News

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VA/R and VA/R Clients In The News

August 24, 2010- EDUCATION NEWS COLORADO

R2T rejection leaves a sour taste by Todd Engdahl

Tom Vander Ark mentioned in National Reaction section. “The big news of the day is that CO & LA didn’t win…Both were great applications, both strong on accountability and choice. Both suffered from union opposition.” Full article here

August 18, 2010- EXCELLENCE IN EDUCATION

Bush and Wise Convene Digital Learning Council. View the press release here

July 15, 2010- WALL STREET JOURNAL

Obama’s School Reform Policies are a Priority by Joel I. Klein, MIchael Lomax and Janet Murguía

In the days following his inauguration, President Obama included a package of educational reforms in his stimulus bill that offered states financial incentives to make dramatic improvements in their education systems. About 10% of the $100 billion allocated for education was used to create competitive grants. States could only win them by drafting comprehensive and aggressive plans to, for example, adopt higher academic standards, turn around chronically low-performing schools, and redesign teacher evaluation and compensation systems. Full article here

July 4, 2010- BLACKBOARD BLOGS

Closing Keynote: Tom Vander Ark

We are excited to announce Tom Vander Ark as the closing keynote speaker for BbWorld 2010.  Tom is best known as the former executive director of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, where he oversaw more than $3.5 billion in funding programs to improve education in the U.S.  He also served as President of the X PRIZE Foundation, which gives away millions to individuals who come up with breakthroughs that benefit humanity.  Prior to his role at The Gates Foundation, Vander Ark was the first business executive to serve as a public school superintendent, leading one of Washington state’s larger school districts (which today is a Bb Connect client). Full article here

July 1, 2010- EDUCATION WEEK

Coveted ‘i3′ Cash Prompts Application Gold Rush, Michele McNeil

Demand is far outpacing resources in one hot segment of the education innovation market, as districts, schools, and nonprofits pitch reform proposals worth $12.8 billion for competitive grants to be awarded under the federal Investing in Innovation Fund, or “i3”—nearly 20 times what the U.S. Department of Education has available….

For the Education Department, sifting through so many proposals in search of truly innovative ones may be the toughest hurdle, given how the rules of the program work, said Tom Vander Ark, a partner in the education advocacy and strategy group VA/R Partners, in Seattle, who has been closely tracking the i3 grant program. Full article here