Lessons For All From DC’s Bold Improvement Schools

by Mira Taichman, Education Reform Now and Josh Boots, EmpowerK12 Over the last decade, the District of Columbia invested in a set of education reforms designed to accelerate school improvement. These reforms include expansion of quality public charter schools, closure of low-performing charter schools, and new teacher evaluation, curriculum, and professional development systems in traditional

A Deeper Look into Massachusetts’ Struggling Community College System

By: Konrad Mugglestone   To me, one finding from our recent deep dive into Massachusetts public higher education has been particularly shocking. Bay State students of color are much more likely to attend a community college than the national average and much less likely to complete their degrees. Massachusetts Black high school graduates are 50 percent more likely,

The Current State of Immigration Play

by Janette Martinez Earlier today, the House defeated a bill purported to address DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) and other immigration issues. The vote was 121 to 301. All Democrats and 112 Republicans voted no. What follows is a brief explainer of how we got here and what happens next, in both political and

The Moral Imperative to Tackle Higher Ed Reform

by Michael Dannenberg and Konrad Mugglestone Education reform advocates should recognize that extending their work to higher ed is a moral imperative that also happens to present a political opportunity.   Here’s a summary of our argument: Education reform will fail to deliver on its goals if we do not improve the quality of higher education

Candidate’s Guide to Public Education in CT: The Facts and Why They Matter for Our Future

We can all agree: Connecticut is looking ahead to the future and planning for new fiscal and social realities. Students must be at the center of these game-changing initiatives, and meeting their needs will secure the fiscal health and growth of our state for generations to come. Connecticut’s progress on the National Assessment of Educational

Democrats’ Epic Teacher Pay Proposal: How to Make It a Great Deal for Teachers and Students

by Charles Barone   This week, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer and House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi announced a new plan to take the tax cuts Congress gave away last year to the top 1% of all earners and repurpose the funds to boost teacher salaries. This is arguably the boldest K-12 education proposal we’ve

Louisiana Could Have Redefined ‘Merit’ Scholarships with TOPS Reform

By Konrad Mugglestone “If you have to be cynical, if you can’t think about the kids, if you can’t acknowledge that our society owes them a chance, then fine. I’ll settle it for you: Educate them or support them. Can we build enough projects? Enough prisons? Can we hire enough policemen? Can we, in fact, support them?”

College Dropouts Now Exceed High School Dropouts. What Are We Going to Do About It?

Guest Post by Chad Aldeman Three years ago, I wrote about an eye-opening statistic: There are more American adults who have dropped out of college than who have dropped out of high school. After updating the data, the long-term trends look even more compelling. The graph below shows what I found. The blue line tracks

Immigration Policy Affects College Students, Too

by Janette Martinez  Earlier this week, we highlighted how current immigration crackdowns threaten to undo decades of progress in the Latinx* community, and how those crackdowns are hurting K-12 students. Today, we look at how immigration policy also affects higher education. More Latinx students are enrolling in college than ever before. The gap in college

Four More March Madness Matchups to Watch

By Emily Labandera and Janette Martinez Earlier this week, we brought you five matchups to watch in this year’s March Madness tournament. Today, we bring you three more real March Madness head-to-head matchups (and one hypothetical) based on institutional costs and student outcomes. Check out our matchups based on enrollment, cost, aid, debt, and graduation