By Susan M. Dynarski. Many worry that student loans are a drag on the economy, particularly the housing market. Analyses from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, cited by leading economists, do not provide compelling evidence for this hypothesis. The New York Fed data contain no information about education. More...
The (bigger than we realized) role race plays in college debt
By Richard V. Reeves. Student debt is an inequality problem. Borrowing to invest in a good college education is a sound investment for many, if not most, young people. Debt is a problem for those who borrow expensively to attend poor-quality institutions. And the debt problem has a strong racial dimension. More...
Make STEM education exciting and engaging
By Jack Karsten. Education in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) is a priority for policymakers that want the United States to remain competitive in these fields. While this discussion has gone on for some time, the rapid pace of technological advancement makes STEM education an increasingly urgent topic. More...
A closer look at the race gaps highlighted in Obama's Howard University commencement address
By Allegra Pocinki and Richard V. Reeves. The final months of Obama’s historic terms of office as America’s first black president are taking place against the backdrop of an ugly Republican nominating race, and to the sound of ugly language on race from Donald Trump. Progress towards racial equality is indeed proceeding in faltering steps, as the president himself made clear in a commencement speech, one of his last as president, to the graduating class of Howard University. More...
What do teachers do when they leave teaching?
By Dick Startz. When teachers leave teaching, where do they go next? Are they getting good jobs outside of education? Or are subsequent jobs more of a lateral move? Or do teachers who quit teaching also quit working. More...
Disrupting manufacturing: Innovation and the future of skilled labor
By Daniel Araya and Christopher Sulavik. The common assumption today is that robots will soon drive our cars, manage our work, and manufacture our goods. But what is the reality of disruptive innovation in U.S. manufacturing? And how should schools educate skilled labor for this new era. More...
What genetic information can tell us about economic inequality
By Nicholas Papageorge and Kevin Thom. Income and wealth inequality in the U.S. is a stark reality. Research from a variety of fields demonstrates that children born into poor families tend to end up less educated, less healthy, more prone to contact with the police, and less likely to accumulate wealth over a lifetime. In contrast, children born into well-off families tend to exhibit better outcomes on all of these dimensions. More...