More than 150 skeptics of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation protested in front of the philanthropy's Seattle headquarters on Thursday, objecting to the foundation's support of, among other things, the Common Core academic standards.
On the afternoon before that protest, a top Gates official told KPLU that the foundation has been open to teachers' concerns about the new standards.
"Teachers are the first to say that we want to be sure that kids exit high school and graduate able to succeed in life and in their community, and I think that's why so many teachers do support the standards," said Vicki Phillips, the Gates Foundation's director of education. "At the same time, they have some really legitimate concerns about assessment, accountability and poverty."
Listen to Phillips' full interview above.
Here's our wrap-up story from the protest:
