The author reports on a new effort by 12 major education philanthropies that aims to dovetail with the Education Department's "i3" agenda, raising complex issues. The decision by a dozen major education grantmakers to team up on an initiative designed to dovetail with the federal "Investing in Innovation" grant competition is being seen by supporters as a chance to maximize the power of public and private resources to help transform K-12 education. But it's also renewing concerns that the Obama administration and the philanthropic sector are becoming too intertwined--in ways that could crowd out support for worthy reform ideas not favored by the federal government. The joint announcement from the U.S. Department of Education and private philanthropies indicated that the foundations were providing $506 million in 2010 to "leverage" the federal i3 fund, making more than $1 billion available to help expand promising innovations, including a portion the foundations will use to meet the 20 percent match required under the federal program. The philanthropies have developed a shared online registry, called the "Foundation Registry i3", to help connect the districts, schools, and nonprofit groups applying for the federal grant funds with the 12 philanthropies. Foundation officials say the initiative holds great promise. However, some observers say there may be reason for worry about the development, which comes in an environment in which they suggest philanthropic organizations and the Education Department have already been collaborating to an extent that may well be unprecedented.