There is a sense that accountability is a one-way street. Funders, their staff, and their grantees talk a lot about accountability for schools and teachers, but find it easy to walk away from their own missteps or miscalculations.

Foundation staff get treated with kid gloves. They're always welcome. Everyone nods in appreciation when they speak.

Ultimately, donors and foundation staff don't have to answer to anybody besides themselves. They're free to interpret their experiences however they like. This is why they can come across as unaccountable and smitten with their own wisdom. But it's also good to keep things in perspective. If you're bitterly angry at someone who's voluntarily giving away large sums of money, you probably need to take a deep breath.

Read the full article by Rick Hess at Education Week