Dive Brief:
- An investigative report by Politico has found that Pearson publishing often lands education contracts without competitive bidding, is granted access to private college student data without security safeguards, and earns millions of dollars from products and services that don’t produce demonstrated academic gains.
- About $4 billion of Pearson’s sales — half of its global total — are in the North American market.
- Included on the list of entities that have awarded no-bid contracts to Pearson are the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, the University of Florida, and public colleges in Texas.
Dive Insight:
The Politico article offers many damning examples of Pearson’s business practices. The company had a charitable foundation that, until 2013, flew U.S. school representatives to other countries to conferences where Pearson was the only education company represented. Additionally, it notes that Pearson writes contracts that set out performance targets without any penalties for failing to meet the targets, and that its marketers promise for-profit colleges that it will help them “stay one step ahead” of federal regulations.
