Corporate America Pushes for Education Reform

Last week, Bill Gates, speaking at the National Governors Association meeting in Washington, said,

“What we know about graduation rates, the people who graduate and the skills that they have--it paints a very scary and almost shameful picture of the contrast between the idea of education as a great equalizer and the actual state of affairs.”

To improve high schools, the Gates Foundation has donated $773 million to more than 1,500 high schools in the last five years, much of it in the form of grants that have required matching components by state and local governments.

Gates is not the only business leader concerned that high school graduates lack the skills needed for college success or success in the workforce. Corporate America is more involved in shaping education policy today than it has been at any point since the end of the Cold War. Corporate leaders like Gates are moving the agenda forward towards significant educational reform on the national, state, local, and individual school levels.

On the LGR level, it’s always great to see business executives and young professionals talking to LGR students about internships and the post-college world of work.