Mike Hale, Ph.D. & Ryan Petersen

Mike Hale, Ph.D., is the VP of education for North America for VitalSource. Mike has more than 25 years in the field of education. He has spent the last 13 with VitalSource, helping institutions improve outcomes and affordably create and deliver learning solutions. He is currently responsible for leading VitalSource’s North American higher education initiatives. Prior to joining VitalSource, Mike spent 14 years working to improve K-12 education as a college professor, high school teacher, and director of a successful charter school. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy from Auburn University and a Master’s and Doctorate in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Ryan Petersen is the VP of general administration for Verba Software, a VitalSource company. One of the founders of Verba, Ryan worked with classmates on what began as a student government project to help Harvard students get the best value in course materials. Since graduation, Ryan has helped Verba grow into one of the leading innovators in the college store industry, serving over 300 college stores with price-transparent shopping interfaces, faculty course discovery tools, and sophisticated marketplace analytics. Verba products are helping independent college stores stay relevant and competitive in an increasingly challenging environment. Ryan is a graduate of Harvard University with a concentration in History.