WYBI: Seeds of Gates for CCSS

In today’s post, we’ll see how the CCSS is being sprouted in ‘compact cities’. All thanks to the SEED Foundation, the Gates Foundation, and more than likely, a few others.

The Seed Money:

In 2013, the Gates Foundation gave the SEED Foundation $200,000. to help create College Ready Compact Cities. Purpose? Here is the excerpt straight from the GF: “to explore partnerships with current and potential College Ready Compact cities that have the greatest likelihood of partnering with the SEED Foundation to pilot and spread college ready strategies related to teacher effectiveness, common core state standards, and personalized learning models.” To see the rest of the grant details, http://www.gatesfoundation.org/How-We-Work/Quick-Links/Grants-Database/Grants/2013/11/OPP1098082

Other Gates Foundation grants to SEED, 2011, $250,000.00; 2010, $75,970.00. All are conditioned by ‘college readiness’. (*Note: you can access these grants by using the search term “The SEED Foundation” in the search bar for the Gates Foundation website.

The SEED Foundation:

Founded in 1997, this group is especially interested in urban areas and schools. It was featured in the educational movie “Waiting for Superman”. The Foundation has also been featured on “60 Minutes”. In 2011, the Foundation was awarded several million dollars from what appears to be a P3 (Public, Private Partnership). The purpose? Public boarding schools. To see more of their history, http://www.seedfoundation.com/index.php/about-seed/history

Sowing the Seeds of CCSS:

I was able to find a 2014 SEED Summit Presentation that is expressly promoting CCSS. Here’s just one quote, “Many skills are reflected throughout the CCSS but some are outside the scope.” I’ll leave you to find the rest of the presentation’s soil worthy rhetoric for yourselves. See: JC-Brizard_2014-SEED-Summit-Presentation

From the SEED Foundation’s 2010 document titled “Practices and Programs That Prepare Students for College Graduation”, a screen shot pointing to yet another Gates Foundation joint effort to align students. This time, it’s with Jobs for the Future, however.

You might find it interesting that the 2010 document (in the above screen shot) also got some help from a company called “FSG”, as in FSG Social Impact Consultants. Their website: http://www.fsg.org/  If you’ve never heard of them, you’re not alone. I hadn’t either. However, here’s just a tidbit of what they do, “FSG is a mission-driven consulting firm supporting leaders in creating large-scale, lasting social change. Through strategy, evaluation, and research we help many types of actors – individually and collectively – make progress against the world’s toughest problems.”  From the ‘collective’ standpoint, they have partnered with the Aspen Institute to bring about social changes in our communities. (Aspen’s a HUGE CCSS supporter). From another angle, called “Shared Values”, you’ll find some of the same large name corporations which support CCSS, also in on this effort. To see more about this non-profit and what’s it is up to, visit: http://www.fsg.org/AboutUs/Overview.aspx   (*Note: I found on the FSG blog an entry about CCSS you might like to have access to. See: http://www.fsg.org/KnowledgeExchange/Blogs/CollectiveImpact/PostID/412.aspx )

The ‘seed money’ to FSG from Gates? Oh, yes. Since September 2009. A $50,000 grant to FSG to host an educational meeting at Stanford University (according to the GF grant data base the purpose was “College Readiness”). Then, in 2012, $100,000 more for a non descriptive collective youth project. In 2013, $200,000 for community collectives. Then, last year, 2014 saw the FSG being granted $33,000 to support a study on how great student’s self-directed learning is. (see all the other details: http://www.gatesfoundation.org/How-We-Work/Quick-Links/Grants-Database/Grants/2014/06/OPP1112836 )

Jobs for the Future:

Website: http://www.jff.org/ The most current thing you need to know about them. They are in full support of the re-authorization of the ESEA. In fact, their wish is to see total alignment for career paths! See the document: JFF Senate HELP letter_Chairmans_draft

To access the policies, advocacy of JFF, visit:

 http://www.jff.org/policy-advocacy#.VOyXrvnF-hQ

JFF has long been a recipient of the Gates Foundation’s grants. So much so, the GF Grant Database has 3 pages full of awards. Most have to do with the post secondary success, college readiness, etc. I counted 21 different grants totaling $67,437,160. See: http://www.gatesfoundation.org/How-We-Work/Quick-Links/Grants-Database#q/k=Jobs%20for%20the%20Future

Closing:

I’ve no clue if any of today’s information is new soil to your anti CCSS fight or not, but one thing we’ll all gleaned about the CCSS Machine, the more we uncover, the more we can till the soil, root out the weeds, and break up the pests in our educational system.