Achieve3000

Saki Dodelson founded Achieve3000 in 2001 after observing her own children's disengagement from reading assignments that were calibrated to the middle of the class rather than to individual reading levels. Her core insight was that differentiated instruction could be delivered at scale using nonfiction content that adjusted in complexity while preserving subject matter, allowing every student in a classroom to discuss the same topic regardless of reading ability. Dodelson led the company through its growth phase before departing following the Insight Partners majority investment in 2018.

In October 2022, McGraw Hill acquired Achieve3000 and integrated it into the company's School group, which houses the core digital curriculum portfolio. As of the acquisition announcement, the product continued to be marketed under the Achieve3000 brand name within McGraw Hill's literacy solutions. The platform's footprint at the time of sale covered roughly 40,000 schools and approximately 5 million student licenses per year (per McGraw Hill press release, October 2022).

Achieve3000 published a large-scale randomized controlled trial study in 2011 that demonstrated statistically significant literacy gains among students who used the platform with fidelity compared to control groups. The study was peer-reviewed and became a centerpiece of the company's sales motion with large urban districts, where procurement officers increasingly required efficacy data before committing to multi-year contracts. That research base gave Achieve3000 credibility that many consumer-oriented education apps lacked, contributing to its adoption in major districts including Los Angeles Unified, Chicago Public Schools, and New York City Department of Education.

Insight Partners acquired a majority stake in Achieve3000 in 2018, providing growth capital to scale the platform's sales and product development operations. Following the investment, Insight Partners installed Stuart Udell as CEO in 2019, replacing founder Saki Dodelson in the leadership transition. The private equity sponsorship positioned the company for its eventual strategic sale to McGraw Hill in 2022.

No. Achieve3000 is currently a wholly owned subsidiary of McGraw Hill, which acquired the company in October 2022. The product continues to be sold as a literacy solution under the Achieve3000 brand within McGraw Hill's School group, but the firm no longer operates as an independent entity.

Achieve3000 targeted the full K-12 span with a particular emphasis on upper elementary through high school grade bands, where reading comprehension deficits most directly impact content-area learning. The platform included explicit modules for English language learners and special education students, addressing two populations that were central to district purchasing decisions under federal accountability frameworks. Its core differentiation engine was designed to support mixed-ability classrooms where reading levels could vary by as much as five grade levels within a single room.

Achieve3000 established partnerships with assessment providers such as NWEA to integrate MAP Growth data into its differentiation engine, allowing the platform to automatically calibrate reading levels based on a student's most recent standardized assessment scores rather than relying on in-platform diagnostics alone. This integration was a key part of the company's district-facing value proposition, as it reduced the burden of duplicate testing and aligned instruction with the same metrics districts were using for state accountability reporting.