Funder puts hold on $3 million donation to HISD
Wednesday, July 31, 2013
The Houston Endowment has put its remaining $3 million contribution to HISD’s Apollo school reform effort on hold pending more detailed research on the program’s effectiveness.
Below is the letter that the president of the Houston Endowment, Ann Stern, wrote to HISD Superintendent Terry Grier and school board president Anna Eastman this month seeking a meeting with them and Harvard University researcher Roland Fryer.
Stern, in an interview Tuesday, toned down her language, saying she hoped the foundation would be able to make the payment. She also said was fine with a final report from Fryer, who has advised Grier on Apollo, despite the calls from some school board members for a separate third-party study.