TORONTO, June 25, 2026 /CNW/ – Employment Hero, the global AI-powered employment platform, today announced the appointment of Chris Pinkerton as Managing Director, Canada.

In this role, Pinkerton will lead Employment Hero’s Canadian business, overseeing growth strategy, market expansion, and the company’s efforts to help Canadian small and medium-sized businesses simplify employment, payroll, HR, and workforce management through its AI-powered Employment Operating System.

Pinkerton brings more than two decades of experience helping technology companies scale, enter new markets, and accelerate growth. Most recently, he served as Chief Growth Officer at Flybits, where he led global expansion and go-to-market strategy across the Americas, EMEA, and APAC.

Prior to Flybits, he held senior leadership roles at Clearco and GetintheLoop, helping build high-growth technology businesses and strategic partnerships. He currently serves as Chair of Accelerate Okanagan, one of Canada’s leading technology accelerators.

“Canadian businesses are being asked to do more with less while navigating economic uncertainty, changing workforce expectations and increasing operational complexity. The opportunity isn’t just to keep up with change – it’s to build businesses that are more productive, resilient and ready for growth,” said Chris Pinkerton, Managing Director, Employment Hero Canada. “Employment Hero is helping employers simplify the way they hire, manage and pay their people, giving them more time to focus on what matters most. I’m excited to help more Canadian businesses unlock that potential and grow with confidence.”

Pinkerton’s appointment comes as Employment Hero continues to expand its presence in Canada, helping businesses streamline employment, payroll, HR, and workforce management through its AI-powered Employment Operating System.

Media Contact
Sean Benmor
NATIONAL Public Relations
sbenmor@national.ca
416-676-6482

Megan Felsing
Communications Lead, Employment Hero
megan.felsing@employmenthero.com
587-575-5273

About Employment Hero

Employment Hero is the global authority on employment, offering a world-leading Employment Operating System (eOS) that simplifies and optimizes every stage of the employment process. Its award-winning platform combines HR, payroll, recruitment, and employee engagement tools with the groundbreaking employment superapp, EH Work, which integrates career management and financial wellbeing. Serving over 350,000 businesses and managing more than 2.5 million employees worldwide, Employment Hero reduces administrative burdens by up to 80%, enabling organizations to focus on their goals and create more productive, engaged teams. By revolutionising the employment marketplace, Employment Hero is making employment easier, more valuable and rewarding for everyone.

SOURCE Employment Hero

Renewed agreement strengthens one of the state’s largest transfer pipelines for North Texas students

SAN DIEGO and DALLAS, June 25, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — National University (NU), a nonprofit, Veteran-founded university focused on flexible degree pathways for learners balancing work, life, and education, announced the renewal and expansion of its transfer partnership with Dallas College, one of the largest community college systems in Texas, strengthening a key pathway for students across North Texas to continue their education and earn a bachelor’s degree.

Serving more than 100,000 students annually across seven campuses, Dallas College plays a critical role in preparing students for the next step in their academic journey and sends more than 12,000 learners each year to four-year institutions. This renewed agreement builds on that momentum by creating a more direct and reliable path from associate to bachelor’s degree.

Under the partnership, eligible Dallas College students who complete an associate degree or core transfer curriculum will receive guaranteed admission to National University, the ability to transfer up to 60 credits, a clear academic pathway toward completing their bachelor’s degree, and eligibility for up to a 25% tuition reduction.

“This partnership with Dallas College is about making it simpler for students – especially working students – to keep moving forward,” said Dr. Mark D. Milliron, president and CEO of National University. “By better aligning coursework and recognizing prior learning, we’re helping create a transfer experience that builds on the progress students have already made.”

Dallas College, which has served more than 3 million learners since its founding, represents one of the largest entry points into higher education in the region and a key driver of economic mobility across North Texas. The agreement is designed to remove some of the most common barriers students face when transferring, including credit loss and unclear degree requirements.

In addition, the partnership includes scholarships for eligible students, along with pre-admission support and access to National University resources while still enrolled at Dallas College, creating a more connected and guided transfer experience from day one.

“At Dallas College, we’re committed to clear, affordable pathways that help students reach their goals,” said Dr. Shawnda Floyd, provost at Dallas College. “This expanded partnership with National University removes transfer barriers, protects students’ hard-earned credits and connects them to flexible bachelor’s programs, creating stronger opportunities for educational advancement and economic mobility across North Texas.”

The renewal also reflects National University’s broader effort to expand community college partnerships across Texas, aligning with regional workforce needs and increasing access to flexible, career-focused degree programs for working learners.

