Dublin-headquartered edtech company Prodigy Learning has opened its US centre of operations in New York City. The company recently entered the US market with the launch of its ‘Coding in Minecraft’ computer science programme.

Prodigy was established in 2000 and subsequently expanded to the UK, Australia and now the US.

The business provides digital skills certifications and learning solutions for Adobe, Autodesk, Microsoft and other technologies. Prodigy partners with Certiport to accredit is exams and programs, including Coding in Minecraft.

Earlier this year, Certiport was announced as the distributor of Prodigy’s Coding in Minecraft, initially in the US and then through the 12,000 Certiport authorised testing centres worldwide.

Coding in Minecraft is a computer science curriculum, skills assessment and credentialing programme delivered through Minecraft: Education Edition, with assessments hosted on Microsoft’s Azure cloud computing platform.

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Through game-based learning, children from ages nine to 16 are introduced to coding through a collaborative and creative environment.

Coding in Minecraft has been piloted among 114 schools, 200 teachers and 4,000 students in the UK and US over the past 12 months.

Andrew Flood, CEO of Prodigy Learning, said that his company was delight to have boots on the ground in the US. “The United States education market is a massive opportunity for us. The sheer scale of the US school-going population … and the growing demand for digital skills, including coding, presents a deep market for our education products,” Flood added.

“Our future as an Irish technology firm is built around growing our international customer base. Over 70% of our revenue is export-driven, with the UK our largest market.

“This international expansion allows us to further diversify our business in the face of significant market uncertainties closer to home, principally surrounding Brexit.”

The most recent filed accounts for Prodigy Learning are for 2017, when the company recorded a profit of €544,000, from which owners Andrew Flood and Craig Bewley paid themselves a dividend of €400,000.

The company had year-end cash of €359,000, while its debtor book value almost doubled to €1m. Net worth at end 2017 was €1.6m, directors’ emoluments for Flood and Bewley came to €179,000 and the business employed 14 staff.

Prodigy’s opening of its US headquarters was announced as part of an Irish trade mission to the US led by business minister Heather Humphreys and Enterprise Ireland.

Photo: Andrew Flood and business minister Heather Humphreys