Imagine Learning announced today that Seija Surr has joined its executive team as the new vice president of curriculum. Seija comes to Imagine Learning with over twenty years of experience creating award-winning instructional programs for students and teachers. Most recently, Seija worked for National Geographic Learning where she published National Geographic Reach, Reach for Reading, Inside, and Edge comprehensive K–12 print and digital programs for teaching language and literacy. She also oversaw a range of supplemental language and literacy programs including Canciones y Cuentos. Seija’s expertise comes from formerly teaching in the San Francisco Bay area and working as an instructional designer for Addison-Wesley Publishing Company, Mindscape, Classroom Connect, and Riverdeep.
Joe Swenson, CEO of Imagine Learning, worked intently to recruit Seija. “We are thrilled to have Seija join our executive team. Her vast experience producing K–5 language and literacy curriculum will surely be an asset as we move forward into a new phase of development to reach as many children as possible.” Imagine Learning currently provides language and literacy instruction to hundreds of thousands of students through its dynamic educational software.
As the education sector finds itself in a transformational shift, Seija says she is delighted to be back in the software industry where the latest technology allows developers the ability to create novel solutions to problems that kids have struggled with for years. “I had the good fortune of visiting an Imagine Learning school during the recruiting process. What made me particularly excited about Imagine Learning was the level of engagement the children had with the software. Every child was deeply immersed with their learning and at the edge of their learning curve,” said Seija.
In addition, Seija’s lifelong dedication to improving student outcomes is synergistic with the mission of Imagine Learning—to teach language and literacy to the children of the world, changing lives and opening doors of opportunity. Seija said, “Language and literacy is a key to success in all academic areas and a key to success out of school. If we can build literacy in the early years of schooling, we equip our youth with the tools they need to achieve success through the rest of their academic careers and beyond.”
