SALT LAKE CITY, Jan. 14, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — WGU Labs, the research, development, and investment arm of Western Governors University, has announced an investment and partnership with Genius Academy, an EdTech pioneer known for its immersive, AI-powered mental health education simulations. This collaboration aims to bridge the critical gap between theoretical education and practical, real-world application, empowering students and institutions with affordable, accessible, and high-quality mental health training.
WGU Labs will provide strategic consulting to enhance Genius Academy’s sales, marketing, and digital presence, strengthening its market position and expanding outreach to educators and practitioners through the spring of 2025.
“With the global mental health crisis escalating, traditional education methods like textbooks and tests fall short of preparing students for the complexities of real-world care,” said K. Rocco Shields, CEO and founder of Genius Academy. “At Genius Academy, we’ve pioneered groundbreaking tools that harness the power of experience to measure and validate critical skills like empathy and cultural competency — skills that have never been quantifiable until now. Our collaboration with WGU Labs accelerates our ability to revolutionize mental health education, empowering students to rise to the challenges of their careers and make a difference in countless lives.”
This investment will enable Genius Academy to accelerate its growth goals by expanding its curriculum library, scaling its customer base by 400%, and reaching cash flow positivity within a year. With a goal to educate one million learners, Genius Academy estimates a potential impact on one billion lives, fostering a new standard of exceptional care in mental health services.
“By investing in Genius Academy, we are proud to be part of a larger movement to transform education into real-world readiness and impact, which is the core of WGU’s competency-based education model,” said Jason Levin, executive director of WGU Labs. “Genius Academy closes the divide between theory and real-world application with competency-based, impactful AI-powered simulations. This collaboration is about more than equitable and accessible education; it’s about empowering students to confidently step into critical roles where they can transform lives and strengthen the mental health systems our society urgently needs.”
With nearly one in eight people worldwide affected by a mental health disorder and 77% of U.S. counties facing a shortage of mental health professionals, the need for innovative solutions to train and equip future practitioners is undeniable. A 2023 survey by the Mary Christie Institute revealed that nearly four in ten recent graduates feel unprepared to handle the emotional and behavioral challenges of transitioning to clinical application.
Genius Academy addresses this pressing need with immersive, media-rich simulations akin to flight simulators that mirror real-world clinical scenarios. With technology that combines cinematic storytelling and cutting-edge AI assessments to build durable skills like cognitive empathy and sharpen communication, Genius Academy prepares students to handle complex situations with confidence. Already reaching thousands of aspiring professionals across 50 institutions, Genius Academy empowers educators to prepare students to tackle the global mental health crisis.
Genius Academy represents the 30th investment for the Accelerator at WGU Labs since its inception in 2019. To learn more about the Accelerator and its portfolio, visit wgulabs.org/accelerator/.
About Genius Academy
Genius Academy is an EdTech leader that merges AI, cinematic storytelling, and experiential learning to revolutionize mental health education. The Immersive Practicum Lab, the Academy’s flagship program, provides students with practical, real-time feedback in a virtual environment, preparing them to transition seamlessly from learning to professional practice. For more information, visit www.experiencegeniusacademy.com
About WGU Labs
WGU Labs is the nonprofit EdTech consulting, incubation, research, and design arm of Western Governors University, where our mission is to identify and support scalable solutions that address the biggest challenges in education today.
The Accelerator at WGU Labs provides research, market development, and product enhancement services to early-stage education businesses. Through these services, as well as financial investments, the Accelerator advances the scale and impact of education companies that share its mission to increase student access, lower student costs, and improve student outcomes. Learn more at wgulabs.org or follow us on LinkedIn.