In the Public Interest, a nonpartisan public policy group in DC, filed a Freedom of Information Act request for communications between Tony Bennett, the far-right Indiana State Superintendent of Education in Indiana, and certain individuals–specifically Jeb Bush and Joel Klein.
The question of interest is whether certain parties with a financial interest might be influencing Bennett’s decisions. Bush and Klein are both selling technology; Klein works for Rupert Murdoch and is a member of Bush’s board. Bush’s organization is funded by high-tech corporations and online for-profits.
The Indiana DOE is stalling on releasing the requested material, presumably until after Tuesday’s election, when Bennett faces challenger Glenda Ritz.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
That’s part of the deformer’s MO. John white and the Louisiana DOE does the same.
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Doesn’t that say it all?
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Not to forget that Bennett gutted the IDOE staff when he took office four years ago. Bennett removed anyone who might understand what was really going on. There have been numerous complaints that the IDOE, especially the new website, is not transparent and getting answers is impossible.
And this is what Bennett’s goal is for teachers as well. He has worked to drive out Indiana’s best teachers, has taken away any incentive for anyone to take education courses, implemented merit based pay that is only about having teachers compete with each other for scraps, tried to institute a teacher contract statewide that was found in violation of law (the judge’s precise word to describe Bennett’s contract was “unconsciousable”)…
Best wishes to D. Martin in attaining the truth in the rest of this story.
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type-o unconsciousable should read unconscionable
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Good Evening— I hope they are checking affiliations with Sylvan Learning Centers and Pearson Publushing!
Marge
A caval donato non si guarda in bocca!
Marge
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This is a story i need to print out & go through.
Big story. Connects the dots & a paper trail.
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Ray and Marion Golarz have just released a new book–“The Problem Isn’t Teachers.” They identify the real villains through stories and essays. It surely is must read for all persons interested today’s educational plight. They have much to say about the Supreme Court and the heroes in the classroom.
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Speaking of the Bush-Klein-Murdoch axis, Murdoch has tweeted an undiplomatic threat at one of his political hacks who’s gotten too big for his backers. I like David Daley’s little comment from Salon, because he illustrated it with a picture of Rupert Murdoch delivering a keynote address at the National Summit on Education Reform a year ago.
“Thanks Bloomberg right decision.@now Christie, while thanking O, must re- declare for Romney, or take blame for next four dire years.”
http://www.salon.com/2012/11/03/murdoch_threatens_christie_re_endorse_romney_or_else/
Are there now two distinct political flavors of corporate EduEmpire building? Is a crack appearing in the non-partisan “reform” charade? What just happened this week, since we all sat up Sunday night, sick with dread, watching the storm surge roll in on CNN?
The two designated keynote speakers for each party, who were both launched in their careers by billionaire education entrepreneurs, found themselves now functioning as the actual executive branch of national and state government in a deadly emergency. Please notice (as Christie visibly did) that this turns out to be a very different job from “Chief Executive Officer” of a corporate enterprise.
Meanwhile, apparently, Fox News has been instructed to agitate tirelessly for maximum destruction of the Atlantic Seaboard, in hopes of turning the election Murdoch’s way. Murdoch never tires of his core strategy of destroying the US, so he can feed on the wreckage. It’s working on US public education, after all.
And Bloomberg? Same old same old; no epiphany there.
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Could Klein wind up (finally!) indicted over this mess?
Obama’s DOE might not want to pursue systematic fraud, but his Department of Justice is showing some guts lately. Murdoch’s coordinated move on control, at all levels,of the $500-700 billion total funding stream for American public education may hang on the election after all.
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Until this year and the state election for superintendent of public instruction, I’ve never perused newspapers from the Hoosier metropolitan areas.
Incredibly, there is only one reporter in the whole state, Karen Francisco of the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette, who actually does investigative journalism. Every other newspaper I have found “covers” events. And that all they do. Cover. (Correct me if I’ve missed someone, please.)
What has happened to American journalism? Are newspapers now complicit as well? Bought out by the same corporations whose latest scheme in education is called “reform?” As a person who refuses to watch, listen, or read, the so-called “news” these days, following this election confirms my choice.
If the “fourth branch of government” is gone, will we now have to rely on independent investigative reporters like Martin?
On an end note, be reminded of who the only investigative journalist in the state endorses for Superintendent of PUBLIC instruction – Glenda Ritz.
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