facts about michelle rhee legal size format

8/3/2019 Facts About Michelle Rhee Legal Size Format

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/facts-about-michelle-rhee-legal-size-format 1/3

FACTS ABOUT

WAITING FOR SUPERMAN

1. Waiting for Superman was co-produced by Walden Media, a company owned

by a Christian conservative billionaire who also funds anti-gay efforts and a thinktank which promotes Intelligent Design (the Discovery Institute). Owner Philip

Anschutz, the 39th richest American ($7 billion), made his fortune from oil drilling, stocks,real estate, railroads, and sports and entertainment companies.

2 . Waiting for Superman was accompanied by a billionaire-funded campaign which was designedto take advantage of the emotions aroused by the film’s intense propaganda. TheDone Waiting campaign guided viewers on how to assist with the advancement of thecorporate education reform agenda. Billionaire Eli Broad, contributed $500,000 to theDone Waiting campaign, as well as $50,000 for the marketing of The Lottery , another pro-charter school film released in 2010.

3. Rhee has close ties to Eli Broad, one of a number of billionaires who are using

their wealth (via immense *philanthropic* giving) to advance the corporateeducation reform agenda of privatization and union-busting. Rhee was in extremelyfrequent contact with the Broad Foundation when head of District of Columbia PublicSchools, and even visited Eli Broad at his Fifth Avenue apartment in 2008. A tightlyconnected pairing, Broad has given at least $50 million to Rhee’s StudentsFirst. Broad isthe 48th richest American ($6.3 billion) who made his fortune in homebuilding andinvesting.

4. Waiting for Superman was NEVER NOMINATED FOR AN ACADEMY AWARDbecause it was revealed that a charter school lottery scene had been staged. Despiteheavy promotion and initial expectations, Superman did not garner a second Oscar for director Davis Guggenheim.

+

PHILIP ANSCHUTZ

ELI BROAD

MICHELLE RHEEWAITING FOR SUPERMAN STAR



MICHAEL JOELBLOOMBERG KLEIN

FACTS ABOUT

MICHELLE RHEE & D.C. 1. Widespread public disapproval for Michelle Rhee significantly contributed to D.C.

Mayor Adrian Fenty’s re-election defeat. Rhee resigned shortly thereafter in October 2010, having served as D.C. Chancellor for less than three-and-one-half years. In spring2011, Fenty appeared on MSNBC to voice his support for Republican governor Scott Walker in his effort to end the collective bargaining rights of Wisconsin school teachers. MichelleRhee also expressed similar views.

2. Michelle Rhee had NO previous superintendent experience before she

was appointed to lead D.C.’s large urban school district with 11,500employees. Rhee’s management experience consisted of leading anorganization with 120 employees. Fenty selected Rhee on the advice of JoelKlein, the NYC schools chancellor who had been appointed by Mayor MichaelBloomberg. News reports stated that billionaire Eli Broad played a key role.Bloomberg is the 12th richest American who made his fortune from a financialnews media company ($19.5 billion).

3. Michelle Rhee was controversial and greatly disliked toward the end of her time

in D.C., so a prominent public relations expert was hired to improve her image. Theservices of Anita Dunn, a former White House Communications Director, were paid for witha $100,000 donation from Katherine Bradley, wife of the CEO and owner of Atlantic MediaCompany.

4. A major test score cheating scandal broke just six months after Rhee resigned. In March 2011, USA Today reported that high erasurerates had been discovered at 103 of 168 D.C. public schools. Under Rhee, generous bonuses were given to principals and teachers who hadincreased their test scores. Rhee declined to speak with reporters beforethe article ran. A district investigation is still underway.

She

ADRIAN FENTY

Q: Why do corporate education reformers prefer city mayors to control school districts, rather than elected school boards?

A: Because they know that a single person is easier to

influence than a group of diverse, more community-based individuals. When a sympathetic mayor has gained full power over his/her school system, the corporate reform privatizationagenda can be advanced with relatively little opposition. It can

be observed that corporate education reformers commonly express contempt for community-elected school board members as a whole.

MICHELLE RHEECONTROVERSIAL EX-CHANCELLOR

OF DC PUBLIC SCHOOLS

ANITA DUNN



FACTS ABOUT

STUDENTSFIRST & RHEE 1. StudentsFirst is an extremely well-financed LOBBYING ORGANIZATION which

exists to advance the corporate education reform agenda. Among the corporate super-elite who supplied StudentsFirst with its initial multimillion dollar funding were billionairesRupert Murdoch (FOX media, News Corp), Eli Broad (KB Homes, SunAmerica), JulianRobertson (hedge fund manager), and Kenneth Langone (financier). StudentsFirst is NOT AGRASSROOTS ORGANIZATION!!!

2. StudentsFirst’s membership numbers can’t be trusted! In 2011 a

deceptively-titled StudentsFirst petition (“Save Great Teachers”) was promotedat Change.org. Signers of other Change.org petitions were directed to this

petition which initially appeared to be in opposition to all teacher layoffs. When people signed the petition theywere automatically made members of StudentsFirst. Those who read the details of the petition further learnedthat it advocated for weakening teacher union protections as well as the de-professionalization of the teachingforce. A national organization, Parents Across America, received a number of reports from parents who hadinadvertently fallen into the trap. Formal complaints to Change.org proved fruitless.

3. Throughout 2011, Michelle Rhee and lobbyists working for

StudentsFirst began to develop close ties with a number of

conservative Republican Tea Party leaders. During its first year of operation, StudentsFirst advocated for, and helped to craft, state-level education policies and legislation along corporate educationreform lines. Rhee’s new contacts, fans, and allies include:

• Gov. Chris Christie (R-NJ)

• Gov. Mitch Daniels (R-IN)

• Gov. Scott Walker (R-WI)

• State Rep. Paul Scott (R-MI, before recalled)

• Gov. Rick Scott (R-FL)

• Gov. Tom Corbett (R-PA)

• Gov. Nathan Deal (R-GA)• Gov. Brian Sandoval (R-NV)

4. Michelle Rhee has participated in numerous events since launching StudentsFirst,

including the National Policy Summit sponsored by the American Federation for Children(AFC), and the Global Leadership Summit sponsored by Willow Creek Association. AFC wasfounded by Betsy DeVos, a billionaire (Amway fortune) whose passion is directing her wealth into the ideological and electoral infrastructure that supports school privatization.Willow Creek Association is the organization overseeing Willow Community Church. It is

known for its anti-gay views, as well as being a strong proponent of school vouchers.

BETSY DEVOS

MICHELLE RHEESTUDENTSFIRST CEO AND FOUNDER

RUPERTMURDOCH

facts about michelle rhee legal size format

Documents