This
remarkable story has just appeared in the Houston Chronicle...
HoustonChronicle.com | Section: Houston & Texas
March 22, 2006, 11:58PM
Former first lady's donation aids son
Former first lady Barbara Bush donated an undisclosed amount of money to the Bush-Clinton Katrina Fund with specific instructions that the money be spent with an educational software company owned by her son Neil.
More after the break...
Since then, the Ignite Learning program has been given to eight area schools that took in substantial numbers of Hurricane Katrina evacuees.
"Mrs. Bush wanted to do something specifically for education and specifically for the thousands of students flooding into the Houston schools," said Jean Becker, former President Bush's chief of staff. "She knew that HISD was using this software program, and she's very excited about this program, so she wanted to make it possible for them to expand the use of this program."
The former first lady plans to visit a Houston Independent School District campus using the Ignite program today to call on local business leaders to support schools and education.
Neil Bush founded Austin-based Ignite Learning, which produces the COW program, in 1999.
Becker said she wasn't at liberty to divulge how much money the Bush family gave to the hurricane funds, but said the "rest of their donation was not earmarked for anything."
Regarding the fact that Bush's earmarked donation also benefited her son's company, Becker said, "Mrs. Bush is obviously an enthusiastic supporter of her son. She is genuinely supportive of his program," and has received many letters from educators who support it. Bush "honestly felt this would be a great way to help the (evacuee) students."
Barbara and Neil Bush presented the donated programs to Houston-area schools this winter.
Information about the effectiveness of the program, through district-generated reports, was not readily available Wednesday, according to an HISD spokeswoman.
Two years ago, the school district raised eyebrows when it expanded the program by relying heavily on private donations.
In February 2004, the Houston school board unanimously agreed to accept $115,000 in charitable donations from businesses and individuals who insisted the money be spent on Ignite. The money covered half the bill for the software, which cost $10,000 per school.
The deal raised conflict of interest concerns because Neil Bush and company officials helped solicit the donations for the HISD Foundation, a philanthropic group that raises money for the district.
HISD school principals decide for themselves whether to spend their budgeted money on Ignite.
Leonard said that in the past six to eight months, the company has hired national sales representatives across the country -- in Florida, New York, Pennsylvania, Georgia and Nevada -- in hopes of expanding beyond Texas. Currently, about 80 percent of the company's customers are from Texas.
Geeez, even Marie Antoinette did not specifically require the cake to come from her bakery.