Sarah “Sally” deVincentis
CEO of APTE, Inc.

An active and vibrant grandmother of two, Sally deVincentis, is a rarity - a successful woman entrepreneur in the competitive software business. The wisdom she gained while building APTE, a cutting-edge technology company she co-founded in 1990, has been poured into APTE’s new photo games greeting site, www.schmixer.com. As APTE’s CEO, she has assembled a diverse, talented and devoted staff to develop this site, as well as award-winning educational software, books, web applications, and technology training in the private and public sectors, including the Executive Office of President Clinton.

This successful entrepreneur began her career 30 years ago as a teacher. Sally saw the need for support for families with disabled children, and established the first Lekotek center in 1980. Over the next decade, she helped build a national network of Lekoteks and play libraries throughout the U.S.A. As a passionate advocate for children, she testified before the Senate, published articles, lectured, and worked tirelessly on their behalf all over the world. Her belief that computers provide profound opportunities for all children to play and learn, led her to start her company. Schmixer.com is a dream realized. Sally gets tremendous satisfaction from knowing she is part of something new and exciting that brings out the kid in everyone.

Lisa Brooks
Director of Marketing of APTE, Inc.

From the beginning, Lisa Brooks knew APTE’s new photo-game egreeting site, www.schmixer.com, could ‘Schmix’ up the exploding phenomenon of photo sharing and egreetings. As a mother of three, she experiences firsthand the value of games and puzzle solving, and appreciates the personal connection that comes from sharing photos with family and friends. In her role as the Director of Marketing, Lisa built her career at APTE promoting their award-winning line of educational software products and nationally known licensed product lines that include APTE software. Now she’s ready to show the world how www.schmixer.com combines the old-fashioned joys of game playing with today’s photo sharing!

After working with several community organizations, Ms. Brooks has been with APTE for the past nine years in marketing and art direction. She holds a B.S. in biology from the University of Wisconsin, and an M.B.A. from Boston University.

Helga Gruenbauer
Director of Product Development of APTE, Inc.

Helga Gruenbauer heads up the Schmixer development team where she ‘schmixed’ a personal love for a good puzzle, riddle or game with her extensive experience in software application design, education in graphic art and training in web design.

Ms Gruenbauer  has been employed by APTE since 2000, and has served as project manager for many award-winning education programs and software applications for the toy industry. Products developed under her leadership have won multiple awards, from the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Award to the coveted Excellence Award from Technology & Learning. Helga, the mother of a young son, holds a B.A. degree from Columbia College, Chicago, in Multimedia and Graphic Design and a degree from Fachhochschule (Augsburg, Germany) in Communication Design and Typography. Prior to working at APTE, she was employed by Access Technology where she designed and programmed web sites, and produced CD-ROM applications for clients such as Eli Lilly.

Rob Elliott
Lead Programmer

Rob Elliott is a true Internet ‘renaissance man’.  He’s a seasoned independent web designer and database programmer, president of his own consulting company, and is also a talented artist and a commercial photographer. Because Schmixer.com ties together so many creative threads… photography, gaming, social networking… the developer had to have a wide range of abilities.  Rob Elliott was the perfect person for the job.

Rob holds a B.S. and an M.S. from Indiana University in Human-Computer Interaction. In addition to managing his company, Will Push Pixels for Food, Mr. Elliott is an instructor at Indiana University Purdue University at Indianapolis. His experience in program development is both extensive and varied, the perfect qualifications for working on the Schmixer.com web site.  Some of the web projects Mr. Elliott developed include the Red Cross Online training site and a custom Learning Management System project. As a consultant he has also been responsible for developing DVD and interactive video projects, as well as interactive kiosks. You can view samples of Mr. Elliott’s award-winning photographs at his www.willpushpixelsforfood.com web site.

Schmixer is a wholly owned subsidiary of APTE Inc., a women-owned technology company. Established in 1990, APTE develops and publishes award-winning software, books, video products and web applications. Schmixer is the company’s most recent online product.

APTE Inc. is a 20-year-old technology company with award-winning software, books and web applications. Schmixer.com is the company’s most recent online product.

Founded by Sally deVincentis, APTE is one of the oldest women owned and managed technology companies. The company develops innovative and award-winning media products that include software programs, web-based applications, TV production and book publishing.

From its inception APTE has specialized in creating educational products for children, parents and teachers. The company is a leader in developing innovative ways to use digital photos as learning tools. In 2000 APTE introduced the first photo-games as a way to build reading and thinking skills.

In addition to creating retail and education products under the APTE brand name, the company also provides customized solutions to the entertainment, government and business communities. Some of APTE’s clients have included:

Many of the leading children’s digital cameras and camcorders include photo and video editing and project software created by APTE. Such household brands as Hello Kitty, Crayola, Nickelodeon, LeapFrog, Strawberry Shortcake and Tweety Bird package APTE software with their digital photo and video cameras.

APTE distributes its products and services through a variety of additional channels, including school resellers, online, retail stores and in partnership with leading toy manufacturers.