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Where Will Mark Zuckerberg Direct His $45 Billion? Here Are Some Clues
Wall Street Journal Digits blog | 12/2/15

Behind the Headline
Learning Optimized
Education Next | Summer 2013

Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, announced that they will give away 99 percent of their Facebook shares for charitable purposes to “advance human potential and promote equality.”

What will that mean? Looking at the projects they have supported in the past in education and health care may offer some clues.

Deepa Seetharaman notes

Mr. Zuckerberg and Dr. Chan’s work in education focuses on personalized learning and expanding Internet access, as Facebook pursues similar goals.

In September, Facebook said it would work with Summit Public Schools, a charter-school system in the San Francisco area, to build software so students can learn at their own speed.

The CEO of Summit Public Schools, Diane Tavenner, was profiled for Education Next by Joanne Jacobs in 2013. Tavenner spoke of going beyond blended learning to create an “optimized learning environment.”

—Education Next