Education profiteering -Wall Street’s next big thing?

[Starry Messenger]

2. That hasn't stemmed the flow of charter schools in Britain

I'm not sure if that has anything to do with the rate of people earning MBAs, as I'm not sure what part of the article you were responding to.

But Britain is pursuing a similar path to privatization of its K-12 schools. It parallels the US path in similar fashion.

Hedge fund charity plans city academies

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2005/jul/06/schools.newschools1

Ark is promising "educational vision" for British schools, through its new director of education, Jay Altman, who has just arrived in the UK from the US. Mr Altman was the founding principal of the New Orleans charter middle school in Louisiana, set up in response to parental demand and now a highly successful school with a record of preparing students from the poorest backgrounds for entry to top selective schools.

The US charter school movement is likened to the British academy system - based on autonomy for the individual schools - but without the same degree of state support.

Academies are publicly funded independent schools which provide free education for pupils of all abilities. Teaching unions are highly sceptical about the programme, many seeing it as a form of privatisation of state schools. Ministers set up the initiative in an attempt to transform "failing" secondary schools in the most deprived urban areas.

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Of the 17 academies in existence, 10 are in London. The government wants 200 academies up and running or in the pipeline by 2010.

Teachers' leader slams academy school plan

http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2008/mar/23/schools.newschools

Government plans to replace state comprehensives in poor areas with more than 400 privately sponsored academy schools have been criticised by the new leader of Britain's biggest teachers' union.

Bill Greenshields, president of the National Union of Teachers (NUT), said the plan was a backdoor attempt to privatise state education.

'A simple message to the individually and corporately rich, who are backing the school privatisation programme: our communities do not want their schools sold off,' he told the NUT's annual conference in Manchester. 'If you really want to support education as you claim - try paying your taxes.'

Academies pay £200k salaries

http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2011/nov/14/academies-pay-200k-salaries

Charities that run chains of academy schools are using public funds to pay senior staff six-figure salaries, with some on £240,000 or more.

The Guardian analysed the most recent annual reports of five major chains, each of which receives tens of millions of pounds from the government each year.

The reports, which are for the year ended 31 August 2010, show three chains – Ark Schools, Harris Federation and the United Learning Trust – awarded already high-earning staff performance-related bonuses, or increased their pension, salary and bonus packages from the previous year.

Brian Lightman, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said the figures were "astonishing in the current economic climate" and warned that public funds may be being channelled into the pockets of individuals and away from the needs of pupils.

There are now over 1000 charter schools (called academies in Britain) in existence. You don't need an MBA to start a charter school chain, just a wide and waiting pocket.