For more information about transfer opportunities at National University, visit nu.edu/transfer

About National University
National University, a Veteran-founded nonprofit, has been dedicated to meeting the needs of nontraditional, working, and military students by providing accessible, affordable higher education opportunities since 1971. As San Diego’s largest private nonprofit university, NU offers over 150 online and on-campus programs with flexible four-week and eight-week classes and one-to-one graduate education models designed to help students reach their goals while balancing busy lives. Since its founding, the NU community has grown to 130,000 learners served per year—50,000 degree-seeking students and 80,000 workforce and professional development students—and 255,000 alumni around the globe, many of whom serve in helping industries such as business, education, health care, cybersecurity, and law and criminal justice. To learn more about National University’s new possibilities in education including next-generation education, value-rich education, and whole human education, visit NU.edu.

About Dallas College   
Celebrating its 60th anniversary in 2025, Dallas College consists of seven campuses — Brookhaven, Cedar Valley, Eastfield, El Centro, Mountain View, North Lake and Richland — plus a dozen centers located throughout Dallas County. As one of the largest community colleges in the U.S., Dallas College offers online and in-person learning, serving more than 127,000 credit, workforce and continuing education students annually. Students benefit from partnerships with local school districts, four-year universities, industry and community leaders. Dallas College offers associate degrees and career/technical certificate programs in more than 100 areas of study, as well as bachelor’s degrees in education, nursing, software development and management. As the largest provider of dual credit in Texas, Dallas College serves 30,000 high school students through 63 dual credit programs.

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SOURCE National University

New study examines early indicators that can help educators better support students before achievement disparities become harder to address

BOSTON, June 25, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Starting Kindergarten is a major milestone on a student’s academic path, but not all students have an equal starting point. Those early differences can have critical implications for whether students ultimately reach proficiency by third grade — a critical academic benchmark closely tied to long-term educational success.

NWEA, a K-12 assessment and research organization, released a new study today examining Kindergarten MAP Growth test scores from more than 400,000 U.S. students and noted patterns that can predict academic success or identify students at risk of falling further behind. This early identification is key for educators, enabling them to intervene and influence learning trajectories before the next critical milestone: third grade. A body of research shows that students who are not proficient in reading and math by the end of third grade are at higher risk of dropping out of high school or struggling academically throughout their education journey.

The new study found:

Students’ reading and math skills at kindergarten entry are strongly predictive of whether they reach proficiency by 3rd grade.For students who enter kindergarten scoring in the bottom 20%, the probability of reaching proficiency by 3rd grade is low, just over 1 in 10.For struggling students, the door to proficiency closes quickly. Just 1 in 50 students scoring in the bottom 20% in the spring of 1st grade reached proficiency by the end of 3rd grade.

Unfortunately, many states don’t have systems in place to identify students who may be off track in both math and reading before third grade, missing that critical window where trajectories can be addressed for those at risk.

“What our data highlighted is that achievement at Kindergarten entry provides a meaningful signal about later academic outcomes,” said Dr. Megan Kuhfeld, Director of Growth Modeling and Data Analytics at NWEA. “But I want to caution that these results should not be interpreted as evidence that students’ academic futures are predetermined. Adjusting trajectories is possible if early intervention is provided.”

That early identification is key as the door to proficiency quickly closes. For example, the study found that students in the bottom 20% at the beginning of Kindergarten, 1 in 10 reached proficiency in math, and 1 in 7 reached proficiency in reading by the end of third grade. For those students who were in the bottom 20% at the start of first grade, their chances of reaching proficiency dropped to about 1 in 20 for math and 1 in 17 for reading. By the end of first grade, those odds are even lower, to roughly 1 in 50 students reaching that third-grade milestone.

“While this brief looks at understanding who is at risk, we must also look at what it takes to get students back on track,” said Dr. Karyn Lewis, VP of Research and Policy Partnerships at NWEA. “Understanding the ‘what’ is key in helping educators and policymakers on how to design policies and supports that help more students reach those important academic milestones.”

The report is the first in a new NWEA research series examining pathways to third-grade proficiency and the role early intervention can play in helping students stay on track academically.

Read more at: https://www.nwea.org/research/publication/behind-at-the-starting-line-what-kindergarten-test-scores-tell-us-about-reaching-proficiency-in-3rd-grade/

About NWEA

NWEA®, a division of HMH, supports educators worldwide by providing responsive, evidence-based assessment solutions that illuminate learning needs and fuel student growth. For more than 40 years, NWEA has developed innovative pre-K–12 assessments, including its flagship assessment – MAP Growth, and professional learning that helps educators strengthen their practice and improve student outcomes. As part of its commitment to bring valuable insights to the education community, NWEA engages in research that examines issues that shed light on inequities and other barriers to academic opportunities. Visit NWEA.org to find out how NWEA partners to help all kids learn.

Contact: Simona Beattie, Communications Director, simona.beattie@nwea.org or 971.361.9526

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SOURCE NWEA