
Congratulations to the Class of 2025!
As graduation ceremonies wrap up across the country, we’re thrilled to celebrate the Class of 2025. Whether you’re receiving a high school diploma, college degree, or professional certification, this milestone represents years of hard work and dedication. Congratulations on this incredible achievement!
A Special Thank You to Our Education Community
We especially want to recognize the educators, administrators, and education business leaders who made these successes possible. Your commitment to student achievement and innovation in learning has shaped this generation of graduates. From teachers and professors to EdTech entrepreneurs and institutional leaders, thank you for your unwavering dedication to educational excellence.
The education sector continues to evolve, creating new opportunities for learning and growth. Your work doesn’t just educate students; it builds the foundation for our future workforce and leaders, and changes lives for the better.
Our Commitment to Education
At Jackim Woods & Co., we’re proud to have specialized in the education sector for over 15 years. We understand the unique challenges and opportunities facing educational institutions and education-focused businesses today. Whether you’re exploring strategic partnerships, planning for growth, or considering transition opportunities, our team brings deep sector expertise to support your goals.
To the Class of 2025: Congratulations and best wishes for your bright futures ahead!
To our education clients and contacts: thank you for making a difference every day.
Rich Jackim and Jackim Woods & Co.
Rich Jackim is an education industry investment banker, education industry entrepreneur, and former mergers and acquisitions attorney.
For the last 25 years, Rich has been providing boutique investment banking services to middle-market companies in the education sector.
Rich also founded a successful training and certification company called the Exit Planning Institute, which he sold to a private equity group in 2012. Rich created the Certified Exit Planning Advisor (CEPA) designation and the executive MBA-style CEPA training program.
Rich is also the author of the critically acclaimed book, The $10 Trillion Dollar Opportunity: Designing Successful Exit Strategies for Middle Market Businesses, as well as dozens of articles on mergers and acquisitions, business valuation, and exit planning.
Jackim Woods & Co offers skilled mergers and acquisitions advisory services to privately owned schools, colleges, and EdTech companies in both sell-side and buy-side transactions. Jackim Woods & Co has arranged over 100 successful transactions, ranging from less than one million to more than eighty million dollars in value.
If you own an education-related business and are interested in exploring your options, I would welcome an opportunity to speak with you. Feel free to contact me at 224-513-5142 or rjackim@jackimwoods.com.
Read MoreEducation Brands Acquires Diamond Mind
Education Brands, a leading software provider to the education industry and a portfolio company of Genstar Capital, has acquired Diamond Mind, the leader in campus-wide payment solutions for independent schools.
Founded in 2003, Diamond Mind is the nation’s leading provider of payment processing software and services for independent K-12 schools, serving over 1,200 schools, including approximately half of the largest 50 private K-12 schools in the country. The company’s suite of products allows school business officers to consolidate, streamline, and reconcile payments across the campus to reduce costs, minimize risk, and improve the payment experience for parents. Diamond Mind’s offerings include solutions for online tuition, online giving, admissions, bookstore, summer programs, and purchase cards.
Diamond Mind was sold by Serent Capital which invested in Diamond Mind in 2014 after several years of researching and looking at opportunities in the education and payment processing markets. Over the last two years, Diamond Mind has successfully built-out its software portfolio, enhanced its customer acquisition engine, and grown its senior executive team. As a result, Diamond Mind has increased revenue nearly 60%, while increasing its client base by over 400 schools since Serent Capital’s 2014 investment.
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