Education Reform Philanthropy Has Changed Radically Over the Past Decade

From Dana Goldstein, Columbia University School of Journalism:

With the NewSchools Venture Fund Summit kicking off (on May 17), I thought I'd do an overview of the state of K-12 education philanthropy.

The NewSchools Venture Fund is one of the founding institutions of "venture philanthropy," a school of charitable giving that borrows its ethos from the world of venture capital. Venture philanthropists seek out non-profits that pursue social change while embracing data-driven corporate accountability standards.

These donors often seek to bring promising local reforms "to scale" as quickly as possible, and many explicitly look for "innovative" programs--reform models that prioritize new technologies or new management and governance structures. Some examples: Online learning, national charter school networks, and advocacy on behalf of mayoral control of school districts.

Read the full post on Dana's blog.