Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe, a private equity firm focused on technology and healthcare, has made a strategic growth investment in Linq, a K-12 operations technology provider. WCAS joins existing investor, Banneker Partners, to accelerate the firm’s growth and enhance Linq’s mission of making schools stronger.

Linq offers K-12 schools and state government agencies a software platform for cafeteria nutrition, enterprise resource planning, grant management, human resources management, payments, student registration and parent communication. Linq plays a vital role in serving schools and their communities and provides flexible, easy-to-use services to over 4,000 customers and 32,000 schools across the nation.

“We have a unique opportunity to make a real difference in the lives of everyday heroes, who work in our nation’s school systems, by helping them to redefine the future of education,” added Krista Endsley, CEO of Linq. “Our partnership with WCAS and Banneker marks the start of a new phase at Linq; the emphasis will be on strengthening our purpose-driven company to continue providing outstanding service and solving key challenges for our partner districts.”

William Blair acted as exclusive financial advisor to Linq, with Orrick, Herrington, & Sutcliffe serving as legal counsel. Kirkland & Ellis served as legal counsel, and Macquarie Capital served as financial advisor to WCAS.