H. Christopher "Chris" Whittle (born August 23, 1947) is an American media and education entrepreneur. He is the chief executive officer of Avenues: The World School, a planned international system of independent pre-K-12 schools. Avenues will open its first campus in New York City in fall 2012.[1][2] Whittle founded Edison Schools (now EdisonLearning) with Benno C. Schmidt, Jr.
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Whittle was born in Etowah, Tennessee. After graduating from the University of Tennessee with a major in American Studies, Whittle started the magazine Knoxville in a Nutshell with Phillip Moffitt and others. 13-30 Corporation in Knoxville. In 1979 13-30 bought Esquire magazine, where Whittle served as chairman and publisher for a number of years. In 1986, 13-30 became Whittle Communications, which was one of America’s top 100 media companies in the late 1980’s - known for creating and publishing single-advertiser magazines that were placed in medical office waiting rooms. In 1989, Whittle Communications launched Channel One News, a national in-school television news program (first anchored by Anderson Cooper). Channel One News’ programming reached eight million students daily in 12,000 schools[3] and won the Peabody Award.[4] Whittle sold the company in 1994.
He is the author of Crash Course: Imagining a Better Future for Public Education, published in 2005,[5] and wrote a chapter on the rise of global schooling for Customized Schooling: Beyond Whole-School Reform, published by Harvard Education Press in 2011. Whittle sits on the board of the Center for Education Reform[6] in Washington, D.C. In October 2010 he received an “accomplished alumnus” award from the University of Tennessee, his alma mater, where he has funded over 180 full scholarships.[7]
Whittle serves on the board of EdisonLearning (formerly Edison Schools).the company he founded with Benno C. Schmidt, Jr. in 1992. Edison was an early pioneer in public/private partnerships in K-12 education in America. EdisonLearning now serves 450,000 students on three continents through the schools it operates and a variety of other educational programs. Edison Schools was a public company from 1999 to 2003, with its stock traded on the NASDAQ. After reaching a high of close to USD$40 per share in early 2001, shares fell as low as 14 cents. The company was taken private in 2003, in a buyout which valued the company at $180 million [8] or $1.76 per share.[9]
He is married to Priscilla dei conti Rattazzi, daughter of Urbano dei conti Rattazzi and Susanna Agnelli. They have two daughters, Andrea and Sasha.[10]