One of the nation’s best-funded nonprofits focused on online education has been handing out grants for more than a year, but so far the group, known as the Axim Collaborative, has been handing out its grants slowly and fairly quietly.
“They’re not being talked about as much in the digital learning space,” said Russ Pollin, executive director of WCET, a nonprofit that focuses on digital learning in higher education. “They’re not disappearing from the conversation, but their names aren’t being mentioned as often.”
At the end of last month, article An op-ed on online course review site Class Central put it in harsher terms, calling the nonprofit’s promises “hollow.” The op-ed by longtime online education watcher Dawal Shah noted that, according to the organization’s most recent tax filings, Axim has assets of $735 million, with just $9 million in expenses and $15 million in investment income for the 2023 tax year. “Far from being an innovator, Axim Collaborative appears to be an unknown presence in the edtech space, and its promises of innovation and greater equity are largely unfulfilled,” Shah wrote.
The group was formed with funds raised when Harvard and MIT sold their edX online platform to for-profit company 2U in 2021 for roughly $800 million. Many online learning leaders criticized the move at the time, as edX had long touted its nonprofit status as a way to differentiate itself from competitors such as Coursera. The acquisition did not go as planned for 2U, which withdrew its support this summer. Filed for bankruptcy.
So what is Axim investing in and what are its plans for the future?
EdSurge reached out to Axim CEO Stephanie Khurana to get an update.
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