Philanthropy plays a visible but little-studied role in education reform, making it easy to both overestimate and underestimate its significance. The emergence of "new" givers in the last few years, like the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Walton Family Foundation, has shifted the landscape of school reform. This article, based…

Concerned about maintaining schooling quality in a tight-money climate, parents and others are turning to local education foundations for needed dollars, equipment, and services. Although large philanthropic foundations have contributed significantly to public education since the 1950s, locally funded and operated education foundations have…

Because their resources are inadequate, philanthropic foundations cannot bring about educational reform by themselves. Foundations are best when serving as midwives, parking garages, conversations pits, burning glasses (to focus thought), levers, and lighthouse tenders. The American people are responsible for acting voluntarily to support public…

Reports on a survey of educational researchers' attitudes toward government and private foundation support and examines the cooperation between the foundations and the government. (IRT)

The San Francisco (California) Education Fund has made possible three projects: a solar greenhouse at an alternative elementary school, the All-City High School Youth Orchestra, and a high school cross-cultural peer tutoring program for Asian and Hispanic students. (Author/MLF)

The consequences of Australia's public finance of private education are relevant to United States policy issues: the effect of private school aid on public and private enrollment, the impact of aid on financial support for public schools, the impact of aid on the character of public and private schools. (PB)