By Larry Lipman, Palm Beach Post, September 15, 2007

15 Sep 2007 // A nonpartisan ethics watchdog group has urged the Department of Education's inspector general to investigate why federal money has been spent on educational products sold by a company founded and headed by Neil Bush, President Bush's younger brother.

The company, Ignite! Learning, based in Austin, Texas, has sold hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of curriculum-loaded projectors to school districts across the country, partially funded through the federal No Child Left Behind Act promoted by the president, according to a 16-page letter sent Wednesday from the group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.

Over the past five years, Palm Beach County schools spent $46,000 for the units, of which $38,400 was federal money, according to documents filed with the letter to the inspector general.

Palm Beach County School District spokesman Nat Harrington confirmed that the district purchased three or four of the units several years ago to allow struggling students at certain schools to receive extra independent instruction.

However, the units were not in line with the district's "very targeted" academic goals, and when Neil Bush visited district headquarters about two years ago to offer additional units, local educators turned him down, Harrington said.

"It was a good idea, but not great," he said. "It wasn't something that we wanted to invest in."

In its letter, the watchdog group claimed there is no evidence the units -- known as COWs for Curriculum on Wheels -- meet standards and requirements for educational products in the No Child Left Behind Act.

"It is astonishing that taxpayer dollars are being spent on unproven educational products to the financial benefit of the president's brother," said Melanie Sloan, CREW's executive director. "The IG should investigate whether children's educations are being sacrificed so that Neil Bush can rake in federal funds."

Devon Price, director of marketing for Ignite! Learning, confirmed that Bush is the company's founder and chief executive. Bush could not be reached for comment.

The company issued a statement maintaining that it "has no control over how school districts choose to spend federal funds."

The company also claimed that CREW's letter contains inaccurate statements about the Ignite! curriculum, which it said is used in 22 states.

"What we can say is that Title I and other federal monies have been used to purchase Ignite! products, just as they have been used to purchase products from every other educational publisher and provider," the statement said.

A spokeswoman for the Department of Education's inspector general confirmed that the office had received the letter but declined further comment.