudes,” Hartle said. “I am very thankful in many ways. They agreed to help me for Servants’ Day at the last minute, and the students were all encouraging throughout the day.”

FHU senior Nate Cass joined a group of around 50 other students to package meal bags for the Jacks Creek Church of Christ outreach efforts. Each bag made by the students would feed six people. “It was work, but everyone was happy to be helping and enjoying the fellowship with each other,” Cass said.

University Servants’ Day is just one of many ways that FHU shows dedication to promoting Christ, not only through education, but also through Godly service, in keeping with the scriptures: “Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.” (Hebrews 13:16)

The mission of Freed-Hardeman University is to help students develop their God-given talents for His glory by empowering them with an education that integrates Christian faith, scholarship and service. With locations in Henderson and Memphis, FHU offers associate, bachelor’s, master’s, specialist and doctoral degrees. More information is available at fhu.edu.

Media Contact

Dawn Bramblett, Freed-Hardeman University, 731-608-7650, [email protected], fhu.edu 

SOURCE Freed-Hardeman University

Science: Biology

Leading the Way in Cybersecurity Education and Consulting

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Key Highlights of Cyber Qubits:

  1. Unparalleled Expertise: Cyber Qubits stands out with its extraordinary team of cybersecurity experts. The cumulative experience of over two centuries, coupled with diverse backgrounds and insights from various sectors, academia, and workforce development, uniquely positions Cyber Qubits to address the complex challenges of the cybersecurity domain.
  2. Cutting-Edge Training Programs: Cyber Qubits offers a broad range of training programs suitable for individuals at all levels of expertise. From foundational cybersecurity principles to advanced specialized techniques, these programs are curated and continuously updated by industry leaders to address emerging threats.
  3. Accredited Training Partnerships: Cyber Qubits takes pride in its accredited training partnerships with industry-leading organizations, including CompTIA, ISACA International, and EC Council. This recognition highlights our dedication to maintaining the highest standards of cybersecurity education.
  4. Tailored Consulting Services: Acknowledging the distinctive cybersecurity needs of every organization, Cyber Qubits offers customized consulting services. Their experienced team excels at identifying vulnerabilities, crafting robust security strategies, and guiding clients through the implementation of effective security measures.
  5. Educational License: We are pleased to announce that Cyber Qubits has been granted an educational license by the Colorado Department of Higher Education, Division of Private Occupational Schools. This license underscores the company’s dedication to delivering high-quality education.

Julia Costin, co-founder, and COO of Cyber Qubits, shared the company’s mission, stating, “Cybersecurity is not just a field; it’s a necessity. At Cyber Qubits, we firmly believe that knowledge is the key to strengthening digital defenses. Our exceptional team is passionately dedicated to sharing their expertise with the world. Our goal is to equip individuals and organizations with the skills to thrive securely in today’s digital environment.”

To commemorate its launch and the receipt of the educational license, Cyber Qubits is offering exclusive promotions and scholarships on select training programs and a special discount on consulting services. This initiative underscores the company’s unwavering commitment to making cybersecurity education and consultation accessible to all.

For further details on Cyber Qubits and its range of offerings, please visit https://www.cyberqubits.com/.

About Cyber Qubits:

Cyber Qubits is an innovative EdTech company focused on cybersecurity training and consulting. With a team boasting a cumulative experience of 213 years in the field, spanning various sectors, academia, and workforce development, Cyber Qubits is on a mission to empower individuals and organizations with the knowledge and skills required to effectively defend against the ever-evolving world of cyber threats. The company’s commitment to quality is reinforced by its educational license granted by the Colorado Department of Higher Education, Division of Private Occupational Schools.

