Bill Gates Insists that His Common Core Philanthropy is Not For Any Self-Interest
Bill Gates insists in a Washington Post article that his philanthropy is not for any personal gain. Maybe it’s for the destruction of a representative government? That’s how the Common Core State Standards Initiative adoption and implementation occurred: it was the circumvention of the political process and certainly transformed the way our public education systems operated. They are now in the control of private organizations unaccountable to voters and legislatures.
The veil has been lifted on how the Common Core State Standards Initiative was anything but state led and voluntary. The Washington Post published an article on an interview with Bill Gates and his involvement in the Initiative. From How Bill Gates pulled off the swift Common Core revolution:
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation didn’t just bankroll the development of what became known as the Common Core State Standards. With more than $200 million, the foundation also built political support across the country, persuading state governments to make systemic and costly changes.
Bill Gates was de facto organizer, providing the money and structure for states to work together on common standards in a way that avoided the usual collision between states’ rights and national interests that had undercut every previous effort, dating from the Eisenhower administration.
The Gates Foundation spread money across the political spectrum, to entities including the big teachers unions, the American Federation of Teachers and the National Education Association, and business organizations such as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce — groups that have clashed in the past but became vocal backers of the standards.
Money flowed to policy groups on the right and left, funding research by scholars of varying political persuasions who promoted the idea of common standards. Liberals at the Center for American Progress and conservatives affiliated with the American Legislative Exchange Council who routinely disagree on nearly every issue accepted Gates money and found common ground on the Common Core.
It’s a fascinating article on how a “philanthropist” could help create educational policy and Bill Gates Insists that His Common Core Philanthropy is Not For Any Self-Interest | Missouri Education Watchdog:
