Connect, pitch and reimagine the future of education  

As part of the Reimagine Education Awards & Conference 2025, we’re excited to offer finalists exclusive opportunities to meet leading global investors who are shaping the future of education technology and innovation. 

These 1:1 meetings are your chance to connect directly with venture capitalists, impact investors, and education-focused funds – to share your vision, explore collaboration, and take your project to the next level. 

Investor meetings schedule 

Day 1
Monday, 1 December | 2:00–5:30 PM 

Day 2
Tuesday, 2 December | 9:45–10:30 AM & 11:00 AM–12:30 PM 

All sessions take place during the Reimagine Education Awards & Conference at the QEII Centre, London. 

Meet the investors 

Each participating investor brings unique experience and insight into education innovation, from early-stage startups to large-scale institutional transformation. Explore their profiles below to discover who aligns with your vision and book your 1:1 meeting. 

Robert Puopolo

Managing Partner, Epic Partners

RTP photo

Robert Puopolo is the Managing Partner of Epic Partners, a private equity firm that focuses exclusively on investments in education and training-related businesses. Since its inception in 2002, Epic Partners has made roughly 15 investments and have three active portfolio companies: Second Mile Education, Pryor Learning and The Valley College of Osteopathic Medicine.

Prior to founding Epic Partners, Robert Puopolo was a Partner at Leeds Equity, one of the original private equity firms investing in education and training. Before joining Leeds, Robert Puopolo spent 18 years as an investment banker in the M&A groups of three Wall Street firms, including four years based in London. Robert Puopolo holds a BA and an MBA from Harvard University.
For platform investments, Epic Partners has a minimum TTM EBITDA threshold of $3 million and is open to both change-of-control/majority recapitalizations as well as minority/growth capital investments. While the firm has historically focused on the United States, it is now beginning to evaluate platform investment opportunities in the UK and Europe.
Epic Partners is also interested in developing add-on and partnership opportunities for its portfolio companies, including products and services in: (i) corporate training and workforce development through Pryor Learning, and (ii) medical education through The Valley College of Osteopathic Medicine.

Talk to me about:

Pre-seed, Seed |  Series A | Tech-augmented learning | Future of work

Enrico Poli

Managing Director, Zanichelli Venture

Enrico Polo

Enrico Poli is the Managing Director of Zanichelli Venture, the early-stage EdTech fund backed by Zanichelli Editore. A former Chief Digital Officer at Zanichelli Editore, Poli has two decades of experience in digital learning, product strategy, and scaling education technology. He cares about how people teach and learn, how they tackle complex or difficult information, how they solve problems together, how intelligences (human and artificial) interact and create knowledge and learning. Poli studies the ways new technologies can help and not hinder these processes. Education offers a critical testing ground.

Talk to me about:

K-12 | Corporate training/Workforce development | Early childhood education | Post-secondary school | Goods and service provider to educational institution, or used for educational purposes.

Rita Ferrandino

Founding Partnerr, Arc Capital Development

Rita
Rita is the founding partner at Arc Capital Development, a global private investment and advisory firm. Rita Ferrandino has built an international reputation as one of the most effective corporate growth strategists in the education industry in K12, Higher Education & Workforce Development. She specializes in corporate growth strategy development, investment, revenue acceleration and cost/performance improvement and overall organizational strategy.  Rita currently serves as the Innovation Consultant at the Catalyst @ Penn GSE Innovation Center at the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education. She has co-lead the Milken Penn Business Plan Competition for the last eight years and served as the lead Capstone instructor at the Education Entrepreneurship Graduate Program for four years.
Arc invests in, operates and advises companies in the education and corporate training markets and has served over 150 clients in the US, Australia, Canada, Mexico, Singapore, Hong Kong, China, Ireland, Turkey, Israel & India. Arc clients and portfolio companies provide products generating over a billion dollars a year worldwide. Learn more at www.arccd.com .

Talk to me about:

Series A | Early learning | Higher education | K-12 | Workforce

Areas of investment focus 

Our participating investors represent a broad spectrum of education innovation. Whether your project is transforming classrooms, empowering learners through AI, or driving sustainable practices, there’s an investor eager to hear from you. 

Focus areas include: 

  • Higher education innovation 
  • EdTech startups 
  • Artificial intelligence in learning 
  • Sustainability in education 
  • Learning analytics and personalisation 
  • K-12 and early learning innovation 
  • Online learning platforms 
  • Skills and workforce development 

How it works 

  1. Explore investor profiles: Learn more about each participating investor and their areas of interest. 
  2. Select your matches: Choose which investors best align with your project. 
  3. Book your meeting slot: Once scheduling opens, reserve your 1:1 session. 
  4. Pitch and connect: Present your project and explore potential collaborations or funding opportunities. 

Ready to connect?

Spaces are limited for 1:1 meetings. Don’t miss your chance to pitch your project to education’s most forward-thinking investors.

Questions?

For enquiries about participation or the 1:1 meeting schedule, email Medini Mothay.