Freedom Learning Group (FLG), an educational content and services provider powered by a global remote workforce of U.S. military spouses, announced the hiring and appointment of Elizabeth O'Brien as the company's new Chief Executive Officer and Board member, effective April 1st, 2020.
The company's former CEO and Co-Founder Nathan Ecelbarger will continue responsibilities as the interim CFO/COO and establish FLG's Board of Directors as Chairman, joined by military spouse and Co-Founder Stacey Ecelbarger. Both will remain actively involved in the growth and strategic direction of the company, committed to expanding and strengthening FLG's existing partnerships and client relationships.
"Stacey and I wanted to disrupt the traditional 'vendor' model in the education industry, by employing displaced practitioners and professionals in the U.S. military spouse community to create the highest quality learning experiences," said Nathan Ecelbarger. "Competency and skills-based education and training is a rapidly growing need, and there is no better professional talent pool more qualified to create that training than our global network of military spouse instructional designers. There is also no one more eminently qualified to lead that global workforce and navigate FLG's next stage of strategic growth than Elizabeth O'Brien."
"We're thrilled to have her join the FLG team," added Stacey. "FLG isn't your typical organizational culture - our clients and teammates have become lifelong friends and family, and it's that sense of trust, loyalty, and commitment within our community that continues to fuel FLG's growth. Elizabeth brings the perfect balance of strategic vision, tactical business prowess, and heart for our military spouse community to continue growing the FLG family."
The last six years O'Brien has served in significant leadership roles as a Senior Director of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation's Hiring Our Heroes program, and as Chairwoman for the U.S. Small Business Administration's Advisory Committee on Veterans Business Affairs, the first military spouse to be appointed to that role.
"Freedom Learning Group's scalable business model is positioned to solve the demands of an evolving education and workforce training market, as the country prioritizes skills-based learning education models and the creation of alternate paths into the workforce," said O'Brien. "Nathan and Stacey established an incredible team, leading the company through year-over-year profitability, generating $6M in revenue since 2017, with zero debt and no outside investment. FLG is poised for explosive growth, launching from a firm and healthy foundation.
It is an honor to become CEO of this innovative company, powered by a global instructional design team of military spouses and veterans working to position FLG as a go-to provider in educational content development. I will immediately begin work on strengthening our public and private partnerships, developing strategic alliances, and furthering FLG's social mission to our military spouse community."
As Senior Director at HOH, O'Brien evolved the military spouse program's event-centric focus to become a national comprehensive resource at the forefront of military spouse workforce development for over one million military spouses. In addition to overseeing the program's research and strategic operations, she led the growth of the Military Spouse Employment Advisory Council (MSEAC), a coalition she grew in five years comprised of more than 35 companies with a combined market value of over three trillion dollars to include Amazon, Booz Allen Hamilton, Google, Microsoft, and Salesforce. The MSEAC focused on creating innovative workforce development strategies through upskilling and reskilling a chronically unemployed and underemployed workforce. O'Brien has worked closely with current and past administrations to advance the narrative around military spouse workforce development solutions; most recently co-chairing the release of a Collective Effort: Workforce Development Solutions for the 21st Century Military Spouse with Mrs. Karen Pence, Second Lady of the United States.
Prior to joining the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, O'Brien spent over a decade coaching college women's basketball at the United States Military Academy at West Point, Hofstra University and The University of Hawaii.
About Freedom Learning Group
FreedomLearningGroup, LLC has created thousands of remote, flexible contract opportunities for U.S. Military Spouses and Veterans since 2017, as a full-service educational content and courseware provider supporting publishers, colleges and universities, and learning companies. They specialize in content development and review, ADA/Section 508 accessibility compliance, and high-quality education and training solutions. Connect with FLG through their website at www.freedomlearninggroup.com and on social media through Facebook and LinkedIn.
