Education firm’s past dealings analyzed

Three state education leaders said they are concerned about the background of a firm that wants to offer online classes to public school students through a new program to aid troubled schools.

The company, JRL Enterprises, Inc., is one of 31 which are seeking state approval to offer courses for students outside of traditional classrooms.

All the applicants face a multi-step review, which includes personal interviews, by state officials before they will be allowed to offer the courses. The Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, or BESE, makes the final decision.

“We will have a very complete record on these people,” said Dave Lefkowith, deputy superintendent for the state Department of Education. “It will be an exhaustive process.”

Critics have questioned how the state will ensure that the classes meet quality standards.

The change stems from a bill pushed by Gov. Bobby Jindal and approved by the Louisiana Legislature earlier this year.

JRL Enterprises, while never accused of wrongdoing, played a prominent role in the 2009 bribery trial of the late Mose Jefferson, brother of former U. S. Rep. William Jefferson.

Mose Jefferson was convicted of bribery and obstruction of justice after being accused of paying $140,000 in kickbacks to a former New Orleans school board president for her support in awarding school contracts to a computer-based teaching system he sold.

Authorities said Jefferson was the source of the money for help winning school board approval of contracts for JRL’s “I CAN Learn” program.

He died last year while serving a 10-year sentence.

News accounts said JRL Enterprises paid a firm run by Mose Jefferson $913,000 in consulting fees.

U.S. Attorney Jim Letten was quoted in 2008 as saying that, in all, Mose Jefferson helped JRL secure about $14 million in contracts.

JRL is now seeking state approval to offer students an online version of “I CAN Learn,” which company officials call an acclaimed math program that has won praise from the U.S. Department of Education.

“It is fair to say we are approaching this applicant, based on what we know, with some significant skepticism,” state Superintendent of Education John White said on Friday.

Penny Dastugue, president of the state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, and Jim Garvey, another BESE member, said they are concerned about JRL’s entry.

Dastugue, of Mandeville, said she questions whether the firm’s application will move past the initial round of state reviews.

“The concern is just that there have been some reports of questionable dealings around that firm,” Dastugue said in an interview on Friday.

She said when she saw the application she told White that he should “look a little deeper.”

Garvey made similar comments.

“JRL has what you might call a checkered past,” Garvey said in an interview Thursday.

He cited the $900,000 paid to Jefferson’s consulting business and “large bonuses” to other people who bring in customers.

“There are just a bunch of question marks,” said Garvey, of Metairie.

“I am not sure whether the question marks rise to the level that says this company can no longer do business with us,” he said.

Garvey said he has also read articles that questioned the effectiveness of JRL’s software packages.

“We’ll dig into it deeper,” he said. “I know I have some concerns.”

Vincent Melerine, vice president of customer support for JRL, disputed those comments.

Melerine said that John R. Lee, the president and founder of the firm, testified for the prosecution three times in the Jefferson case. “So we stand firm in our ethics and our moral obligation to do good by these students, both in Louisiana and nationwide,” he said.

Melerine also said Jefferson’s contract required him to “follow the letter of the law” in touting the benefits of the “I CAN Learn” program.

The new program, which is called Course Choice, is supposed to expand academic options.

Under previous rules, the state’s roughly 700,000 public school students were mostly limited to courses available in the building.

Comments

1) Comment by spqr - 09/09/2012

Oh,Chem. You can count on it.

2) Comment by timesright - 09/09/2012

Careful investigation should be made for all those who have applied for the Course Choice program. It certainly appears it was not made for those "schools" applying for voucher consideration. The taxpayers deserve this and so do the students.

3) Comment by Noel Hammatt - 09/09/2012

And for the record, I am all in favor of vigorously examining all applications from those seeking to be paid our tax dollars, just as I have always been in favor of transparency for all public bodies! I just wonder at this newly awakened openness about the process of vetting applications, and hope it signals a new accountability and openness to the taxpayers!

4) Comment by Noel Hammatt - 09/09/2012

OK LawyerDan65 and chem... you have got me asking some pretty tough questions. 1) How and why did this article appear? Did Will Sentell get some kind of a message from "three state education leaders" about these "concerns" or was he looking through applications. 2) Why were two BESE members even looking at the applications, at this point in time. The application period is not over, and there isn't even a clear procedure in place to evaluate them, and more importantly, why would a policy- making body be looking over applications, and publicly commenting on them. And finally, 3) since they are now in the news, and being publicly commented on, aren't ALL applications now public record? Kind of hard to claim any kind of "work process" exemption when you are publicly commenting on these applications. Are they online? (I haven't checked yet, but someone can let me know, please.

5) Comment by Noel Hammatt - 09/09/2012

LawyerDan65, I can't believe you are so disbelieving in Louisiana Believes! You must believe, SIr! And chem, I actually think the article is a total set-up to make people forget that there was absolutely no vetting of the voucher schools. Reading some of the stories in actual newspapers in other parts of the state there were stories at least as crazy as this one. Not once did I see evidence that a BESE member was reading and actually examining the applications before they were approved. Actually, we still don't know how the process worked, because there hasn't been any transparency in the process at all. We still don't know how many vouchers were approved and accepted, do we? What we do know, though, is that according to research highly touted in a press release by the Louisiana Department of Education, merely getting an "offer" or a voucher, even if you don't take it, will give African-American students a big increase (20% in the study they cited) in the percentages enrolling in college! I know, I know, some of you "opponents" or "critics" of Louisiana Believes (and you know who you are, you "status quo" folks) will ask how in the heck getting an "offer" of a voucher does this, but you shouldn't question how it works. After all, neither John White nor the authors of the study at Harvard and Brookings asked! Anyway, I digress... I am sure that all of the groups applying for these, well, they are vouchers too, really, all will be thoroughly vetted and any not having good political connections will be denied! So chem, I think you might actually be wrong on your claim. Hard to say whether LawyerDan65 or chem is right on this one. One thing we know, from the outstanding author of this article, is that "three state education leaders are concerned." Wonder if the concerns are about quality, or media attention...?

6) Comment by LawyerDan65 - 09/09/2012

How many of th eremaining firms gave money to BESE or the Gov's campaigns?

7) Comment by chem - 09/09/2012

I feel certain, based on history, that this fine upstanding firm will get its contract and the politicians involved will line their pockets.