Michele Rhee's own contract betrays her rhetoric

Earlier this month, discredited advocate of corporate education reform, Michele Rhee, was invited to speak at Kent State University. Her contract for participating in this event has now been leaked, and its quite the eye opener. It seems, rather than putting "StudentsFirst", Ms Rhee likes to put herself first.

On top of the $35,000 speaking fee, she also requested up to another $5,000 for a first class plane ticket, VIP hotel suite, coverage for all “incidentals” and a “town car” driven by a “professional”.

As one education blog notes, that's more money that a lot of teachers get for a whole years worth of work. But the story doesn't really end there

I’m not an attorney, just a simple education professor. But I will say that the proceeds, excessive as they are, are apparently going to something called Rhee Enterprises, LLC and care of a creative artists agency. So, like a talent agent? I mean, I get it: you make huge bank on the road as some hard-ass former education czar whose ideas have been debunked on numerous occasions. I guess you’re going to need someone to manage your “talent.” But, this whole LLC thing: it’s operated by her brother. So then Rhee Enterprises, which is really funny by the way, needs to pay her brother for managing the whole show. What’s his cut? Hey, wait, what are the students getting out of this? I thought they were first? I don’t know, reeks of nepotism to me, but I don’t know the family situation there.

Rhee would have everyone believe that merit pay is the way forward, and such systems would never lead to any kind of favoritism, nepotism or corrupt bargaining, yet as can been seen quite plainly, that's not how she operates her very own business, a business she claims puts "StudentsFrist".

Here's the Kent State Contract

Rhee Contract

How deceptive is Rhee’s organization?

A short while ago we brought to your attention the partisan political nature of Michelle Rhee's organization - StudentsFirst.org. The Washington Post brings news today, of the deceptive tactics being used to push their school privatization agenda

Even teachers might be fooled into thinking the organization is all about helping them, when it is actually intended to bring down teachers unions which are often blamed for failing schools by protecting adults. That argument, of course, ignores the fact that the problems are the same in states where teachers are unionized and in states where they aren’t.

Rhee, by the way, appeared Monday at the national school choice summit of the the American Federation for Children, whose board chair is Betsy DeVos.

She is wife of Dick DeVos, who is the son of the co-founder of Amway, and the sister of Erik Prince, founder of the private military contractor once known as Blackwater USA and now called Xe Services LLC.

The DeVos family has spent millions to support efforts to promote vouchers and promote reforms that are furthering the privatization of public education.

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