New York, Sept. 15 2021 -- The second annual “Black History, Black Stories” contest sponsored by Macmillan Learning launched today. Now in its second year, the contest is accepting entries for college students and faculty to share how they draw inspiration from Black historical figures or events by submitting a photo of themselves along with either a short essay or a brief video story. “Few things are as important as the stories we tell ourselves and the world around us, so we created this contest to elevate the ones that may have been overlooked or unrecognized. This is just one of the many initiatives that Macmillan Learning has been undertaking to ensure that diverse voices are represented in the classroom and in our course materials,” said Coltrane Stansbury, Vice President of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at Macmillan Learning.  Black History, Black Stories contest. Submissions from students and faculty can win up to $1,000. Entries are accepted through December 15, 2021, and prizes will be awarded during Black History Month, February 2022, to the top six winners. Prizes include $1,000 going to the top student and faculty winners, $500 to second place winners and $250 for third place. Winners will also be featured on the Macmillan Learning History Community Site . Submissions will be judged by a cross-section of at least ten Macmillan Learning employees that support the creation of course materials for college students, including the company’s vast portfolio of History titles . The “Black History, Black Stories” contest was created in 2020 by the company’s college History group to elevate Black voices in education and in recognition of the fight for social justice inspired by the #BlackLivesMatter movement.  Last year’s student winner, Charles Walker Jr., created a video about the symbolism and impact of Colin Kaepernick. Last year’s instructor winner, Bradley Borougerdi, spoke about how he was inspired to found the non-profit Tarrant County Coalition for Peace and Justice to teach about the history of racial terror and lynching. See the past winners and learn more about this year’s contest o n the "Black History, Black Stories" website. About Macmillan Learning Macmillan Learning is a privately-held, family owned company that improves lives through learning. By linking research to learning practice, we develop pioneering products and learning materials for students that are highly effective and drive improved outcomes. Our engaging content is developed in partnership with the world's best researchers, educators, administrators, and developers. To learn more, please visit macmillanlearning.com or see us on Facebook , Twitter , LinkedIn or join our Macmillan Community .  ### ... View more

Company is one of only two education companies recognized as a best place to work New York, NY July 13 , 2021 -- Macmillan Learning, a privately-held, family-owned education publishing and services company announced today it earned a perfect score on the 2021 Disability Equality Index®, the leading nonprofit resource for business disability inclusion worldwide. The 100% score reflects Macmillan Learning’s ongoing commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion for its employees and the students who rely on the company’s course materials and educational technology for their education.  The Disability Equality Index, a joint initiative of the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) and Disability:IN, is a benchmarking tool that allows companies to demonstrate their commitment to disability inclusion and equality. It is modeled off the Corporate Equality Index that highlights LGBTQ-inclusive workplace policies, an index that also listed Macmillan Learning as a “ Best Place to Work for LGBTQ Equality ” this January. Globally, there are more than one billion people with disabilities. “Supporting diversity, equity and inclusion means ensuring that students of all backgrounds and abilities have the same opportunities for an education. While we’re proud to be recognized as a best place to work, we recognize that accessibility is a journey and our work is not yet done. As the technology, standards, and platforms change, so will we,” said Susan Winslow, President, Macmillan Learning.  Macmillan Learning views accessibility for its educational technology and course materials through two different lenses. In the first, the company works towards creating equitable student learning experiences and in the next, it aims to meet or exceed industry-accepted standards. The company’s accessibility work has earned it “Gold Standard” recognition from ASPIRE and the Winner of Accessible Books Consortium’s International Excellence Award for Accessible Publishing in 2020. The company’s ebooks for the third consecutive year were recognized as Global Certified Accessible by Benetech. This means that Macmillan Learning provides “born accessible” digital learning options that ensure that all students have the same access to information. In addition to ebooks, the company’s accessibility work extends to Lab Simulations and audio descriptions that explain to the visually impaired what is happening within videos. Similar to how closed captioning helps students to understand what’s happening on the audio in a video program, an audio description is essential to understanding visual information like charts, graphs, diagrams, facial expressions, and other non-verbal cues. “These are the kinds of advances we can make when we put our collective minds to approaching accessibility not just as a series of requirements to meet, but rather as important and interesting challenges to solve,” added Winslow.  