When You Lie Down with Dogs, Keep the Anti-Itch Powder Handy

In her new book The Death and Life of the Great American School System, Diane Ravitch gives thanks to the William E. Simon Foundation.

This is an interesting group, with an interesting history, and they channeled $50,000 through New York University to support Ravitch's research. Foundations don't give money to private individuals; they find an institution that will pay out the money after keeping a handling fee. The question for readers of The Death and Life of the Great American School System, is which bridges did Ravitch burn.

Grants in 2007 totaled $7,802,039. Here's one:

New York University
New York, NY
Grant Year: 2007
Grant Type: Education
Research and Ideas
Amount: $50,000
Grant Purpose: Support for scholar Diane Ravitch's education research.

Other William E. Simon Foundation grants in 2007 included :

Alliance for School Choice: $15,000

American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research: $75,000--Support for Michael Novak's research and scholarship.

etc.



2006 & 2007 GRANTS: The Achelis and Bodman Foundations Combined

Steinhardt School of Education, New York University
New York, New York
For a book on Mayor Bloomberg’s education reforms in New York City, by Professor Diane Ravitch
BODMAN, 2006, $75,000

The Achelis and Bodman Foundations guidelines state that they do not give grants to individual K-12 schools--except charter schools. Here are their Education Grants, 2006-2007


Achievement First
Brooklyn, New York
For the start-up and first-year expenses of new charter schools in Brooklyn:
AF-Bushwick Charter School
ACHELIS, 2006, $50,000


http://susanohanian.org/show_commentary.php?id=791

was one of the usual suspects on the right.