Re-examine the Profit Motive in Education

I've been traveling, and I my brain about exploded with outrage when I stumbled across this following full-page ad in the in-flight magazine. I'll let it speak for itself:

"Even though we were both brought up in families that owned businesses, we felt strongly about choosing a franchise organization that offered good support."
- Nerhsana Hasmakh

Kam and Nershana Hassmakh are not teachers, nor do they have degrees in education; and yet they own a preschool franchise. Kam and Nershana, [sic] were both involved in the hotel industry with their families, but are now owners of the Goddard School®, [sic], a preschool for children from six weeks to six years, in Friendswood, Texas.

The Goddard School is a nationwide franchise of Goddard Systems, Inc. (GSI), headquartered in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania. With over 290 schools, it is the fastest growing preschool in the United States, and was recently recognized as the "#1 Childcare Franchise" for the seventh consecutive year by Entrepreneur Magazine (January 2008).

According to Kam, "We were raised to believe that business owners should take part in the day-to-day operations in order to make the business profitable. We really liked GSI's philosophy of on-site ownership. The hotel industry, however, is a 24-hour, 365-days a year business with no holidays. In contrast, Goddard Schools are open during normal business hours - we're closed in the evenings and on weekends....

When we asked Kam and Nershana how they would describe Goddard Schools to someone who was undecided, Kam responded, "Simply, do it. You have to want it because, as with anything, your commitment is needed. What you put in is what you are going to get out of it."

"And, I think, the fact that an earnings claim is disclosed in the Franchise Disclosure Document is a helpful tool," adds Nershana. "It gave us an idea of how all schools were performing, and the fact that it's published gave us an idea of how GSI conducts business."

Wouldn't it would be great if we could have a real debate on the havoc the profit motive has played with our children's education?

Views expressed on this page are those of the authors and not necessarily those of Campaign for America's Future or Institute for America's Future