# Matthew Gross

> Matthew Gross is the co-founder and former CEO of Newsela and the co-founder and CEO of Grouper Education. A former South Bronx music teacher and Regents Research Fund executive, he helped launch Newsela in 2013 with news adapted to five reading levels. He handed the CEO role to Pep Carrera in January 2023 and later launched Grouper to help educators form student groups. He joined the board of New Classrooms in 2024.

- **Role:** Co-founder & CEO at Grouper Education
- **Organizations:** Newsela, Grouper Education, New Classrooms, Regents Research Fund, Teach For America, PENCIL, Submedia
- **Education:** B.A., Columbia University
- **Known for:** Co-founded Newsela, launched in 2013 with content at five reading levels., Led Newsela to more than 500 employees and 40 million registered teachers and students by the 2023 CEO transition., Oversaw Newsela’s $100 million Series D in 2021.

## Career timeline

- **1994** — Joined Teach For America; began his teaching career in music at C.S. 50 in the South Bronx.
- **1999** — Co-founded subway advertising company Submedia with Joshua Spodek.
- **Before 2013** — Worked at PENCIL and served as executive director of the Regents Research Fund, helping develop EngageNY.
- **2013** — Launched Newsela with Dan Cogan-Drew.
- **2014** — Newsela announced a $4.1 million Series A led by Owl Ventures.
- **2021** — Led Newsela during its $100 million Series D financing.
- **2023** — Handed the CEO role to Pep Carrera, effective January 23, and became executive chairman.
- **2024** — Launched Grouper; joined the New Classrooms board.
- **2025** — Crunchbase lists Newsela founder and director, with the director role starting in January.

## Achievements

- Co-founded Newsela, launched in 2013 with content at five reading levels.
- Led Newsela to more than 500 employees and 40 million registered teachers and students by the 2023 CEO transition.
- Oversaw Newsela’s $100 million Series D in 2021.
- Co-led the development of EngageNY while at the Regents Research Fund.
- Co-founded Grouper Education to help teachers create and manage student groups.

## Latest updates

- **2024-07** — Published his launch philosophy for Grouper, emphasizing teacher time and practical usefulness.
- **2024-08** — Published the LinkedIn article “Small-group learning: science or nonsense?” on August 20.
- **2024-09** — New Classrooms announced that Gross had joined its board of directors.
- **2025-01** — Crunchbase lists Gross’s Newsela role as founder and director from January 2025.

## Links

- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthew-gross-0a317612/
- Twitter/X: https://x.com/matthew_gross

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/matthew-gross
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-15