Name: Edie Feinstein
Hometown: New York, NY
University: Cornell University ’12
City: New Orleans, LA
What initially attracted you to Venture for America?
Having spent the majority of the fall semester drowning in on-campus recruiting sessions for banks and consulting firms, attending the VFA info session was a breath of fresh air and an absolute aha moment for me. I was inspired by Andrews vision and knew instantly that it was a revolution I needed to be a part of. Entrepreneurship had always interested me but the inherent risk involved in working at a start up was definitely a concern. The safety net that VFA provides, along with the awesome summer training camp and the incredible network of entrepreneurs and fellows, simply couldnt be beat.
What is the best part of being a VFA Fellow?
The VFA fellows in New Orleans and across the country have become a second family to me and they have provided a vital support system, especially during the craziness of moving to a new city and starting my first full time job. Also, the VFA network provides access to some of the top movers and shakers in the industry, and having access to them as mentors and sounding boards has already proven invaluable as I navigate my first year in startup land.
What does Kickboard do?
Kickboard is a school analytics platform that goes beyond the gradebook by enabling teachers to collect, analyze and share comprehensive profiles of student performance. We work with high-achieving results-driven K-12 schools to bring consistency, alignment, and visibility to their classrooms through web-based productivity and collaboration software.
What do you do on a typical day at work?
At Kickboard I am a School Community Manager on the Customer Success team, where our goal is to provide an amazing experience to customers during all of their interactions with Kickboard. Day to day I work directly with school administrators and teachers to troubleshoot their technical questions, record feature suggestions, and help come up with creative configurations to match their individual needs. I monitor and gauge customer satisfaction, analyze and track usage of current Kickboard users, assist in developing and revising customer service tools, and provide input to help continuously improve technical and customer support processes.
What’s your favorite thing about New Orleans?:
Beignets, crawfish, jazz fest, where do I even begin?! Living in New Orleans provides the most incredible mix of work and play, and the tight knit entrepreneurial community has welcomed the VFA fellows with open arms. Come down and visit us and laissez les bon temps rouler!
What do you hope to accomplish in your time with VFA?
Id like to make a meaningful dent in tackling some of New Orleans current issues, whether that is improving the public transportation system or increasing the availability of recycling for apartment complexes. I would also like to learn more about graphic design and basic programming, so that I can maximize the value I can add to Kickboard and whatever may be coming up next.
