Despite Election Win, EAI's Business Picture Is Still Far From Clear

By Mark Walsh

Education Alternatives Inc. may have dodged a bullet in Hartford, Conn., last week, but the pioneer in private management of public schools remains in the line of fire.

The stock price of the Minneapolis-based company jumped 13.3 percent the day after the Nov. 7 elections in Hartford, where candidates who vowed to end the district's contract with EAI failed to win control of the school board. (See related story .)

But the elections left EAI backers with a majority of just 5-4, down from a 7-2 split before, and the company still faces an uncertain future...