While running for Congress against Bobby Rush in 2000, Barack Obama spoke about his experience:
“I have chaired major philanthropic efforts on the city, like the Chicago Annenberg Challenge (CAC) that gave $50 million to prompt school-reform efforts throughout the city.”
The IBD article goes on to state:
The CAC operated in 210 Chicago schools between 1996 and 2001. At the CAC’s conclusion, an evaluation report was prepared and titled, “The Chicago Annenberg Challenge: Successes, Failures, and Lessons for the Future Final Technical Report of the Chicago Annenberg Research Project.“
On page 14 of the executive summary we find that “the Challenge had little impact on student outcomes.” On page 15, the report says: “There were no statistically significant differences between Annenberg schools and non-Annenberg schools in rates of achievement gain” and that “any improvements were much like those occurring in demographically similar non-Annenberg schools.”
In 1998-99, just 36% of the Annenberg school students in grades three through eight were reading at or above national norms compared with 35% in Chicago schools citywide. In math, the results were similar. Some 43% of Annenberg students were at or above national norms versus 42% for non-Annenberg students.
High school graduation rates for both groups of students were the same at 40%. The Annenberg schools edged out Chicago schools in dropout rates — 35% to 36%. As the report said, there were no signs of improvement that warranted the expenditure of $160 million.
The CAC did not improve the schools, and in some ways made things worse. The executive summary also notes: “Classroom behavior, students’ sense of self-efficacy, and social competence were weaker in 2001 than before the Challenge.”
The report stated: “In 2001, students in Annenberg schools were somewhat less inclined than in 1994 to respect each other, work well together and help each other learn.”
So in terms of actually getting results it seems Obama’s efforts were a dismal failure…
Based on these results, Barack Obama would have trouble getting chosen as a high school principal. Yet he thought they were worthy of promoting him first to congressman and now to the presidency of the United States.
When Obama collected the endorsement of the American Federation of Teachers, he told the teachers that support for alternatives to the education monopoly amounted to “tired rhetoric about vouchers and school choice” even though efforts like the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship, unlike those of the CAC, have produced stunning improvements.
Not being left behind are Obama’s daughters, who attend the private University of Chicago Laboratory Schools. There the tuition ranges from $15,528 for kindergarten to $20,445 for high school. When asked about it during last year’s YouTube debate, Sen. Obama responded that it was “the best option” for his children.
So, let’s understand this, the one thing that Obama has listed as a testament to his executive leadership is something he would not even have his own biological children take advantage of? Interesting, isn’t it?
But that’s not all. Guess who set up the Chicago Annenberg Challenge? Why, Bill Ayers of course. He set it up and put none other than a wet behind the ears Barack Obama in charge of it, Barack Obama then went on and disbursed money from it to his friends such as Reverend Jeremiah Wright, friends who in turn gave him campaign contributions or got him votes… For your viewing pleasure, here is a video linking it all together:
Posted by PUMA Pundit
