NICHE, a Pittsburgh-based provider of a review site for U.S. schools, colleges and neighborhoods, has raised $6.6 million in a Series B round led by Allen & Company and Grit Capital Partners. The company has now raised $8 million in total and plans to grow its team from 56 to 80 employees, according to Geekwire. As a result of the funding round, Paul Palmieri, a general partner at Grit Capital Partners, will join Niche’s board of directors.
Founded in 2002 by a Carnegie Mellon University student, Niche claims to use publicly available data to create letter-graded “report cards” for schools and neighborhoods, on criteria ranging from academics to diversity, weather and safety. It now boasts 120 million ratings and reviews for 7,000 colleges, 130,000 K-12 schools and 98,000 neighborhoods, according to its press statement.
