Thursday, July 26, 2013, at the monthly business meeting of the Board of Education, Commissioners will vote on Resolution No 2013-14: which calls for the Superintendent to enter into an agreement with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation that will allow the foundation to:

“serve as the District’s Technical Assistance Partner, deliver tools, training, benchmarking and guidance, provide the framework for analysis, leadership, change management as well as execution and monitoring of Operating Budgets for 2014-2015 and future years, with the goal to improve efficiency and effectiveness of budgeting processes and the alignment of resources to implement the District’s instructional priorities based on a consideration of value versus cost, for the period August 1, 2013, or as soon thereafter as the Agreement is fully executed, through October 31, 2014, for a sum not to exceed Three Hundred Sixty Thousand Dollars (360,000.00), funded by the Office of the Superintendent and/or the School District Management Efficiency Grant, through the Office of the Superintendent, contingent upon grant funding and budget appropriations and contingent upon the form and terms of the Agreement having been approved by Counsel to the District.”

In layman’s terms, the Commissioners of the Board of Education are considering entering into an agreement with the Gates Foundation to receive $1.2 million dollars, $360,000.00 of which the district has to put up first, to learn how to manage the fiscal responsibilities of the district.

While it is evident that the current sitting Board is lacking in the knowledge and understanding necessary to successfully manage their fiscal responsibilities, spending $360,000.00 to “function as a testing ground” is irresponsible.

By adopting this resolution, the Board will be handing over the “Operation” of the district to an entity that cares nothing about the children the district is charged with educating.

Their goal “the alignment of resources . . . based on a consideration of value versus cost“.

The goal of education is to provide children with the knowledge and skills necessary to become a successful citizen of the United States and the world, not the alignment of resources.

Stop the sale of our children’s educational future. Speak out against the adoption of this resolution.

Join the Movement to Save Our Children!