Jennifer Smith Richards (@jsmithrichards.bsky.social)

@megomatz.bsky.social Oct 5, 2026, 1:55 PMReposted by @jsmithrichards.bsky.social

How @propublica.org Reporters Became Private School Owners in 24 Hours

The reporting experiment demonstrates how easy it can be to open private schools that might then access public money. No credentials or background checks required. / by @jodiscohen.bsky.social @jsmithrichards.bsky.social

propublica.orgHow ProPublica Reporters Became Private School Owners in 24 HoursThe reporting experiment demonstrates how easy it can be to open private schools that might then access public money. No credentials or background checks required.

@jsmithrichards.bsky.social Oct 2, 2026, 9:27 PM

Hey hey - if you're interested in the reporting we've been doing on school privatization, do join us for this, won't you? It should be an interesting virtual discussion!

@propublica.org Oct 2, 2026, 12:07 PMReposted by @jsmithrichards.bsky.social

NEW: We’re reporters, not teachers. We have no business running a private school. But to show you just how easy it is to start one, we decided to test the process ourselves.

propublica.orgAlmost Anyone Can Start a Private School. We Put This to the Test.Our reporting has shown how easily people — some with questionable backgrounds — have founded their own private schools in barns, strip malls and other places. That led us to an experiment: If the hur...

@jsmithrichards.bsky.social Oct 2, 2026, 8:52 PM

Yeah? Which state? I’m intrigued.

@jsmithrichards.bsky.social Oct 2, 2026, 1:27 PM

With @jodiscohen.bsky.social and @jenniferberryhawes.bsky.social and a team of local reporters across three states, we conducted an experiment in establishing private and microschools. And you can see for yourself what it takes -- just take this quiz by @zisiga.bsky.social.

@jsmithrichards.bsky.social Oct 2, 2026, 1:19 PM

I've been a reporter for a long time and this might be the strangest thing I've ever done. We've been reporting on privatization of schools this year and found that just about anyone can open a private school in most states. So we asked, Could reporters do it?

propublica.orgAlmost Anyone Can Start a Private School. We Put This to the Test.Our reporting has shown how easily people — some with questionable backgrounds — have founded their own private schools in barns, strip malls and other places. That led us to an experiment: If the hur...

@jsmithrichards.bsky.social Sep 24, 2026, 4:28 PM

Glad to be there! You all had great questions. 🙌🏻

@jsmithrichards.bsky.social Jul 16, 2026, 4:38 PM

A woman who sexually abused a minor. Boxer Mike Tyson, who served time for rape. Both of these people launched private schools that collected public money. As the voucher system grows more popular, few states have guardrails in place. Read this wild story from me & my brilliant colleagues.

propublica.orgPublic Money Is Fueling an Explosion of Private Schools. States Often Don’t Care How They’re Run.As private schools proliferate, states are choosing a hands-off approach to regulating them. The backgrounds of school founders — sometimes with criminal histories — often don’t matter

@jsmithrichards.bsky.social Jul 15, 2026, 1:41 PM

“Most people don’t think you’re a nice kid," the owner of an Arkansas private school told a boy before urging other students to take turns attacking him. She repeatedly thwacked him with a footlong plastic cylinder, calling him a liar.

propublica.orgThis Private School Had Students Scrub Floors and Attack a Fellow Classmate. The State Still Funds It.One of the few requirements for Arkansas private schools is that they have an American flag and a flagpole. But millions in state funds go to the largely unmonitored schools while complaints about saf...