GHP Search Partners with Ascend Learning on Board Member Appointments

September 3, 2026 – GHP Search, formerly known as Greenwich Harbor Partners, was recently tapped by Ascend Learning to assist in growing both the Ascend Learning board of directors and the Ascend Charter Schools board of trustees. New members of the Ascend Learning board identified by GHP include Robert Childs, retired EVP, strategic initiatives at American Express and Amy Mbagwu-Bagolini, a founding leader of Amazon’s Streaming TV advertising business. Richard Young Jr, director, investor access origination at Bernstein was identified by GHP Search to join the Ascend Charter Schools board.

“I’m pleased to share that GHP Search has partnered with Ascend Learning to strengthen both the Ascend Learning board of directors and the Ascend Charter Schools board of trustees,” Ted Pryor, principal at GHP Search Partners said in a LinkedIn post. “Brooklyn schools and is reimagining how young people are prepared for college, careers, and lives of boundless choice. Congratulations to Robert, Amy, Richard, and the entire Ascend community. Carrie Pryor and I are proud to have contributed to this important work.”

Mr. Childs is an accomplished human resources and organizational effectiveness leader with a career spanning over 40 years with American Express. Most recently EVP, strategic initiatives, he has led initiatives at the intersection of sales, human resources, and operations where he focused on talent strategy, leadership development, organizational transformation, and culture.

Ms. Mbagwu-Bagolini is a revenue and growth executive with 20+ years building and scaling businesses across streaming TV, retail media, and advertising-supported platforms. Her experience spans revenue leadership, strategy, go-to-market, and commercialization across leadership roles at Amazon, Taboola, Time Inc. (now People Inc.), and AOL.

Mr. Young is a seasoned financial services executive with extensive experience in investor relations, investment banking, and corporate finance. He currently leads Investor Access Origination for the Industrials and Energy franchises at Bernstein. Previously, Mr. Young held senior investor relations leadership roles at State Street Corporation and Citigroup. He began his career in investment banking at Citigroup, and he also practiced law at Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft.

Ascend Learning is a Burlington, MA-based healthcare and learning technology company that provides educational content, software, assessments, analytics, simulations, certification preparation, and workforce development tools.

Serving a Wide Range of Clients

GHP Search’s principals, Carrie and Ted Pryor, have worked in the industry as general managers and investors and have direct professional experience with the types of issues that face their clients. The firm’s client roster includes IBM Cloud Services, Media General, Marlin Equity Partners, DIRECTV, SpinMedia, ReelzChannel TV, and Keurig Green Mountain, among others.

Ms. Pryor has over 20 years of senior executive search experience. She has recruited board directors, CEOs and their direct reports, as well as partners for private equity firms. In addition to holding a board seat with the New York Pops, she serves as an advisory board member for Constellation Ventures. A veteran of the internet space since the early ’90s, she has deep experience in digital media, entertainment, and private equity.

Private Equity Recruiting – Return on Investment: Creating Value with Talent

Talent has become a defining driver of performance in private equity, shaping how firms manage risk, execute strategy, and deliver sustained returns. As deal cycles tighten and value creation depends increasingly on operational excellence, leadership quality and organizational design are no longer secondary considerations — they are central to how firms source, underwrite, and scale investments. From talent diligence and CEO succession to team integration and leadership development, human capital decisions now influence outcomes across the entire investment lifecycle.

Hunt Scanlon Media will convene more than 250 private equity operating partners, chief talent officers, and executive recruiters at the Hilton in Chicago on September 29, 2026. The program will explore how firms are elevating human capital into a core driver of investment outcomes—redefining how leadership is assessed, built, and deployed across the portfolio to support growth, execution, and long-term value creation.

To register for Hunt Scanlon Media’s upcoming conference please click here!

Mr. Pryor focuses on senior-level assignments for general management, sales, marketing, and digital transformation. He specializes in recruiting executives using his four years as CFO and CEO of a venture-backed start-up, 10 years at General Electric Capital, and 20 years in international finance and investment banking. Mr. Pryor has served on public, private, and non-profit boards, and chaired the audit committee for the NBA’s Boston Celtics. In executive recruiting, he has focused on business services, digital marketing, e-commerce, ad sales, place-based advertising, communications, and customer service for growth companies and large national brands.

GHP Search also recently assisted is the recruitment of three new board members for IDEA Public Schools. New members identified by GHP include Najuma Atkinson, founder of The Joyful Harvest Project, Stacy Eng, principal at HR AI Strategy, and Ryan Green, founder and principal of Greenpoint Advisory.

Since 2000, IDEA Public Schools has grown from a small school with 150 students to a network of tuition-free, pre-K-12 public charter schools in the U.S. The network serves over 80,000 college-bound students in 143 schools across Texas and its affiliates. IDEA has been recognized as a “Great Place to Work” and received national rankings on The Washington Post and U.S. News & World Report’s Top High Schools lists.

Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief and Dale M. Zupsansky, Executive Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media

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