Barbara Kurshan

Dr. Barbara (Bobbi) Kurshan has honed her vision of “what can be” using technology while supporting the growth of new education companies and developing innovative software products. She currently serves as the Executive Director of Academic Innovation at the Graduate School of Education at the University of Pennsylvania where she runs the EdTech Business Plan Competition and is building an ecosystem for researchers, teaches, investors and entrepreneurs. Previously, as the President of Educorp Consultants Corporation she provided strategic consulting in the areas of education, technology and innovation; and as the Executive Vice President of WorldSage, a consortium of for-profit higher education institutions in the EU to address education for the 21st century, she created a global network of tertiary institutions in the EU. As the past Executive Director of Curriki she helped to build one of the most innovative and robust global open source education communities. Dr. Kurshan has previously served as the Co-CEO of Core Learning, an education investment fund, and the Chief Academic Officer of bigchalk. She currently serves on the Board of several education companies. Dr. Kurshan has been involved with education and technology for over 30 years. She developed the first children’s software products for Microsoft and also created award-winning products for McGraw-Hill, Apple, CCC (Pearson) and others. As a professor, she helped students research the impact of technology on learning. Numerous publishing credits include topics that explore women’s attitudes toward technology, how kids learn using computers, OER, new ways of learning through understanding and innovation in education.

Impact

The Easiest Way to Fix Our Education System: Tell Entrepreneurs to Do Their Homework