By: Deborah Johnson Wood
American Education Group (AEG), a company that acquires, replicates and operates specialized private schools around the country, recently created two new jobs in the Grand Rapids headquarters.
AEG, 25 Ionia SW, develops schools for kids who have learning needs that cannot be met by most mainstream schools. Those kids might have ADHD or dyslexia, or are kids who are fast learners and need some college classes in high school. Others are professional performers or athletes who need a tailored schedule.
“When you think about these areas of need, how far can you take this learning model?” asks Steve Racelis, director of marketing. “You can take it to one-on-one teaching with every student, like we have at our Fusion Academy in Solana Beach (California).”
The company operates five private schools in New Jersey, Massachusetts, California, Florida and Georgia. The schools purposely keep the student/teacher ratios small and work closely with the students’ doctors, psychologists, speech pathologists and other professionals to provide an individualized education.
Each school follows a customized education model based on the types of students served in that school. AEG will replicate one of the school models this fall. After that, company leaders hope to replicate other school models by two to four new schools a year. That growth creates the need for more employees at the Grand Rapids headquarters.
“We filled one Grand Rapids job two weeks ago, and I’m looking for a marketing assistant now,” Racelis says.
AEG has 350 employees nationwide, including nine in Grand Rapids. Racelis says company founder Pete Rupert lives in East Grand Rapids and is determined to keep the company headquarters in the area.
“The talent of individuals in West Michigan is part of the draw of running the schools from here,” Racelis says.
Source: Steve Racelis, American Education Group
Deborah Johnson Wood is development news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at [email protected].
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