Envisioning You

A few days ago, I shared with you all kinds of ‘ACTions’ being taken in regards to shifting American education to national credentials with international data collection. At the close of that article, I also shared we would take a closer look at the Envision entity (that is the international data collector).

If you are a bit confused, do not fret. Quite simply, Act, Inc. has several workforce/competency education based assessments that are becoming increasingly prevalent in not only education (some states as young as 3rd grade), but employment centers as well. The goal? Aligning your skills with a path of work. Where Envision comes in is helping match people with jobs all the while collecting, sorting, and sharing their data across the globe. Why? Global workforce. Remember, the Envision portion is supposedly so you can become a better you.

In case you missed the article where I laid out how Act, Inc. and Envision are joined at the hip in educational reform for workforce purposes, see: https://www.commoncorediva.com/2016/06/20/skill-building-the-ccss-way/
(*Note: be sure you access the joint study on 21st Century job readiness by Act/Envision.)

If you missed the follow-up article about how the education reform business (yes, it appears to be a business, or at least conducted like one) is using the workforce based education in each State for job development and how global companies are jumping on board to make it all happen, see:
https://www.commoncorediva.com/2016/06/21/shrills-call/
(*Note: this one was so truthful, it got me blocked on Facebook!)

 

Enter Envision:

The website: https://www.envisionexperience.com/
The mission: ‘POP (Power of Potential)’ is their short answer. Looking a bit deeper, however, you will find the same old pro CCSS/CBE (Common Core State Standards/Competency Based Education) rhetoric: digital learning which is personalized, gives the best critical thinking, promotes collaboration, AND helps Johnny and/or Suzy change the world! Sign up and your student can have all this learning wrapped up in FUN, too!
See the entire ‘mission’: https://www.envisionexperience.com/our-story/our-education-philosophy

How does a student get selected to become an Envision participant? Grade point averages, assessments scores, and career interests. Since the Envision programs begin early and go all the way to Grad School, thousands of students are involved. See: https://www.envisionexperience.com/our-story

For the record, Envision is known as Envision EMI and is a LLC which is privately held AND for profit. This is according to the Better Business Bureau. I am including the link to show you the other names Envision has gone by. See if you recognize any of them.
See: http://www.bbb.org/washington-dc-eastern-pa/business-reviews/lecture-and-seminar-bureaus/envision-emi-in-vienna-va-7001305/

So, who owns Envision EMI? Gryphon Investments. Why would we need to know about Gryphon Investments? The CCSS Machine is BIG, and is loaded with money. Follow the money, find the agenda, and locate the participants. Gryphon is a private equity company. Many private equity companies, as well as, venture capitalism companies are already hard at work helping the CCSS Machine with education reform, right under our noses. They also know data collection/sharing/selling is a hot commodity.

To see Gryphon’s portfolio list of companies: http://www.gryphon-inv.com/portfolio/
(*Note: related is the shift in management of Envision, which pointed me to Gryphon: 
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20120605006213/en/Envision-EMI-Names-John-B.-Richards-CEO)

Also for the record, Envision has a troubled past when it comes to education and politics. What do I mean? Their involvement in a lawsuit surrounding one of their programs, a Presidential election, and promises made which were broken. Notice the range of ages involved, notice the events. Consider the impressions these young minds were receiving. See:  http://www.dc2009-settlement.com/

Now that you have a good idea of the KIND of entity Envision is, let’s see how they are shaping our students. Remember, according to the website, the ‘fun learning’ begins in 3rd grade. Through programs with the NYLF alphabet soup-like title in front of the descriptions.

NYLF stands for ‘National Youth Leadership Forum’. See the screen shot below and notice the NYLF topic for STEM, (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math).
(*Note: If you haven’t heard me before state how STEM is the motivation behind Common Core, consider this, STEM jobs are being touted as a huge economic factor in America AND across the globe! If you haven’t seen the evidence of how I came to this conclusion, ask me. I would love to place the evidence in your hands.)

The NYLF topics in Middle School add to the STEM and include politics. Dig deeper, and you will find CCSS Machine members/groups guiding the discussions surrounding politics, as well as providing the classroom resources.

