Seth Andrew
Seth Andrew is an American entrepreneur and convicted thief, who helped found Democracy Prep Public Schools, a national network of charter schools based in Harlem, and Democracy Builders, a social sector incubator that launched Washington Leadership Academy, the Arena Summit, and Degrees of Freedom. He was an advisor for former-president Obama. In April 2021, Andrew was arrested and was caught of embezzling over $200,000 from Democracy Prep. He pled guilty to charges in January 2022. Education. Andrew attended the Bronx High School of Science, earned his A.B. from Brown University, and his Ed.M from the  Harvard Graduate School of Education. Career. Democracy Prep. In 2005, Andrew founded Democracy Prep Public Schools in Harlem, New York. The network has grown to serve more than 6,500 students in New York, New Jersey, Louisiana, Nevada, and Texas. Democracy Prep has been the subject of significant academic research due to its emphasis on civic engagement and unique financial model that relies exclusively on public dollars. Obama administration. From 2014 to 2016, Andrew served as senior advisor and superintendent-in-residence at the U.S. Department of Education and was a senior advisor in the Office of Educational Technology under the  Presidency of Barack Obama. Bridge International Academies. From 2017 to 2018, Andrew was Global Director of Policy & Partnerships at Bridge International Academies Degrees of Freedom. In 2020, under Andrew’s leadership, Democracy Builders and Marlboro College announced that Democracy Builders would acquire the Marlboro College campus in order to build a low-residency, low-cost college program for low-income students. The Degrees of Freedom program would last four years, from eleventh grade to the second year of college, and would result in an associate degree. The program is slated to be largely online, with students only being on campus  two weeks out of each trimester. In February 2021, Andrew announced that Democracy Builders had sold the campus to "Type 1 Civilization Academy" via a quitclaim deed. On March 9, 2021, During an invitation-only community meeting on Zoom, Andrew announced that the Type 1 deal had been cancelled. He called the agreement "an engagement" rather than "a marriage". Andrew filed another quit claim deed which transferred the property back to Democracy Builders. The principal of Type 1, Adrian Stein, said that Type 1 was legitimately in control of the campus and that the issue will likely end up in  court unless they can find "some other kind of equitable settlement." Degrees of Freedom is currently partnered with Doral College, a Florida-based educational institution. Racism allegations. In June 2020, Andrew was the subject of allegations of racism by "Black N Brown at DP", an anonymous group of Democracy Prep students, alumni, and present/former staff of color. The social media account claims that that both Andrew himself and the schools he headed were built on an education system of systemic racism and manipulative behavior towards people of color. Andrew responded to the accusations in a June 24 post on  Medium, which he later deleted. In the essay, Andrew apologized for his past mistakes and made promises regarding his future conduct. The Marlboro Selectboard called on the Marlboro College Board of Trustees to investigate allegations of racism at Democracy Prep Charter Schools. The Marlboro Alumni Council condemned Andrew, and called for the sale of the college to be cancelled. Despite the accusations, the Marlboro College Board of Trustees announced they would proceed with the sale following their investigation into the allegations. In July 2020, Andrew and members of Degrees of Freedom claimed that the "Black N Brown at DP" collective  were creating false narratives and stories in order to deter the purchase of Marlboro College. During a July 20, Town of Marlboro Select Board public meeting regarding the sale of Marlboro College to Andrew and Democracy Builders, the identity of a member of "Black N Brown at DP" who testified anonymously was revealed by two Democracy Prep supporters without her consent. Arrest. In April 2021, Andrew was arrested and charged with wire fraud, money laundering, and making false statements to a financial institution. Andrew is alleged to have embezzled $218,005 from bank accounts controlled by Democracy Prep Public Schools  in order to receive a lower mortgage rate for a multimillion dollar Manhattan apartment which he and his wife bought in August 2019. Andrew was released on $500,000 bond. He was ordered to remain in Vermont, where he lives. In January, 2022, Andrew pleaded guilty to stealing more than $200,000 from bank accounts controlled by Democracy Prep. Personal life. Andrew is married to CBS News correspondent Lana Zak. The couple have three children.