Foundation involvement in policy development for public education raises basic questions concerning the control of a prime societal function. During the Cold War era (1945-1970) the Carnegie Corporation of New York funded projects according to its philosophical interests, using its financial and organizational prominence and cooperative strategies to capture a national policy-making role. The power or influence levied by the Corporation rested with its financial wealth, and the ability of its founder to place it in a trust fund with special privileges, such as tax exemption. The managerial class that has developed around these special trust funds holds no special talent, ability, education, or competence that is not found elsewhere. They do, however, have a unique quality of influence deriving from access to the Carnegie wealth. The Corporation was in no sense a benevolent, impartial, independent broker of innovation and experimentation. Indeed, Carnegie had a cause and sought to establish that cause as national policy for the schools. Without public debate or national referendum the Corporation and its president over a 25-year period sought to achieve dominance in policy-making. The issue now faces American education: Should any group of individuals with special privileges and resources be able to influence education as Carnegie did in the postwar era? (Author/MSE)