Daniel J. Devine is an experienced entrepreneur committed to “helping people help themselves” through many corporate, philanthropic, and educational ventures. Mr. Devine founded and led Compass Knowledge Group for 20 years creating the marketplace leader for serving the distance learning needs of top higher education institutions. The Compass Team was the visionary behind the business model of partnering with higher education institutions delivering distance learning degrees from the bachelor’s to the doctorate level. In 2010, Mr. Devine merged Compass Knowledge Group with Embanet, another leader in serving the not-for-profit online higher education market. The continued success of the combined company, solidifying its position as the industry leader, led to the sale of the company to Pearson in 2012. The sale was the largest transaction to date of an educational services company, and at the time of the sale employed 640, was partnered with 42 higher education institutions, and served over 16,000 distance-learning students. In addition to numerous business interests, Mr. Devine dedicates time to many nonprofit organizations. For over a decade, Mr. Devine has served as Chairman of Lighthouse Works which is a social enterprise that employs and supports job growth for the visually impaired. Lighthouse Works has over 600 employees and is growing rapidly. He is also the founder of MoveUp which provides important, life-changing educational lessons to those in need in the Dominican Republic using mobile technologies. He is a past board member and advisor to Esperanza International, a micro-finance organization offering holistic, Christ-centered financial services that equip families in the Dominican Republic to flourish and free themselves from poverty. Mr. Devine serves on the board of Hope Africa Collective, located in Cape Flats, South Africa. Other nonprofits benefitting from his advising include Man in the Mirror, Choices Women’s Clinic, and Mission Increase. Mr. Devine is a graduate of the University of Florida with a bachelor’s in electrical engineering, completed Stanford University’s Executive Program for Growing Companies, and is a graduate of the three-year Harvard Business School’s Owner/President Management Program. Additionally, he was named the Ernst & Young Florida “Entrepreneur of The Year” in the technology category.
