For-Profit Education

The online HELP program, above, uses interactive tools to deliver a math curriculum for English-language learners. Rocky Mountain PBS hired Digital Directions International Inc. as a subcontractor to develop the curriculum.
The online HELP program, above, uses interactive tools to deliver a math curriculum for English-language learners. Rocky Mountain PBS hired Digital Directions International Inc. as a subcontractor to develop the curriculum.
Courtesy of Digital Directions
Federal For-Profits Get Subcontractor Role in Federal Grants
Nonprofit grantees are hiring firms to develop online educational materials for public schools.
Mary Ann Zehr, February 27, 2007
7 min read
Law & Courts U.S. Circuit Court Bars Ariz. For-Profit Charters From Federal Payments
In what may be the end of a long legal road, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit has ruled that for-profit charter schools in Arizona cannot receive federal funds.
Rhea R. Borja, October 3, 2006
3 min read
Federal House Acts to Preserve Aid for Ariz. Charters Held by For-Profit Firms
The Republican-controlled House voted June 24 to reverse the U.S. Department of Education’s recent decision that more than 50 for-profit charter schools in Arizona should not get federal money for special education or the Title I program for disadvantaged students.
Erik W. Robelen, July 12, 2005
3 min read
Michael Handwerger teaches students in grades 6-8 who are enrolled in the Colorado Connections Academy.
Michael Handwerger teaches students in grades 6-8 who are enrolled in the Colorado Connections Academy. But while the students are from various parts of Colorado, Mr. Handwerger works out of an office some 2,000 miles away near Baltimore's Inner Harbor.
Sevans/Education Week
Classroom Technology New Player in Online School Market Pursues Profits
The Colorado Connections Academy, a K-8 online school, faces the picturesque Inner Harbor in Baltimore. But its 379 students can’t see the bay from their desks. They’re some 2,000 miles away in Denver, in Littleton, and down near the New Mexico border in Pueblo.
Rhea R. Borja, December 7, 2004
4 min read
School Choice & Charters Explainer Privatization of Public Education
The privatization of public education is a controversial idea to turn the work of public schools over to private companies.
Education Week Staff, October 5, 2004
2 min read
School Choice & Charters U.S. Audit Raps Arizona's Use of Charter Aid
The Arizona education department improperly gave more than $1.1 million in federal money to charter schools run by for-profit companies, according to an audit by the U.S. Department of Education's office of inspector general.
Rhea R. Borja, December 3, 2003
5 min read
School Choice & Charters Students in For-Profit Charter Schools Said to Make Gains
Charter schools managed by for-profit companies are raising student achievement faster than other charter schools, a report released last week concludes.
Olivia Doherty, October 29, 2003
3 min read
Teacher Preparation Teacher-Quality Rules Challenge Ed. Schools
Education schools have been caught flat-footed by new federal requirements for teacher quality, while a handful of entrepreneurs are sprinting to provide programs to bring educators up to speed.
Julie Blair, December 4, 2002
7 min read
School Choice & Charters Still in the Red, Edison Now Hit With Case of 'Enron-itis'
Last week, Edison Schools Inc. learned just how sensitive Wall Street is to the issue: The school management company's stock plunged 11 percent after a report raised questions about how it adds up its revenues. Includes a chart, "Quarterly Blues"
Mark Walsh, February 20, 2002
5 min read
Budget & Finance Harvard To Study Rise Of For-Profit Education
In another sign that business participation in education is growing, Harvard University has launched a program to monitor corporate involvement in schools and the for-profit education industry.
Mark Walsh, April 19, 2000
1 min read
School Choice & Charters Opinion China Inc.
Is there an entrepreneurial future for schooling in the People's Republic? Denis P. Doyle investigates.
January 19, 2000
5 min read
Education Report Card on For-Profit Industry Still Incomplete
As the education industry grows, will the bottom line be about learning or earnings? Raising student achievement or making a profit? Can it be about both? Includes: "Companies Taking on Role of Guidance Counselors" and "Companies at a Glance."
Mark Walsh, December 15, 1999
13 min read
Education The For-Profit Education Industry
The for-profit education industry is worth approximately $70 billion, or about one-tenth of the total $740 billion spent on education in the United States last year, according to Merrill Lynch's "The Book of Knowledge," published in April 1999.
Technology ($4.8)
Supplemental materials ($3.6)
Textbooks ($3)
Books ($3) Private education ($2.6)
Supplemental materials ($2.5) Special education ($2)
Tutorial/test prep ($2.5) At-risk/alternative education ($1)
Software ($1.50)
November 24, 1999
1 min read
College & Workforce Readiness College Board Plans First Foray Into For-Profit World
The College Board, the nonprofit organization that sponsors the SAT and Advanced Placement tests, has announced plans to launch its first for-profit subsidiary.
Mary Ann Zehr, October 6, 1999
3 min read