Arizona has made some of the biggest cuts to higher education seen across the country in recent years, so a proposed $5 million grant of unknown provenance dedicated to the state’s “economic freedom” centers — all of which received seed funds from the conservative Koch family — is raising eyebrows.
The mysterious $5 million was first reported earlier this month by the Arizona Capitol Times. “One of the few reprieves the universities are getting is a $5 million addition specifically earmarked for ‘economic freedom schools,’” said the Times. “However, many lawmakers have no idea what an ‘economic freedom school’ or center is.”