Media Contact

Julia Costin, Cyber Qubits, 1 720-900-5889, [email protected], https://www.cyberqubits.com/

SOURCE Cyber Qubits

Science: Biology

Amberdata Receives Three Awards Recognizing Excellence in Digital Assets

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“Amberdata is quickly emerging as a leading digital asset data provider and provides comprehensive insights and granular data on blockchain networks, crypto markets, and decentralized finance.” – The Digital Banker

Amberdata provides institutional-grade data infrastructure for banks, hedge funds and other financial institutions interested in entering the digital asset class. The Amberdata platform delivers comprehensive historical and real-time on-chain, DeFi, and market data, eliminating the need to source and integrate data from multiple vendors. Amberdata’s datasets and analytics tools provide actionable insights into blockchain networks, crypto markets, and decentralized finance, empowering financial institutions with actionable information for research, trading, risk, analytics, reporting, and compliance.

“We’re honored to receive these awards recognizing the excellence of our digital asset data and analytics solutions,” said Shawn Douglass, CEO, Amberdata, “Our institutional customers consider our platform to be fundamental infrastructure driving their strategies and success in digital assets. These awards are further validation of our leadership in the digital asset data and analytics market. We’d like to congratulate all the other outstanding nominees.”

About Amberdata
Amberdata is the leading provider of digital asset data. We deliver comprehensive data, insights, and analytics tools for blockchain networks, crypto markets, and decentralized finance, empowering financial institutions with data for research, trading, risk, analytics, reporting, and compliance. Amberdata serves as a critical piece of infrastructure for financial institutions entering the asset class and participating in digital asset markets. To learn more, visit Amberdata.io

For media inquiries, please contact Jonathan Duran at (310) 260-7901 or Jonathan(at)MelrosePR(dot)com.

SOURCE Amberdata

Science: Biology

Elevate K-12 Expands in Iowa As It Bring Its High-Quality LIVE teaching to More Schools around the United States

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The synchronous LIVE teaching company is growing its presence as it works towards improving educational outcomes for students across the country

DES MOINES, Iowa, Oct. 17, 2023 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ — Elevate K-12, the leading provider of high-quality synchronous LIVE teaching for K-12 classrooms in the United States, is expanding its presence in Iowa with 15 newly signed districts. The expansion brings the innovative company to a total of more than 500 school districts across the United States.

“We couldn’t be happier to be expanding Elevate K-12 in Iowa,” said Shaily Baranwal, Elevate K-12’s Founder and CEO. “Through partnerships with districts across the country, Elevate K-12 has been able to help alleviate the pains caused by the teacher shortage. Our live, synchronous and effective teaching model solves critical problems facing schools today by providing access to teachers who would not otherwise be accessible to that school.”

The expansion in Iowa will support Elevate K-12 in its mission to solve the ongoing teacher-shortage crisis by bringing its LIVE teaching to more schools and districts that lack teachers in critical content in key educational areas, including core academic classes as well as relevant electives such as Computer Science, Cybersecurity, Personal Finance, and more.

For several years, schools across the country have been struggling to fill vacant positions and shrink class sizes that have grown significantly as a result of the teacher shortage. Further, a survey conducted by the National Education Association revealed that 55% of teachers say they now plan to exit the profession earlier than they planned on at the beginning of their careers. Elevate K-12’s seamless LIVE instruction helps provide schools with great teachers as they contend with these challenges.

“We are offering teachers the ability to teach on their terms – allowing them the flexibility to own their schedules and teach from anywhere, which will keep them in the profession longer and drive more talent to the profession,” said Baranwal. “We are eager to see the positive impact that Elevate K-12 will have on Iowa.”

About Elevate K-12
Elevate K-12 is a Chicago-based instructional services company that brings high-quality live-streamed teaching to K-12 classrooms. Schools and districts partner with Elevate K-12 to solve their teacher shortage challenges and provide effective and engaging instruction to their students. Its tech-enabled service was built for K-12 education and is powered by certified, qualified teachers using state-aligned curriculums. Elevate K-12 is rapidly expanding throughout the U.S., providing equity in education nationwide. For more information, visit http://www.elevatek12.com and follow us on LinkedIn.

Media Contact

Lauren Turner, Mainland, 3125263996, [email protected], www.hellomainland.com

SOURCE Elevate K-12