Education Commons^™

Edison Schools In Bibb County, Georgia, Amy P. Fouse

Perspectives In Learning

In March of 1999, the Bibb County Board of Education made a controversial decision to hire private, for profit Edison Schools to run two of its low-performing elementary schools. Parents of nine Bibb County elementary schools were given the option to adopt this corporation and contract them to run their schools (Cass, 1999). Of the nine elementary schools, Riley Elementary and King Elementary chose the program. Investigation of The Edison Project was initiated by Superintendent Dr. Gene Buinger in 1998. Less than one year later, and after many heated debates, a five-year contract was signed to pay Edison “roughly $1 …