Edtech Investor Deborah Quazzo Responds to Alleged Conflicts of Interests

Edtech Investor Deborah Quazzo Responds to Alleged Conflicts of Interests

Feb 10, 2015

"ENOUGH IS ENOUGH": So reads the subject line in a heated email, sent on the evening of Feb. 8, from GSV Advisors' founder and managing partner, Deborah Quazzo. The "angry" note (PDF) is directed at the Chicago Sun-Times, which contends that her roles as both a member on the Chicago Board of Education and an investor in edtech companies present a conflict of interest.

Five edtech companies that Quazzo has invested in, according to the Sun-Times, have received more than $5 million in contracts with public and charter schools in Chicago.

Quazzo says she's playing it straight by the books and has publicly disclosed all her investments. She has also "committed to give back any and all profit generated by [her] K12 edtech investments to organizations that support Chicago Public School students."

"I am angry but fine," writes Quazzo. "I'm angry because nowhere in this back and forth has there been any focus on having an impact on students. Personally, I am here to make a difference and no number of Sun-Times articles will deter me from that goal."

More on the ongoing saga, and a response from the Sun-Times, from BuzzFeed.

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