Since when is Bill Gates an authority on public education!? Just because he made a lot of money doesn't mean he should be allowed to dictate public policy on education by dangling a few dollars in front of the mayor's nose. The only thing worse than more charters is more entanglement with religious schools. Both have agendas that defeat the purpose of public education systems: to be inclusive, non-sectarian, and egalitarian, and to prepare students to be fully realized individuals and wise citizens, not customers or parishioners. We don't need his three million dollars; we spend a billion dollars a year in Boston on education, more than enough to provide a good educational system for all the children -- and if that's what the mayor really wanted to do, he'd have done it already. There's no shortage of money in the City coffers -- when corporations come asking for tax breaks, they are never refused. Poverty and racism are the problem, not bad teachers or bad schools. Mr. Gates, if you really want to do something useful to humanity with all that money you've amassed, here are two ways: Go back to the thousands of people that have worked for you in China for pennies and pay them properly, so our workers don't have to compete with poverty; and have your corporation pay its true share of taxes on billions of dollars it has sheltered, so we don't have to let you experiment with our children to get your little gifts.

Kevin Andrews wears many hats, not only is he headmaster at Neighborhood House Charter School in Dorchester is also 1 of 5  "trustees" of the Neighborhood House Charter School Foundation whose net assets, according to their FY2011, IRS 990’s, are $10,566,943! "Donated services and use of facilities" alone netted them $10,340!  WOW! No bake or candy sales for them!  I would suggest to Kevin Andrews that NHCS Foundation should have been "rewarding" their teachers for the extended hours for the last 20 years out of that $10,566,943!

What wasn’t mentioned here was that Kevin Andrews is the Vice-Chair of "Project for School Innovation Trust" (PSI) whose mission is "to develop and share the best practices across public schools, including charter schools, on a national scale. Specifically PSI researches, evaluates and disseminates innovative and effective practices through books, videos and conferences. PSI also facilitates training and workshops in a team-based environment for school leaders and teachers."

PSI stands to make a nice chunk of change when Boston receives the $3.25 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation "to foster collaboration among the city’s school system, charter schools, and parochial schools!"  Will those "collaboration workshops" be held at NHCS for an additional $10,340 a pop! Will those NHCS teachers who's "innovative and effective practices" which spawned the books, videos and conferences, that PSI is selling, be compensated for this work?

You can see why Boston Alliance of Charter Schools chairman, Kevin Andrews, is chomping at the bit to eliminate the charter school cap in Massachusetts!  It isn't about "the children" it's about the windfall his bottom line is about to make!