Education "champion" Jeb Bush continues quest for "reform": Praises Michigan governor Snyder

[Bluebear]

Since leaving office in 2007, former Florida Governor Jeb Bush has dedicated his time to education reform, writes Carol Cain for the Detroit Free Press. Although his name has been floated as a possibility for the 2012 Republican ticket, he’s dismissed such speculations and continues to focus on running his Foundation for Excellence in Education.

Bush recently he gave his approval to Michigan Governor Rick Snyder’s newly unveiled plan for an overhaul of the state’s school system.

“I’m very impressed,” Bush said after examining Snyder’s full slate of plans. “It’s a comprehensive sweep of reforms rather than just one thing.”

Snyder’s proposal includes changes to teacher tenure, merit pay, charter schools and online learning. The last one is an issue of particular importance to Bush — himself a big supporter of digital learning — and considers it integral to his “Florida Formula.” He often touts that aspect of his educational overhaul in Florida when he consults with governors and legislators on their own efforts towards reform.

http://www.themoralliberal.com/2011/05/03/jeb-bush-working-on-reform-in-florida-and-nationwide/

[Angry Dragon]

1. himself a big supporter of digital learning

Gee --- I believe his brother is involved with education software....... see how that works

[jmowreader]

2. His brother isn't "involved" with educational software

Neil Bush is one of the founders of Ignite! Learning. Bush was in charge of financing.

[Gabi Hayes]

3. looking out my back door:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=219x5974

OCTOBER 16, 2006
NEWS & INSIGHTS

No Bush Left Behind
The President's brother Neil is making hay from school reform

Across the country, some teachers complain that President George W. Bush's makeover of public education promotes "teaching to the test." The President's younger brother Neil takes a different tack: He's selling to the test. The No Child Left Behind Act compels schools to prove students' mastery of certain facts by means of standardized exams. Pressure to perform has energized the $1.9 billion-a-year instructional software industry.

Now, after five years of development and backing by investors like Saudi Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal and onetime junk-bond king Michael R. Milken, Neil Bush aims to roll his high-tech teacher's helpers into classrooms nationwide. He calls them "curriculum on wheels," or COWs. The $3,800 purple plug-and-play computer/projectors display lively videos and cartoons: the XYZ Affair of the late 1790s as operetta, the 1828 Tariff of Abominations as horror flick. The device plays songs that are supposed to aid the memorization of the 22 rivers of Texas or other facts that might crop up in state tests of "essential knowledge."

Bush's Ignite! Inc. has sold 1,700 COWs since 2005, mainly in Texas, where Bush lives and his brother was once governor. In August, Houston's school board authorized expenditures of up to $200,000 for COWs. The company expects 2006 revenue of $5 million. Says Bush about the impact of his name: "I'm not saying it hasn't opened any doors. It may have helped with some sales." (In September, the U.S. Education Dept.'s inspector general accused the agency of improperly favoring at least five publishers, including The McGraw-Hill Companies, which owns BusinessWeek. A company spokesman says: "Our reading programs have been successful in advancing student achievement for decades; that's why educators hold them in such high regard.")

The stars haven't always aligned for Bush, but at times financial support has. A foundation linked to the controversial Reverend Sun Myung Moon has donated $1 million for a COWs research project in Washington (D.C.)-area schools. In 2004 a Shanghai chip company agreed to give Bush stock then valued at $2 million for showing up at board meetings. (Bush says he received one-fifth of the shares.) In 1988 a Colorado savings and loan failed while he served on its board, making him a prominent symbol of the S&L scandal. Neil calls himself "the most politically damaged of the brothers."

http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/06_42/b400...

[Bluebear]

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