Trish Sparks, CEO of Clever and former middle school teacher, discusses her journey from the classroom to leading a platform serving 28 million students and teachers. She highlights the critical role of digital identity systems in education, protecting student data while simplifying tech access. Sparks shares insights from Clever's 'Classroom of the Future' report, revealing AI's rapid adoption in schools and its potential to ease teacher workloads. She also addresses cybersecurity challenges in K-12 and Clever's innovative solutions to safeguard learning environments.
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Trish Sparks' Career Path
Trish Sparks began her career as a teacher before transitioning into enterprise software.
She joined Clever in 2019, combining her passions for education, technology, and customer service.
insights INSIGHT
Digital Identities in Education
Digital identities represent real people in the school community, including students, teachers, and parents.
Identity platforms are crucial for securing data and simplifying access to digital learning resources.
insights INSIGHT
Technology's Impact on Educators
80% of educators believe technology makes their jobs easier, highlighting a shift in attitudes.
AI and automation are expected to follow a similar trajectory, reducing teacher workloads and improving job satisfaction.
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Trish Sparks leads Clever as CEO. Previously she was VP of Customer Success and Sales. Trish came to Clever with a wealth of executive leadership experience at companies such as LinkedIn, where she scaled a global customer success organization, and at DemandBase, where she was Chief Customer Officer. As a North Carolina Teaching Fellows Scholar, she started her career as a middle school teacher in Wake County Public Schools. Trish holds BS degrees in Business and Education as well as an MBA from Meredith College. After living in the Bay Area for 20 years, Trish now resides in Chapel Hill, NC.
💡 5 Things You’ll Learn in This Episode:
How Clever has grown to serve 28 million students and teachers across the U.S.
The role of digital identity platforms in securing and simplifying education technology.
Insights from Clever’s “Classroom of the Future” report on AI adoption in education.
How AI and automation are reducing teacher workloads and improving teaching conditions.
Clever’s innovative cybersecurity solutions tailored for K-12 schools.
✨ Episode Highlights:
[00:02:47] Trish’s journey from teaching to leading Clever and her passion for EdTech. [00:04:54] The critical role of identity platforms in protecting student data and facilitating digital learning. [00:08:04] Key findings from Clever’s “Classroom of the Future” report [00:09:41] The rapid adoption of AI in EdTech and its evolving role in education [00:11:12] Cybersecurity challenges in K-12 schools and Clever’s solutions to mitigate risks. [00:14:44] Exciting EdTech trends, from addressing teacher shortages to advancing student data protection.
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This season of Edtech Insiders is once again brought to you by Tuck Advisors, the M&A firm for EdTech companies. Run by serial entrepreneurs with over 25 years of experience founding, investing in, and selling companies, Tuck believes you deserve M&A advisors who work as hard as you do.
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