The company continues to share best practices in accessibility for the education industry by offering an open source library of materials that were created in partnership with Tech For All. It supports accessibility within the company by focusing on recruiting and retaining employees with disabilities. To better support the hiring process, Macmillan Learning proactively includes the ability to request accommodations in emails to all candidates and has also placed the ability to request an accommodation atop its careers website. The company is also in the process of forming an employee resource group for employees with disabilities. . The company is also in the process of forming an employee resource group for employees with disabilities. “The Disability Equality Index shines a spotlight on companies that believe they have a stake in creating a more equitable society for people with disabilities. It is a conduit for our work championing disability rights for the 60 million Americans with disabilities and knocking down barriers to employment, technology and healthcare, and we're thrilled to see the progress being made today,” said Maria Town, President and CEO of AAPD. About Macmillan Learning Macmillan Learning is a privately-held, family-owned company that improves lives through learning. By linking research to learning practice, we develop pioneering products and learning materials for students that are highly effective and drive improved outcomes. To learn more, please visit macmillanlearning.com or join our Macmillan Community . About the Disability Equality Index® The Disability Equality Index (DEI) is a comprehensive benchmarking tool that helps companies build a roadmap of measurable, tangible actions that they can take to achieve disability inclusion and equality. Each company receives a score, on a scale of zero (0) to 100, with those earning 80 and above recognized as a “Best Place to Work for Disability Inclusion.” The DEI is a joint initiative of the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD), the nation’s largest disability rights organization, and Disability:IN, the global business disability inclusion network, to collectively advance the inclusion of people with disabilities. The organizations are complementary and bring unique strengths that make the project relevant and credible to corporations and the disability community. The tool was developed by the DEI Advisory Committee, a diverse group of business leaders, policy experts, and disability advocates. Learn more at: www.DisabilityEqualityIndex.org . About the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) AAPD is a convener, connector, and catalyst for change, increasing the political and economic power for people with disabilities. As a national cross-disability rights organization, AAPD advocates for full civil rights for the 50+ million Americans with disabilities. Learn more at: www.aapd.com.  About Disability:IN  Disability:IN is a global organization driving disability inclusion and equality in business. More than 270 corporations trust Disability:IN to activate and achieve disability inclusion across their enterprise and in the broader corporate mainstream. Through the world’s most comprehensive disability inclusion benchmarking; best-in-class conferences and programs; and expert counsel and engagement, Disability:IN works with leading businesses to create long-term business and societal impact. Join us at disabilityin.org/AreYouIN #AreYouIN ... View more

Company designated as a Best Place to Work for LGBTQ Equality New York, January 28, 2021 -- Macmillan Learning, a privately-held, family-owned education publishing and services company, announced today that for the second consecutive year it earned 100 percent on the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index (CEI ). The recognition reflects the company’s ongoing commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion in its products, people and culture. The Human Rights Campaign is the nation's largest civil rights organization working to achieve LGBTQ equality. The Index is part of the Human Rights Campaign Foundation and is the nation’s premier benchmarking survey and report measuring corporate policies and practices related to LGBTQ workplace equality.  “Despite the many challenges in 2020, we continue to prioritize and champion LGBTQ equality and are proud to again be listed as a top employer. Having a diverse and inclusive workforce is central to who we are, and our work towards diversity, equity and inclusivity is one we will continue to invest in for years to come,” said Kristin Peikert, Senior Vice President of Human Resources, Macmillan Learning. Macmillan Learning’s approach remains focused on their people, products and culture to continuously nurture a diverse workforce.  The company’s diversity, equity and inclusion goals are centered around three pillars -- products, people and culture. Products: Macmillan Learning strives to ensure students of all backgrounds and experiences can see themselves in the company’s products. People: Macmillan Learning will continually assess and evolve our People processes to attract and retain top, diverse talent and provide training to ensure continuous program implementation. Culture : Macmillan Learning is committed to teaching, discovery, and social responsibility. The company’s employee-focused teams and initiatives support community and belonging. Further, the company aims to have a wide representation of backgrounds, genders, races, sexual orientations, physical abilities, and cultures in the content they produce, the authors they work with, and the employees they hire and develop.  Employees from across the company have opportunities to actively seek out new ways to cultivate a culture that welcomes differences through the company’s D&I Councils, employee resources groups, educational opportunities, diversity-related slack channels, among others.  The CEI rates companies on detailed criteria falling under four central pillars: Non-discrimination policies across business entities; equitable benefits for LGBTQ workers and their families; supporting an inclusive culture; and corporate social responsibility. Macmillan Learning successfully satisfied all of CEI’s criteria, and in turn earned the designation as one of the “Best Places to Work for LGBTQ Equality.” The results of this year’s CEI showcase how 767 U.S.-based companies are promoting LGBTQ-friendly workplace policies in the U.S. and advancing the cause of LGBTQ inclusion in workplaces abroad. The full report is available online at www.hrc.org/cei. To learn more about diversity, belonging and inclusion at Macmillan Learning, click here . For more information about working at Macmillan Learning, visit the careers page on our website. About Macmillan Learning Macmillan Learning is a privately-held, family owned company that improves lives through learning. By linking research to learning practice, we develop pioneering products and learning materials for students that are highly effective and drive improved outcomes. Our engaging content is developed in partnership with the world's best researchers, educators, administrators, and developers. To learn more, please visit macmillanlearning.com or see us on Facebook , Twitter , LinkedIn or join our Macmillan Community .  ... View more