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State education officials are shelling out millions of taxpayer dollars to Wireless Generation, a New York-based education technology company. Was a former governor pulling the strings?

Bulletin Board

  • The E.A. Morris Fellowship for Emerging Leaders is now accepting applications for the 2010-11 class. Applicants must be between the ages of 25 and 40, reside in North Carolina, and commit to a yearlong program of activities designed to examine, develop, and enhance their leadership skills. There is no cost to individuals accepted into the program. For additional information, please visit the E.A. Morris web site at http://www.eamorrisfellows.org

  • Become a member of JLF’s Freedom Clubs! We have seven regional clubs covering every part of North Carolina, so there is one near you and your like-minded conservative friends. For more information, visit https://www.johnlocke.org/support

 

Are you kidding me?

This month, the state will begin doling out millions to Wireless Generation, a company that had close ties to former governor Jim Hunt. Let’s follow the money!

  • July 14, 2003. The U.S. Department of Education awarded North Carolina a six-year, $153.9 million Reading First grant, beginning in the 2004-05 school year.

  • April 19, 2004. New York-based Wireless Generation executives named former North Carolina governor Jim Hunt chair of the company’s advisory board. According to the press release, Hunt’s role would be twofold. First, Hunt would "lead a team of education experts who advise the company on product development directions, and provide guidance on enhancing the company’s growing role in assessment and learning." In addition, Governor Hunt would "help to inform key education stakeholders and influencers about how Wireless Generation’s innovative offerings are transforming the way teachers and administrators use assessments."

  • Spring, 2004. North Carolina’s Reading First program chose Wireless Generation as a vendor to implement reading software for the program. The NC Department of Public Instruction (DPI) posted a downloadable version of a May 11, 2004 brochure advertising Wireless Generation’s mCLASS:TPRI (Texas Primary Reading Inventory) software.

  • February 2005. The North Carolina State Board of Education (SBE) awarded Wireless Generation a $13,200 grant to work with schools officials and reading coaches in Reading First Schools for one month (January 1, 2005 to January 31, 2005).
  • January 2006. The SBE awarded the company a $15,000 contract to work with school districts, reading coaches, and principals for two days, (June 29, 2005 to June 30, 2005).
  • October 2008. An executive with Wireless Generation, along with other instructional technology companies, made a twenty-minute presentation titled "PDAs — Not Just for Appointments" at the NC Superintendent of Public Instruction’s quarterly meeting.
  • December 2009. The SBE awarded Wireless Generation a one-year, $93,274 contract to provide support to schools participating in the diagnostic assessment pilot program. The SBE added $19,000 to the contract in May 2010. The SBE raised the total grant awarded to Wireless Generation to $112,274.
  • July 2010. After a strong advocacy effort by Governor Bev Perdue, the General Assembly approved an additional $10 million for a handheld devices pilot program that all but guaranteed millions for Wireless Generation.
  • July 2010. According to the Government Accountability Office (GAO), the Avery County Schools ignored competitive bidding requirements when they awarded Wireless Generation a contract for software used in handheld devices.
  • October 2010. As predicted, the state began doling out millions to Wireless Generation. The one-year, $6 million grant will "expand the reading assessments pilot that began in 2009 into additional schools for grades K-3 and for at risk students in grades 4 and 5."

 

Curiously, Hunt no longer serves on Wireless Generation’s Board of Advisors. Nevertheless, Hunt and Wireless Generation CEO Larry Berger recently participated in an NBC Education Nation panel discussion titled, "A Fresh Start: Leveling the playing field before school begins."

 

Facts and Stats

The FY2009-10 appropriation for Smart Start was $187 million. The Smart Start initiative is a public/private program that provides childcare subsidies, teacher training, health screenings, and support for families with children from birth to six years old.

Mailbag

I would like to invite all readers to submit announcements, as well as their personal insights, anecdotes, concerns, and observations about the state of education in North Carolina. I will publish selected submissions in future editions of the newsletter. Anonymity will be honored. For additional information or to send a submission, email Terry at [email protected].

Education Acronym of the Week

National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS)

Quote of the Week

"By the year 2010, North Carolina will build the best system of public schools of any state in America."
— Governor James Hunt, State of the State Address, February 1, 1999