2016 | First Presidential Debate: Hillary Clinton & Donald Trump on Education | Part 1: One of Them is a Wonk

  By Charles Barone and Marianne Lombardo Last night, Lester Holt, the moderator for the first Presidential debate on Monday, September 26,  announced the topics he will cover with Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump: “America’s Direction,” “Achieve Prosperity” and “Securing America.” They’re pretty nebulous so, who knows, maybe even education will come up. Here’s a rundown of the candidates’

Governor Mike Pence-il’s Unfortunate Adventures in K-12 Education Policy

By Marianne Lombardo   Republican Vice Presidential nominee Mike Pence’s record on K-12 education is so riddled with erratic and mercurial decision-making that he’s known around the Indiana State Capitol as “Governor Pencil.”* Pence assumed office as Indiana Governor in January 2013. Here are some “highlights” of what happened – or didn’t – in K-12

Stop Burying Your Heads In the Sand, Colleges

By Mary Nguyen Barry Turns out it’s not only parents who are in denial about the quality of their children’s schools, but colleges – perhaps unsurprisingly – are too.     We recently detailed how perhaps the complacency that’s likely in part driving the Common Core opt-out movement directly hurts the pocketbooks of families who

Hidden High School to College Remediation & Dropout Costs

By Mary Nguyen Barry and Michael Dannenberg   Check out a fast PowerPoint of our latest report on how half a million college freshmen from all income backgrounds – including middle class and wealthy backgrounds – attending all types of colleges pay an extra $1.5 billion a year out-of-pocket for content they should have learned in high

A Parent’s Heartbreak to See College Dreams Crushed

By Marianne Lombardo   There’s no heartbreak worse than seeing your child struggle. And when they struggle to make a successful college transition, it can impact the rest of their life. In my son’s case, the public K-12 schools and the college of his dreams got paid, but he got a pink slip.    

Out of Pocket: The High Cost of Inadequate High Schools and High School Student Achievement on College Affordability

  By Mary Nguyen Barry and Michael Dannenberg    Academic under-preparation at the high school level is seen across income groups and reflected in widespread remedial education at a broad cross-section of colleges.  It’s hurting students’ chances for success in college, costing families a sizable amount out of pocket, and making college a poor value proposition for

RELEASE: Americans Spending At Least $1.5 Billion in College Remediation Courses; Middle Class Pays the Most

  EMBARGOED FOR RELEASE: 12:01 a.m. EDT, April 6, 2016   For further information: Michael Vaughn, Director of Communications 303-921-9350 mvaughn@educationpost.org   Americans Spending At Least $1.5 Billion in College Remediation Courses; Middle Class Pays the Most Lack of Rigor in High Schools Adds to Cost of College   More than half a million college

Fox 5 NY: Shavar Jeffries Says Opt Out Effort Could Adversely Impact Communities of Color

Today, Democrats for Education Reform National President Shavar Jeffries appeared on FOX 5’s Good Day New York to discuss Common Core, New York State opt out groups and how their efforts could have an adverse impact on children of color. The segment comes as New York’s public schools begin statewide standardized testing:  

Kasich’s Contradictory Education Record

By Marianne Lombardo As the winner of last Tuesday’s Ohio Republican primary and the only Republican establishment candidate still officially in a race that could be decided via a contested convention in his home state, it’s John Kasich’s moment.  What kind of President would Kasich, who has a reputation as a middle-of-the-road pragmatist, be on

DFER-DC Statement on Elementary & Middle School PARCC Scores

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Statement From DFER D.C. Director on Elementary & Middle School PARCC Scores “For too many kids, their zip code is still determining their access to quality education.” Washington, DC — Today, the Office of the State Superintendent for Education released the 2014-2015 Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) scores for