Lightspeed Appoints New Board Members and Board Advisor to Support Its Next Phase of Growth
The change in Lightspeed’s board members and advisors will ensure Lightspeed continues to put educators and their students’ needs first, while growing responsibly for the long-term
TUALATIN, ORE. (PRWEB) JUNE 21, 2023
Lightspeed, the provider of instructional audio solutions that create equal access to learning, announces the appointment of Shaun Fagan, Mark Grover and Paula Reed as Lightspeed Board Members and Vanessa (Yocom) Wilkins as a Lightspeed Board Advisor. All four leaders bring a depth of experience, successfully partnering with K–12 educators in delivering effective use of technology in the learning environment. Additionally, Tony Zeikle and Shaun Fagan have been promoted to Senior Vice President of Revenue and Senior Vice President of Product, respectively.
“The elevation of Shaun and Mark to our board, as well as the addition of Paula and Vanessa, provides our Board of Directors with the broad perspective we need for pragmatic innovation and growth,” said David Solomon, President, and Chief Executive Officer at Lightspeed. “Their unique perspectives will help us live up to our vision of a world where every student and every teacher can listen, learn and share their voice.”
Decades of research, including the Mainstream Amplification Resource Room Study by the U.S. Department of Education, note that a variety of student groups benefit from instructional audio and approximately 30 percent of the children in grades 3–6 at any given time have some form of mild hearing loss of up to 15 decibels as a result of ear infections, middle ear fluid and other factors.
“When students hear instruction clearly, everyone benefits,” said Fagan. “We know that students often miss important sounds and letters during classroom instruction due to several reasons—such as HVAC systems or others talking in an adjacent classroom. As adults, we can fill in the blanks when we miss something, but students and non-native English speakers often haven’t developed this ability yet and it affects their learning. Lightspeed’s solutions play an important role in creating an equitable learning environment and I am honored to support this mission.”
Shaun Fagan and Mark Grover join David Solomon as employee Board Directors. Fagan has been with Lightspeed for over 20 years and continues to lead the organization product, R&D and engineering teams. Grover serves as Lightspeed’s Chief Financial Officer.
Paula Reed, Chief Strategy Officer at TeachStone and founder of BizEducation Consulting, will join Lightspeed’s existing Independent Board Directors Dan Meub, Chair, Lloyd West, Senior Director, and Roger Rowe, Director. Vanessa Wilkins, an Expert in Residence with Harvard Innovation Labs and founder of Future School Lab, will begin her board service as an Advisor.
Together, Fagan, Grover, Reed and Wilkins will ensure long-term organizational health of Lightspeed and provide fresh viewpoints to make sure the Lightspeed team is equipped to support the ever-changing needs of educators and students.
Tony Zeikle is now responsible for developing and leading tight integration of sales, customer service, marketing, business development and partnerships into a single cohesive strategy.
To learn more about Lightspeed, please visit https://www.lightspeed-tek.com.
About Lightspeed
Lightspeed, a 100 percent employee-owned company, is on a mission to help every student hear every word. To that end, the company has brought powerful instructional audio solutions to K–12 institutions around the globe for more than 30 years. Each product inspires communication and collaboration by delivering crystal-clear, low-volume and highly intelligible sound. Lightspeed offers solutions for several learning environments, including whole- and small-group, distance and hybrid instruction. Passionate about its culture of service, Lightspeed remains dedicated to improving the lives of educators and students through its products, research and partnerships. To learn more, visit https://www.lightspeed-tek.com.