About Us
Technological and Digital Literacy For All
We believe everyone deserves the patience and guidance needed to become technologically and digitally literate.
We believe the technology divide between generations will cost society greatly, both fiscally and socially if not addressed.
We believe that the solutions to learn technology presented to date are inadequate to solve the problem.
We believe that technology illiteracy’s best solution is a human solution that can enrich the lives of everyone involved.
Our mission is to design and deploy methodologies for solving technology and digital illiteracy that:
-
leads with human-to-human interaction,
-
empowers participants to engage in a modern digital lifestyle as fully as they care to,
-
equips participants with the cyber street-smarts to manage their online lives and avoid becoming a victim to digital predators,
-
helps lead them out of social isolation and into inclusion.
Our Story
One Goal, Two Journeys
OnRamp Academy was founded in 2022 by Dr. Matthew Weed Ph.D. and Joel Smith. They grew up in the same hometown, but were living on opposite sides of the world when introduced by a mutual friend – Joel in Australia, Matthew in Colorado.
​
In each other, Matthew and Joel found complimentary experiences that lead them to the same passion: technology’s ability empower personal potential. Matthew arrived through his lived experience having achieved great things despite extraordinary disability, and Joel through his professional experience teaching people how to get the most from themselves through technology.
​
They agreed that the resources available to most people to learn to harness technology and become both technologically capable and digitally literate were ill suited to the challenges the world facing.
​
So they decided to do something about it.
Our Founders
Matthew A. Weed Ph.D.
Cofounder, Chief Strategy Officer, Chief Marketing Officer
Dr. Weed is a completely blind type 1 diabetic. Despite these huge challenges, he learned to use a Macintosh in the late 80’s with the help of his best friend – when tech accessibility was barely an idea – and he went on to co-develop a method of making printed text electronically accessible.
He holds multiple degrees from Yale, Princeton and Harvard, and has hundreds of high level contacts in healthcare, policy, and academia.
His life experience sensitizes him to challenges people must overcome in using technology without support. This perspective helps guide our team in thinking about the user experience.
Joel Smith
Cofounder, Chief Executive Officer, Chief Education Officer, Acting CTO
Joel is a former Apple instructional designer and edutech startup executive.
He has worked a wide variety of technology, communications and leadership roles in industries ranging from startups and municipalities, to mega corporations and non-profit medical research and health communications.
He has extensive experience teaching people who have no baseline learn to use technology, patiently and persistently helping them to achieve their goals.