The One About Ayesha and ASL Aspire
Plus community wins and upcoming events!
Thank you to everyone who attended our first co-working day at Workbox in Fulton Market last month. I received a lot of positive feedback from you all. We will definitely arrange for another one soon!
Also, shout-out Jonathan Pipek, who ran our first ever virtual event on GTM strategies for early stage startups. Keep reading to find out more about our next virtual seminar!
Community Wins
REACH Pathways is a Black Ambition Semifinalist. They will be pitching at EdTech Week in NYC.
OpenClass launched MagicGuides.ai, their first direct-to-learners product that allows students to generate a full set of adaptive study guides around any class syllabus. They also recently partnered with Johnson College Prep in Chicago.
Code Your Dreams joined Chicago Innovation and rang the NASDAQ bell. They recently launched some new swag. And they will be sponsoring the upcoming Latina Brilliance Summit.
Entiendo made the Top 250 (out of +15k) in the Entrepreneurship World Cup and has also released its beta which you can try here.
ImmersionED launched with the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History and their network of 35k+ schools.
Founder Spotlight
This month’s spotlight features Ayesha Kazi, the COO and co-founder of ASL Aspire, a gamified EdTech platform that teaches STEM to K-12 Deaf students. Continue reading to learn more about Ayesha and her company!
Windy City EdTech (WCE): What does your company do? What big problem are you trying to solve?
Ayesha: ASL Aspire is an online educational platform that teaches STEM education for K-12 deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) students and their teachers through games. We are providing a seamlessly integral curriculum that aligns with national core standards and is created in collaboration with deaf professionals who are actively developing new signs.
Currently, Deaf students don’t have access to basic vocabulary to succeed in STEM, making them seventy times less likely to pursue STEM careers. Through our app, DHH students will be taught the foundational knowledge necessary to ace their classes and prepare for future STEM careers.
WCE: Can you share the story behind the founding of your company? What inspired you to start it?
Ayesha: During the COVID-19 lockdown, my co-founder, Mona Jawad, discovered that teachers of the deaf were hit harder than most when it came to finding digital resources for their students. She brought a research project idea to me: a STEM vocabulary app that teaches deaf students new ASL signs through games!
From there, we spent the next 1.5 years developing this idea through research funding and testing out our prototype in schools around us. After visiting these deaf programs, it hit us that we needed to bring this product to life ourselves instead of waiting for research to catch up to industry. Seeing the lack of resources these kids had on a daily basis was something none of us could sit around and watch especially when we were privileged enough to have accessible education at our fingertips. So, we founded ASL Aspire at the end of 2022.
WCE: What sets your product apart from others?
Ayesha: ASL Aspire sets itself apart by specifically addressing the gap in STEM-focused ASL tools. Our platform is meticulously designed for students and teachers with a proficient understanding of signs. Unlike other ASL learning tools, which primarily serve as dictionaries, ASL Aspire offers a comprehensive educational solution tailored for classroom use.
Beyond competing with other ASL learning tools, our primary competition is the makeshift curriculums that educators of the deaf currently create to teach STEM. ASL Aspire stands out with its emphasis on classroom functionality and seamless integration into existing curricula. Teachers can efficiently monitor student progress, assign personalized word lists, and facilitate engaging multiplayer and individual modes.
Additionally, ASL Aspire actively addresses the critical deficiency of regular updates to incorporate new STEM signs, ensuring that our content remains current and relevant. This comprehensive approach, combined with our focus on classroom integration and teacher support, makes ASL Aspire a unique and invaluable tool for enhancing STEM education for Deaf students.
WCE: How can our community help you?
Ayesha: Try out our app and send feedback to us through our website! We would also love warm intros to any teachers or schools with Deaf programs (send to ayesha@aslaspire.com).
WCE: Why are you building in Chicago? What do you love most about the city?
Ayesha: I am a software engineer currently doing my masters in Computer Science here in Chicago and the tech startup space here is like no other! There are so many people who are willing to help and a plethora of resources Chicago has to offer to us.
WCE: How did you meet your co-founders?
Ayesha: I have two co-founders: Mona and Ethan! I met Mona on the first day of undergrad at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign during a Women in Engineering orientation and we hit it off ever since. Mona introduced me to Ethan as he was also a fellow bioengineer like herself and was interested in this project as well!
WCE: What are some challenges you’ve faced in building your company?
Ayesha: Building a product as hearing founders for the Deaf community has been an uphill battle as we needed to gain acceptance and respect from them prior to selling our product. Our team has always been aligned on the same vision: accessible education for all. But without feeling the pain point as our target customer, it’s been very difficult to make them believe that our motives were pure. We spent the last 3 years immersing ourselves within the Deaf community and hiring within to create a more diverse and inclusive team so that we were building with the Deaf community and not just for them. We have come a long way since the first days and can proudly say we have some amazing partners such as the American Society for Deaf Children who are helping us bring our vision to life.
WCE: What are you most proud of with your startup?
Ayesha: Being able to make a difference in these kids’ lives through something they love: games! As we continue with our on-site school visits to bring our platform straight to the hands of students and teachers, we often learn a ton about their day-to-day activities and pain points. From these experiences, I am most proud to see these kids’ faces light up while playing our games. This is exactly why I do what I do.
Check out our previous founder spotlights!
Upcoming Events
Stryke Sunset Cruise: Illuminating the Future Workforce — Sept. 5th from 5:30-9:00 pm — RSVP (Luma)
Calling all Chicago EdTech founders, investors, university recruiters, and Stryke supporters! Join us to celebrate the launch of our workforce development platform, empowering the next generation of talent. Enjoy a night of networking, inspiring talks, an open bar, appetizers, a DJ, and beautiful scenery. Close out the summer with us on a mission-driven cruise!
This awesome and unique event is hosted by Crystal Kendzior! We hope you can attend!
“How To Not Suck At Pitching Your Startup” with Startup Hypeman — Sept. 10 at 12:00 pm CT — RSVP (Zoom)
We suck at telling our story! Ever said that to yourself? You have this great product but you're either too technical, too in the weeds, or just say too much to get investors, customers, and stakeholders to listen.
The Edtech Institute of Chicago is honored and excited to team with Startup Hypeman Founder and Chief Pitch Artist, Rajiv ‘RajNATION’ Nathan, who will share how to craft an elevator pitch that turns heads and gets people to say, “wait wait—tell me more!”
The EdTech Institute of Chicago’s End of Summer Meetup — Thurs. Sept. 26 from 5:30-7:30 pm — RSVP (Luma)
Calling all EdTech founders, investors, and operators. Let’s close out the summer in style! Come join us for our monthly happy hour on 9/26. Location TBA.