Based in Washington, D.C., the Academy for Educational Development was recently acquired by FHI 360, and although the AED website, AED.org is still up and running, it is unclear for how long. The AED site currently offers the message, “FHI 360 has acquired the programs, expertise, and assets of AED. Information will be integrated into [the FHI 360 website] as soon as possible.” AED was a nonprofit organization which worked internationally to improve health, education, economic development, and civil society. Their vision was to make a positive difference in the lives of people by helping to implement innovative solutions to critical economic and social problems.
Previous programs offered through AED.org addressed education, enterprise & economic development, environment & energy, HIV / AIDS, leadership & democracy, and youth. AED’s approaches utilized in their programs were behavior change, fighting gender bias, partnerships, research & education, social marketing, technology applications, and training. Programs have since been, for the most part, transferred to FHI 360 and AED has ceased to exist.
Trouble for AED was first made public in 2009 when it was announced that the then-president of the organization was paid $879,530 in compensation in 2007. Stephen Moseley, the AED president announced in November 2010 that he would retire in January of 2011. In December, 2010, USAID (the United States Agency for International Development) suspended awards of new federal service contracts to AED because of “serious corporate misconduct” regarding their expenditures in Afghanistan and Pakistan. In June, 2011, the AED agreed to a settlement from the US Department of Justice which demanded that the AED pay over $5 million in order to settle false claims act allegations.
It is currently unknown how much longer the AED website, AED.org will exist.
