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2U, Inc. Welcomes Aaron McCullough as Chief Product Officer
LANHAM, Md., July 11, 2023 — 2U, Inc. (Nasdaq: TWOU), the company behind global online learning platform edX, today announced the appointment of Aaron McCullough as Chief Product Officer. In this role, McCullough will oversee the engineering, product, and learning innovation teams and lead the development and implementation of the company’s overarching product strategy. McCullough will report to Christopher “Chip” Paucek, 2U’s Co-founder and CEO.
McCullough joins 2U from Coursera, where he was Vice President and General Manager of the consumer segment, creating and leading the company’s comprehensive consumer vision, strategy, experience, and platform optimization. Prior to this role, he served as Coursera’s Vice President of Product Management and was responsible for the consumer-facing experience across growth, discovery, commerce, and retention.
"Aaron's deep experience in product management and strategic leadership, coupled with his passion for leveraging technology to enhance educational opportunities, makes him the perfect fit for 2U," said Paucek. "We look forward to the innovation and growth that Aaron will undoubtedly bring to 2U in service to learners, universities, and companies around the world.”
Before joining Coursera, McCullough headed Global Product Management at Uber Transit, where he successfully scaled the product management team, led the strategic acquisition and integration of Routematch, and oversaw the launch of new products. McCullough's earlier career includes product management leadership roles at Walmart, Fanatics, Google, and One Kings Lane, where he leveraged his expertise in data and technology to scale operations and elevate the customer experience.
"Aaron brings a strong vision and a results-driven approach that will be instrumental in fulfilling 2U's mission to eliminate the back row in education and deliver world-class learning outcomes at scale," continued Paucek. "We're confident that his leadership will help unlock value for learners and partners through platform innovation and content velocity as we leverage edX to deliver unique, industry-leading products that will reshape the future of education and cement 2U as the preeminent digital education company.”
"What 2U has accomplished over the past decade is remarkable—delivering high-quality education at scale without compromising excellence. This is embodied in the edX platform, which is shaping the future of marketplace capabilities, offering a pathway from free learning to degree attainment to anyone, anywhere,” said McCullough. “This vision goes beyond simply broadening education accessibility—it's about facilitating economic mobility for all, a cause that deeply aligns with my values. I believe that 2U, with its robust portfolio of products and services, is uniquely positioned to drive significant change at a global scale, and I’m thrilled to be a part of that mission.”
McCullough holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a concentration in Financial Analysis & Valuation from the University of Southern California.
As an executive officer of the company, Mr. McCullough is eligible to participate in the company’s executive officer compensation program. As part of that program, the Compensation Committee of the Board of Directors of the company approved inducement awards to Mr. McCullough under Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)(4) consisting of 215,054 restricted stock units (“RSUs”). One-third of the RSUs will vest on December 31, 2023, and the remaining two thirds will vest in equal quarterly installments over the following two years, subject to McCullough’s continued employment on each vesting date.
About 2U (Nasdaq: TWOU)
2U is a global leader in online education. Guided by its founding mission to eliminate the back row in higher education, 2U has spent 15 years advancing the technology and innovation to deliver world-class learning outcomes at scale. Through its global online learning platform edX, 2U connects more than 76 million people with thousands of affordable, career-relevant learning opportunities in partnership with over 250 of the world’s leading universities, institutions, and industry experts. From free courses to full degrees, 2U is creating a better future for all through the power of high-quality online education. Learn more at 2U.com.
Cautionary Language Concerning Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 concerning the company and other matters. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by the words "may," "might," "will," "could," "would," "should," "expect," "intend," "plan," "objective," "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "predict," "project," "potential," "continue" and "ongoing," or the negative of these terms, or other comparable terminology intended to identify statements about the future. The company has based these forward-looking statements largely on its current expectations about future events and short term and long-term business operations and objectives as of the date of this press release. We undertake no obligation to update these statements as a result of new information or future events. In light of these uncertainties and assumptions, the forward-looking events and circumstances discussed in this press release may not occur and actual events could differ materially and adversely from those anticipated.
Media Contact:
Kate Welk
media@2u.com
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