A few weeks ago I received an inquiry from a blogging friend out west. He wanted to know if there was any sign of a group called Stand for Children in Illinois?
I checked around. There was a web site. Other than that I couldn’t find out much.
Then yesterday…boom.
Progress Illinois, the SEIU connected web site, did an extended story.
Alexander Russo referenced the PI post.
So did the pro-charter supermen at Education Equality Project in a Tweet.
What raised eye-brows was the fact that out of nowhere a group shows up in Illinois and hands out checks for over $600,000 to nine candidates for the General Assembly.
Says Progess Illinois:
Jonah Edelman, the group’s CEO, tells us the endorsement process was comprehensive; over 36 candidates in tight campaigns conducted 30-minute interviews about education reform with members of the organization. Six Democrats and three Republicans were eventually chosen. Republican Ryan Higgins, running to replace retiring State Rep. Paul Froehlich (D-Schaumburg), was the biggest winner, netting $175,000. State Rep. Jehan Gordon (D-Peoria) received a $100,000 cut. Several others earned contributions ranging from $10,000 to $50,000. By Election Day, Fox Chicago reporter Mike Flannery thinks “an additional half-million dollars could flow to other candidates who sign onto the organization’s school reform agenda.”
What is their reform agenda? There are no specifics to be found on their website.
Russo called them “centrists.” He linked them to the hedge-fund backed charter mongers at Democrats for Education Reform (DFER).
And there is definitely something of a Waiting for Superman smell about the enterprise. Their web site features the Superman star, Geoffrey Canada of the Harlem Children’s Zone.
In spite of their self-description as a grass-roots organization, they seem to act more as a political action committee with funding from local venture capitalists and hedge fund types.
Keep your eyes open.
Fred Klonsky 