Philanthropy and Education Strategies for Impact

The reform of public schools is high on the public agenda in Europe as well as North America. Philanthropic foundations play an increasingly important role in attempts to enhance the performance of the system. However, the degree to which their ambitious aspirations are actually realized is often very low. This book addresses the question of how philanthropic actors can make a more effective, beneficial and responsible contribution to the field of public education. It develops an innovative model of effective education philanthropy and uncovers strategies to successfully tackle problems in this complex domain.

Presenting the findings of the international research project 'Strategies for Impact in Education', the results are based on six case studies from Germany, Switzerland and the United States, informed by institutional theory and drawing on state-of-the-art research in sociology, psychology and pedagogy.

Ekkehard Thümler is Project Director at the Centre for Social Investment of Heidelberg University, Germany.

Helmut K. Anheier is Dean at the Hertie School of Governance and Professor of Sociology at Heidelberg University, Germany, where he is also Academic Director of the Centre for Social Investment (CSI).

Nicole Bögelein is a Research Associate at the Institute for Criminology, University of Cologne, Germany.

Annelie Beller is Research Associate at the Centre for Social Investment of Heidelberg University, Germany.

PART I: UNDERSTANDING EDUCATION PHILANTRHOPY
1. Education Philanthropy in Germany and the US; Ekkehard Thümler, Nicole Bögelein and Annelie Beller
2. School Reform and Philanthropy: Theory and Literature; Ekkehard Thümler
PART II: THE CASE STUDIES
3. Jacobs Summer Camp and DeutschSommer. Making a Difference with Summer Camp Programmes; Annelie Beller
4. The Chance. A Systemic Approach to Integrate Adolescents Into the Job Market; Steffen Bethmann
5. SEIS. The Role of the Bertelsmann Foundation as a Think Tank Taking Action; Gunnar Glänzel
6. Semi-Autonomous School. Bertelsmann Foundation and the Largest School Development Project in German History; Gunnar Glänzel
7. Success for All. The Impact of Research-Proven Cooperative Learning Strategies; Andreas Schröer
8. Teach for America. How a Teacher Corps Changes Schools and Community; Andreas Schröer
9. Assessing the Impact of Educational Programmes. An Evaluation of Research Validity; Anke Heyder
PART III: ANALYSIS
10. Philanthropic Impact and Effectiveness in Education; Ekkehard Thümler, Nicole Bögelein and Annelie Beller
11. Islands of Success Revisited: Which Role for Philanthropy?; Ekkehard Thümler