Betsy DeVos and Pennsylvania charter schools

No one illustrates that relationship better than DeVos, who established Students First PA and who still runs its national parent organization, American Federation for Children. Jeffrey Yass, one of the local millionaires who donates to Students First PA, is also on the board of the Cato Institute – a think tank whose studies have been cited to explain votes on charter expansion by Pennsylvania legislators who received donations from Students First.

Since its inception in 2010, Students First has given more than $200,000 to PACS supporting seven state senators on the 11-member education committee alone, plus more than $5 million to support Democratic State Senate Whip Anthony Williams in his failed gubernatorial primary campaign.

The most cash given to a member of the committee other than Williams was $111,500, to PACs supporting Republican Joseph Scarnati. Although most of the recipients were Republicans, $45,000 from Students First went to the minority chairman of the committee, Democrat Andy Dinniman.
The super PAC also contributed to the PAC supporting the campaign of former Gov. Tom Corbett, a Republican.

Students First has donated nearly $300,000 to support the campaigns of seven state representatives on the House education committee, with Jim Christiana, a Republican, receiving the most, and $26,500 going to the majority chairman, Republican Stan Saylor. The super PAC also contributed $76,000 to the failed primary opponent of Minority Chairman Jim Roebuck, a Democrat who has never received money from Students First.