From back then into the future

It all started with a problem: schools had not done their homework when it came to digitalisation.

How school communication became smart

In 2015, David Schalkhammer, Julian Breitenecker and Stefan Siegl had a hard time with notebooks. Lost, illegible, incomplete. Or eaten by the dog. At the same time, they realised that just about every area of life is learning with digitality – except their children’s schools. After tinkering with the first version of SchoolFox for a few months, the textbook-style market launch took place in 2016. The motto was to move from the notification booklet to the “Notification Bar”. Around 15 pioneering teachers agreed to use the new SchoolFox app in their classes. These first users were a key reason for the successful further development of the app.

Teachers and parents liked the app so much that it spread by word of mouth alone – including in Germany. The first trade fair appearance in Germany followed in 2017. After a lot of positive and constructive feedback from teachers, another area with a lot of digitalisation potential was discovered: kindergartens and daycare centres. Until then, the company had only been known as SchoolFox – with “KidsFox” for daycare centres, it needed a presence with a neutral name: That was the birth of FoxEducation.

Digital communication was sometimes put on the back burner by educational institutions. The pandemic has shortened the decision-making processes of school authorities, allowing projects and tools to be implemented and used quickly, and SchoolFox has enabled many schools in Austria and Germany to continue homeschooling. We are proud to be part of the critical infrastructure.

At the end of 2020, FoxEducation was finally ready to launch KidsFox on the market, helping not only schools but also kindergartens and daycare centres to digitalise everyday teaching.

2021 marks an important milestone for FoxEducation. A lot of progress in the apps, many new Foxies, but above all one thing – the collaboration with GoStudent! Both companies are pursuing the goal of providing children with a better education – but are starting from different points and complement each other. It was therefore decided to go down the path of the No. 1 global school together. As a result, Philipp Fendt joined the management team and is now (2023) Co-CEO and Managing Director.

Since 2022, FoxEducation has been on an expansion course for schools and daycare centres throughout the German-speaking world. With over 8,000 educational institutions now using FoxApps, it is also very successful.

2023 is all about innovation – exciting projects are on the horizon, such as the introduction of KidsFox and SchoolFox for parents’ associations. We are convinced that these will also help to make everyday life easier for teachers, parents and everyone involved. We have also improved our support process in order to provide better assistance.

After a successful journey to becoming an established company, 2024 brings an exciting new chapter for the Foxies: FoxEducation joins the Sdui Group, one of the largest European providers of digital solutions in the education sector.

Together with FoxEducation and several other subsidiaries the Sdui Group supports more than 22.000 educational institutions with their digital communication and admin processes.  These range from individual institutions to large holders such as cities and whole regions.

By joining forces we are combining this wealth of expertise and long-standing experience in the education sector in order to develop even more innovative products and features.

Now you are informed about our past milestones. Would you like to know more about future ones?

Our mission

FoxEducation develops intuitive apps for schools, kindergartens and clubs, enabling educators to interact with parents and support children in their individual educational path.

Our vision

We facilitate communication and learning in educational institutions.

Would you like to work on this vision? Then take a look at our careers page!

Our FoxManagement

David Schalkhammer, MSc

David has been active as an entrepreneur in the technology sector for 10 years. He studied international business administration and user experience management in Austria, France and the USA. As a creative tinkerer, he is fascinated by how analogue processes can be digitised through the careful use of software, making life easier for users. The education sector has turned out to be the perfect field of activity. In 2015, he and his co-founders Stefan and Julian invented the “SchoolFox” app and have been making the everyday lives of millions of teachers, parents and pupils easier ever since.

Philipp Fendt, BSc, MFP

Philipp entered the financial sector at the beginning of 2014 and remained there until the end of 2021, where he most recently worked at Schoellerbank as Head of Strategy and Sales Management. For this reason, he is a perfect fit for FoxEducation, where he is now using his experience to help take FoxEducation to the next level. Since autumn 2022, he has been Business Director for Sales, Marketing, Customer Support and Data.

Before entering the business world, he was a professional golfer. He prepared intensively for this career for four years in the USA, where as a college golfer at the University of Louisiana he made it to 26th position in the amateur world rankings (no. 5 in Europe). He has a Master’s degree in Financial Planning and a Bachelor’s degree in Sports Management.