Leeds Equity Partners Signs Definitive Agreement to Sell Nobel Learning Communities
New York-based private equity fund agrees to sell leading preschool through grade 12 private education provider
New York, USA — March 30, 2015. Leeds Equity Partners, LLC (“Leeds Equity”), the New York-based private equity fund focused exclusively on investing in the Knowledge Industries, announced today that it has signed a definitive agreement to sell Nobel Learning Communities, Inc. (“Nobel Learning” or the “Company”) for $405 million plus assumption of certain indebtedness to Investcorp, a global provider and manager of alternative investment products. Leeds Equity acquired Nobel Learning in a public-to-private transaction in August 2011. Partners Group co-invested with Leeds Equity in the investment. The transaction is expected to close during the second quarter of 2015.
“On behalf of the Nobel Learning management team, I would like to thank Leeds Equity for their strategic guidance and support, which was invaluable in helping to solidify and grow our industry leading position,” said George Bernstein, Nobel Learning President and CEO. “Under Leeds’s ownership, we were able to increase our rate of investment, which has increased the quality of our educational offering and value proposition for our parents and students while increasing our size, breadth, diversity and growth rate.”
“We are proud to have partnered with George and his team and look forward to watching them continue to drive exceptional performance and growth,” said Carter Harned, a Managing Director at Leeds Equity. “George and his team have worked tirelessly on behalf of their students and parents, principals and teachers, and shareholders for well over a decade and have forged Nobel Learning into a highly successful and top-performing national provider of preschool through grade 12 private education.”
Scott VanHoy, a Managing Director at Leeds Equity, continued, “management’s focus on delivering an exceptional value proposition of high quality education, with strong academic outcomes at an affordable price, has positioned the Company for excellent long-term success. We have thoroughly enjoyed our partnership with the Nobel Learning team.”
William Blair & Company, L.L.C. and BMO Capital Markets Corp. served as financial advisors and Goodwin Procter LLP served as legal counsel to Nobel Learning.
About Nobel Learning:
Nobel Learning Communities, Inc. is the only scaled and diversified provider of preschool through grade 12 private education in the U.S. Nobel Learning serves over 25,000 students through 176 schools in 18 states and the District of Columbia as well as globally via Laurel Springs, its online college preparatory K-12 private school. The Company provides high-quality, affordable private education, adapted to individual learning styles both on-ground and online. The Company delivers an outstanding value proposition to parents, which is validated by net promoter scores significantly above industry averages and over 90% parent satisfaction.
For additional information on Nobel Learning, please see http://www.nobellearning.com/
About Leeds Equity:
Leeds Equity Partners, LLC, is a New York-based private equity firm focused exclusively on investing in the application software, education, information services, tech-enabled business services, and training industries (the “Knowledge Industries”). The firm was founded by Jeffrey T. Leeds and Robert A. Bernstein in 1993 and has raised and managed more than $1.1 billion of capital across five funds.
The Board of Advisors of Leeds Equity Partners includes, among others: Chairman General Colin L. Powell, former Secretary of State, National Security Advisor, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; Vice Chairman Gaston Caperton, former President of The College Board and two-term governor of West Virginia; Tim J. Fitzpatrick, former CEO of Sallie Mae Corporation; Thomas F. (Mack) McLarty III, President of McLarty Associates and former White House Chief of Staff under President William J. Clinton; Dr. Barry A. Munitz, former Chancellor of the California State University system and CEO of the J. Paul Getty Trust; Richard W. Riley, former Secretary of Education under President William J. Clinton and two-term Governor of South Carolina; Alec Ross, former Senior Advisor for Innovation to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton; and Timothy P. Shriver, Chairman of the Board of the Special Olympics.
For additional information on Leeds Equity Partners, please see http://www.leedsequity.com/