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January 14, 2014 Submitted Electronically to EDFOIAManager@ed.gov and via Certified Mail U.S. Department of Education Office of Management Regulatory Information Management Services 400 Maryland Avenue, SW, LBJ 2W220 Washington, DC 20202-4536 ATTN: FOIA Public Liaison Dear FOIA Public Liaison: Integrity in Education makes the following request for records under the Freedom of Information Act. First, we seek records related to any ethics rules or professional requirements that may have been waived (or requested to be waived) on behalf of any Department of Education (ED) officials or staff. Second, we request a subset of records of or reflecting communications from January 20, 2009 to the present to, from and/or among the following past and current ED officials or any staff members acting on their behalf: Secretary Arne Duncan, Acting Deputy Secretary Jim Shelton, Under Secretary Martha Kanter, Karen Cator, Richard Culatta, Deborah Delisle, Peter Cunningham, Massie Ritsch, Justin Hamilton, Emma Vadehra, Margot Rogers, Joanne Weiss, and Jacqueline Jones. This subset of records should include any and all communications about the following organizations, as well as any communications between or among the aforementioned officials and/or their representatives, and any agents of the following organizations: the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, the National Governors Association (NGA), the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO), Student Achievement Partners (SAP), the College Board, Digital Promise, Educational Testing Service (ETS), Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Foundation, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Pearson Foundation, Pearson PLC, NewSchools Venture Fund, the Walton Family Foundation, and the Broad Foundation.

We seek records of any kind, including emails, letters, and facsimiles, as well as any attachments to these records. We are happy to discuss ways in which this request might be modified or clarified to better enable the U.S. Department of Education to process it within the established FOIA deadlines. Integrity in Education is a public interest group and this request is not for commercial use. Therefore, we request a waiver of all fees for this request. As an organization, we believe that ordinary people have the right and responsibility to understand how our government officials enact the policies that affect our lives. We are committed to equipping our fellow public school stakeholders with the knowledge needed to become informed, active participants in the education policymaking process. The information gathered in this request will be analyzed and shared with the public in various ways, including through reports, press releases, and digital media. Any documents gained through this request will also be shared online at www.integrityineducation.org. Disclosure of the requested information to us is in the public interest because it will aid the publics understanding of the how the Department of Education created and promoted some of its most significant policy initiatives, which will in turn help us understand how we can influence other policy initiatives in the future. Thank you for your consideration of this request. Sincerely,

Sabrina Joy Stevens Executive Director, Integrity in Education sabrina@integrityineducation.org