The Supreme Court has decided money is a form of speech. In that spirit, let’s see how Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos speaks about education when she’s off the clock by looking at some of the money the Dick and Betsy DeVos Family Foundation doled out in 2016. (To be completely fair, Betsy stepped down as chairwoman of the foundation on November 22, 2016, after the election, so she wasn’t in charge the last 39 days of last year.)
The Foundation gave out $14,381,000 in 2016. Of that, 45 percent, about $6.5 million, went to Education.
Below is a partial list of the foundation’s education-related giving as reported by Politico. It’s heavy on school choice advocacy and religious schools.
Among the recipients: Jeb Bush’s Foundation for Excellence in Education ($52,000); the Institute for Justice, a nonprofit libertarian law firm that has funded school choice lawsuits across the country ($35,000); the Alliance for School Choice, which Betsy DeVos previously chaired ($290,000); Success Academy Charter Schools ($150,000); and West Michigan Aviation Academy, the charter school that Dick DeVos helped create ($65,000).
— On the political front, the DeVos foundation gave $155,000 and pledged another $150,000 to the Action Institute for the Study of Religion and Liberty, a conservative think tank in Grand Rapids, Mich. It also funded the Great Lakes Education Foundation, which advocates for school choice policies in Michigan, with a $200,000 grant. And in Washington, the foundation supported the American Enterprise Institute with a $750,000 donation.
— Funding media: The DeVos foundation, as reported last year, in 2016 fulfilled a $400,000 grant to The 74 Media Inc., which runs the education-focused website by the same name. In addition, the foundation last year gave $75,000 to The National Review Institute.
— Colleges and universities receiving money from the foundation in 2016 included: Davenport University ($105,000); Ferris State University ($120,000); Hillsdale College ($35,000); Michigan State University ($200,000 plus $800,000 approved for future payment); O’Moore College of Design ($10,000); Princeton University ($12,000); Rollins College ($50,000); and University of Maryland College Park Foundation ($750,000).
— Also receiving donations: the Ada Christian School Society ($55,000); the Grand Rapids Christian School Association ($350,000); Rehoboth Christian School Association in New Mexico ($10,000); School of Missionary Aviation Technology in Ionia, Mich. ($100,000); and St. Anthony Educational Foundation in Chapel Hill, N.C. ($2,000). The Potter’s House — a Christian school in Michigan that Betsy DeVos has credited with helping to spark her interest in education advocacy — received $600,000 from the foundation and an additional grant of the same amount for future payment.
Over the lifetime of the Dick and Betsy DeVos Family Foundation, it has given $136 million, of which $40 million has gone to education. That’s a lot of money for the conservative side of the educational aisle, but it doesn’t put her anywhere near the top of right wing education donors. The very conservative Walton Foundation, funded by the Walmart fortune, puts DeVos’s family to shame. It gave $190 million in 2016 to education alone.
This article appears in Dec 7-13, 2017.
Rather than tell us how great conservatives and libertarians are, why not tell us how much progressive liberals have given?
I’m at a loss to understand the intent of this article. A recitation of donations from the DeVos Foundation without any commentary or in-depth analysis of the group’s motivations is nothing more than a dog whistle to those who equate DeVos to an enemy of public education.
I strolled over to 74 Media’s site and was surprised to see a fairly typical series of posts and articles on a wide range of topics including an interesting, non-partisan piece on the Chan Zuckerberg initiatives. Also would note the large donations made to Princeton, University of Maryland, Michigan State and Ferris State hardly seem controversial.
Betsy DeVos is no champion of mine and her positions as Secretary of Education largely disgust me. But this writing, lazy and incomplete, almost makes me sympathetic to the charitable work of her family’s foundation.
Again, thank you to a kind and generous family.
When our inner city, mainly minority students can barely read or even write. And end up in gangs and kill or shoot each other up. Choice is one idea, that gives parents a choice about there children’s education. Let’s face the truth, it’s about the teachers union, and the all mighty dollar, they say it for the children, but let’s be honest. It’s about the benefits (Cadallic plans) and pay.
A majority of the population works 12 months, again it all comes down to money. There are a lot of people struggling to get a good education from there public schools, and having a choice gives them a oppertunity, to give there children a good chance to make it.
Another witch hunt, just because you don’t agree with someone else’s point of view. And all you do is talk about someones donations and money. And I bet the author has a friend or close family member whom is a school teacher, dollars to donuts, I bet.
It’s so easy to fool liberals. I did it again.
I don’t understand, how exactly did you “fool liberals” Mr. Rat Trollson?
Is it because you’re posting under different names and getting different responses for semi confusing and misleading statements? You’re no where else to be found in this comment thread except for the comment above mine, this is why I don’t understand your comment. Is it possible that you had a comment removed before I accessed this article?
Either way, you are definitely pathetic if all you want to do is “fool liberals”. There’s a whole world out there, you should be exploring it instead of camping out on TW during your day to “fool liberals”.
I don’t know if it’s true, but I heard David Safier donated money to: ‘ Gangs? they’re not so bad’ academy, the Alaskan highway to nowhere Institute, Guvament needs more money foundation, and ‘cyberbully the rich’, nonprofit….
Life as we know it will soon end…