Fund for Public Schools, which raises money for the NYC public-school system, had a record of $47 million pledges in the past year. According to the Wall Street Journal, the record number of pledges has been attributed to donors wanting to ensure that Mayor Bloomberg’s policies stay in place. The $350 million in pledges received by the fund since 2002 has allowed the fund to distribute grants for libraries and after-school programs.
Rick Smith, The President of the Pinkerton Foundation that helped fund an academic summer camp, commented on the concern about preserving Bloomberg’s policies:
"There is great concern that a lot of the progress that has been made in education innovation will get lost in the switch to a new administration. There's no way of knowing that until you get a sense of whether the next mayor is committed to using these privately generated dollars to test and try new things."
