APDS, Which Provides Educational Opportunities to Inmates, Raises $5 Million

The following article is from the New York Business Journal

APDS, which provides tablets to incarcerated inmates for learning purposes, said it's raised $5 million in a Series B funding round.

The New York City-based company said the round was co-led by previous investors New Markets Venture Partners and ReThink Education. Also participating were previous investors Partnership Fund for New York City and Converge Venture Partners, as well as first-time investments from ECMC Group, New U Venture Partners and Strada Education Network.

According to APDS, which stands for American Prison Data Systems, the tablets are now used in 88 correctional facilities in 17 states, where inmates can prepare for the GED, obtain English skills, and learn about entrepreneurship.

"The new investments will fuel the growth of APDS's programs across correctional facilities and equip the company to continue to advance its proprietary learning platform and content offerings," the company said.

"Education can transform our correctional system, mitigating violence within facilities, reducing recidivism, and providing pathways to employment for a group of people who have been historically cut off from the workforce. APDS was founded because we wanted to bring those benefits to every prison and jail. This fundraising round shows that the educational investment community recognizes the tremendous, untapped potential inside the prison system," Harris Ferrell, CEO of APDS, said in a statement.

Earlier this year, APDS signed a deal with the Massachusetts Department of Correction to provide educational experiences for prisoners in 10 Massachusetts prisons.