Ignite!, Neil Bush’s educational company, has received thousands of dollars from school districts through the federal No Child Left Behind program even though it doesn’t meet the program’s standards, a DC watchdog group reported today.
“NCLB requires any kind of educational products to have been scientifically peer-reviewed, and Ignite! has not,” Melanie Sloan, Executive Director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, told me. Today CREW sent a letter to the Dept. of Ed Inspector General asking him to investigate the company. “NCLB is really benefiting cronies rather than kids,” Sloan added. “I frankly don’t understand why so many Democratic senators and congressmen, like George Miller and Kennedy are being so supportive [of NCLB] in the face of these problems.”
Ignite! did not return a call from Mother Jones.
Neil Bush, the family’s ne’er do well, is best known for his adventures in the savings and loan industry, which led to a taxpayer-funded bailout of $1.3 billion and a lifetime ban from the banking industry. In 1999, with no educational experience, he founded Ignite! with money from his family and international investors. For years Ignite has been dogged by questions about its effectiveness, and its reliance on donations from foundations to fund its purchase in schools. Last year, the Houston Chronicle reported that a donation from Barbara Bush to a Katrina relief fund was earmarked to Ignite! None of this has really slowed the company down of course. As of late it has been working in Russia and China, where I’d expect business will soon be booming.
