TheAgitator.com
Come On, Bill
Thursday, September 18th, 2003Next time, Mr. Gates, a better way to spend 50 milion dollars:
Why not set up a $50 million scholarship fund to get poor kids out of the New York City public schools?
And once our public school systems start taking huge donations from billionaire donors, are they really “public” anymore?
There are a whole bunch of administrators, teacher union leaders, and school construction/maintenance heads salivating about this.. and a whole bunch more kids who won’t be able to notice even one iota more of a tangible improvement on their education.
Yes, unfortunately, they are still public.
I heard an interview with Gates on NPR this morning re: this recent donation to NYC schools. The entire interview is posted on the NPR website if you want to listen to it.
http://www.npr.org/display_pages/features/feature_1434487.html
As a teacher at a NY city college, I see the results of the public high schools here. Let me tell you, it is pretty sad. I teach chemistry, and these students don’t even know what the metric systems is. I’m not saying the donation will improve anything, but help is needed.
Yes, I’m sure those millionaire teachers and janitors will just buy more yachts with this $51 million. Just creating more damned monopolist millionaires - Carnegie (U.S. Steel), Rockefeller (Standard Oil), Mrs. Trask (PS 152 - 1st Grade).
If it were to mean less tax burden for New Yorkers I would be all for it, but I think we know that is not the case.
The money is apparently being used as seed money to start smaller high schools. I know that smaller isn’t always necessarily better, but having attending nine different schools in 12 years, I noticed a dramatic difference in my smaller schools.
At least he’s trying to help - when was the last time any of us read to an illiterate high schooler?
There is no doubt that Bill Gates is trying to help. That is not the problem. What does reading to an illiterate high-schooler have to do with anything? If they’re illiterate and in high school they have already been disserved either by their parents, the schools, or both. Students are supposed to be literate by grade 3. Reading to illiterate high schoolers sounds like a very bleeding heart idea and if someone is inclined to do it fine, but it isn’t a measure of compassion if they don’t.
On a seperate note I just heard that the Dave Mathews Band is doing a benefit concert in Central Park for the NY Public Schools. Does anyone see a difference between the two donations?
As someone who works in the computer industry, I can tell you that you are all missing the real reason. It has nothing to do with ‘helping’ anything. MS sees itself as dying off: Their licenses are ridiculously expensive, they ‘renovate’ rather that ‘improve’ their software, and they want to keep the competition to a minimum.
Just like how Democrats want to keep poor people in unions or on welfare to ensure votes, MS is freaking out about Linux and other open-source software taking away from it’s bottom line. So if they make a whole generation grow up with nothing but MS software, what do you think those kids will use first when they are away from school?
This is just a case of yet another rich guy buying into the myth that more money solves all of government’s, in this public education’s, ills. Rather than focus on corrupt unions, bad teachers, misspent funds, or the merits of private education, Gates would rather throw money at an utterly broken public system. I question his motives in the sense that it seems that this has more to do with rich guy’s angst than altruism.
I defer to the wisdom of the Master Himself - “Among the rich you will never find a really generous man even by accident. They may give their money away, but they will never give themselves away; they are egotistic, secretive, dry as old bones. To be smart enough to get all that money you must be dull enough to want it.” - G.K. Chesterton A Miscellany of Men
Good post, Rodney.
Apple Computer used to give millions of dollars worth of computers out to school systems all over the country during the 80’s and 90’s. It was a great for the schools and great for Apple since it helped build a solid Mac user base. Bill Gates would have been better served to have spent his money on a different program.
Smaller classroom populations are a great ideas, but in an already failing system I don’t see how it will improve anything. Schools districts already have a tough time getting qualified teachers to work at inner-city schools that are failing. Now they are going to need a substantially larger amount of teachers to teach, which means they are going to have to lower their hiring standards to some degree in order to fulfill these new positions.
I don’t see how that helps improve educational performance at all.
Villify Mr. Gates all you like. It only shows how shallow you are.
SPEAKING OF WHICH
Radney Balko is not impressed with that $50,000,000 dollar donation Bill Gates gave to New York’s public schools:Next time, Mr. Gates, a better way to spend 50 milion dollars: Why not set up a $50 million scholarship fund to get…
SPEAKING OF WHICH
Radney Balko is not impressed with that $50,000,000 dollar donation Bill Gates gave to New York’s public schools:Next time, Mr. Gates, a better way to spend 50 milion dollars: Why not set up a $50 million scholarship fund to get…
Small is beautiful
Bill Gates is giving $51.2 million to help start 67 small high schools in New York City. Schools of 400 or so students tend to be better at creating a sense of community, connecting students with teachers, maintaining order and…
Bill Gates is certainly not a villain. He is famous for his charitable contributions. In fact he gave $100 million,in one shot, to AIDS causes. I disagree with the alterior motive argument because of his charitable reputation. I mean what was his motivation for giving money to fight AIDS in Africa where most don’t have computers and won’t at any time in the near future? He means well, but that doesn’t mean this is going to help.
$100 Million to India, now $50 Million to NYC…
Being friends with some Ex-Patriot Microsoft Execs I can tell you Gates isn’t doing this out of benevolence.
He expects an ROI.
It’s obvious the money will gain MSFT and Gates influence in India, the question is what is $50 million in NYC getting him?
On that you can take your pick from any myriad of reasons…
Why not in african countries maybe he believes he will not get anything in return but i believe that he is doing it out of charity and self interest.
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