Activist targeting U.S. schools, backed by big bucks - chicagotribune.com:
Rhee has set up StudentsFirst as a network of interlocking lobbying groups, advocacy organizations and political action committees. By law, she does not have to disclose her donors, and she refuses to discuss her fundraising.
But an adviser to New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg confirms that he provided financial backing for Rhee's recent push into Connecticut politics.
The Laura and John Arnold Foundation, funded by John Arnold, a hedge-fund manager and major Democratic donor, has pledged $20 million over five years. Other backers: the Charles and Helen Schwab Foundation, the Broad Foundation, and the Walton Family Foundation, funded by heirs to the Wal-Mart fortune, which gave $1 million, according to foundation records.
Rhee and her team are "education innovators dedicated to improving student achievement in a transformational way," said Meredith Johnson, a spokeswoman for the Arnold Foundation.
In New Jersey, the state affiliate of StudentsFirst can count on nearly unlimited support from hedge-fund managers David Tepper and Alan Fournier, the executive director said. Tepper and Fournier are also substantial donors to the PAC backing Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney. Both men declined to comment.
"There is no budget," said the state director, Derrell Bradford. "They are willing to spend whatever it takes."
'via Blog this'
No comments:
Post a Comment