As an example, check out the NYLF Middle School Presidential Inauguration topic. Discovery Channel is the guiding entity. How is Discovery Channel a CCSS Machine Member? I featured their education arm (Discovery Education, aka Discovery Learning) in my previous published article about Skill Based Learning and the companies behind it. See: https://www.commoncorediva.com/2015/05/07/tech-thursday-upskilling-america-part-2/
(*Note: legislation is backing up the shift in education from academics to workforce, as seen in Part 2, as well as Part 1. Also, be sure to access the CCSS link of Discovery Learning’s search results.)

Envision in High School NYLF topics? STEM, politics, business, leadership (global, of course), and more. See: https://www.envisionexperience.com/explore-our-programs/high-school
Since all this effort is being put into global workforce, global education, and global citizens, let’s see what CCSS Machine member organizations are behind the NYLF Global Leaders topic, shall we?

Oh my, Warriors, one of them is Harvard University! How have I proven Harvard is in bed with the educational reform and the CCSS Machine? In one word: Pearson. In a few more words, their joint project called Pathways to Prosperity, which helped birth the global career pathways and tracks we now have.

If you haven’t seen the evidence, see my article:
https://www.commoncorediva.com/2015/01/08/tech-thursday-national-career-pathways-network/ (*Note: this article embeds several other ones with even more evidence. My original Harvard, Pearson expose can be found there. It was from Nov. 2014.)

Harvard is hardly the only culprit in helping Envision with its NYLF Global track. There are other universities as well. There is also the Leadership Initiative. Before we look into them, look at the screen shot. What do you notice? (hint: date!)

The Leadership Initiative:

The website: http://www.lichange.org/
Among Board members are representatives from Exxon-Mobile and Harvard University (two well known CCSS Machine member organizations). See: http://www.lichange.org/board/
Among the Advisory Board, you can find Siemens and CitiBank, two more well known CCSS Machine member organizations. See: http://www.lichange.org/advisory-board/

Here is a screen shot of the press release linking Envision, Leadership, and Harvard.

To see the entire release (as well as others): http://www.lichange.org/press-releases/

Warriors, do not get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with addressing human needs. We have been doing so since time began.

However, as I have stated before, when EVERYTHING is run through the CCSS Machine of ‘global this’, ‘global that’ and for the ‘collective good’, it is enough to make you scream!

Why? Collective thinking kills individualism. Global everything keeps the focus away from your immediate environment and forces you to not only look outward, but take it all in as acceptable. Consider how the brain develops. Not everyone can understand ‘collective globalism’ at an early age OR if their development inhibits their understanding. As the brain develops we DO understand immediate environment, we are geared to create close relationships.

Common Core, College/Career Readiness, Career Pathways, STEM, STEM Pathways don’t work because they go against the natural flow of not only our thinking, but our way of living. As a result ANYTHING connected will alter our lives as well.
The Bottom Lines:

1) The CCSS Machine agenda ruins not only education, but quality of life.
2) When your national and local levels of government knowingly (or unknowingly) endorse, support, or instigate the efforts of the CCSS Machine, they might as well as find themselves sitting in a corner of their offices!
3) Instead of each person being the best they can be, the true CCSS Machine vision is for collective good where personal best cannot exist.

Warrior Mindsets:
3) Think ‘Martin Luther’ and grasp his ire at the church which inspired him to find 95 truthful facts and nail them to the door.
4) Think the ‘Apostle Paul’ and his thorn in his side. He didn’t let the pain it caused stop him. Embrace that spirit of ‘never quit’.
5) Think ‘Joan of Arc’ and her willingness to die for what was true, good, and right. Re-enact her fierce stare, her defiant stance, and her strong voice.

So, which Warrior will you become? What mindset will you adopt? What bottom line will you erase as a result? We, those opposed to the CCSS Machine, are their thorns; their truthful witnesses; their worst nightmare. We, those opposed, will NOT give up, never surrender our freedoms. We, those opposed, outnumber them. Coincidence? Hardly.