"Varying Degrees 2024" continues to explore Americans' perspectives on a variety of higher education issues, including value, affordability, funding, and accountability. The findings this year show Americans' confidence in higher education declines in a few areas. But at the same time, they still believe higher education is worth it and…

"The State of Career Technical Education: Credentials of Value" report draws on a 2024 national scan of state practices, a 50-state survey, and interviews with state leaders to gather insights and strategies for improving the identification, validation, incentivization, and data collection related to credentials that support learners'…

The Prevention and Intervention Programs for Children and Youth Who Are Neglected, Delinquent, or At-Risk, is authorized by Title I, Part D of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) and was most recently amended in 2015 by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). This guidance is intended to be used in conjunction with the…

Drawing boundaries in federal systems is often a practical and constitutional challenge for public finance and the delivery of higher education. This paper studies arrangements between national and provincial governments as they affect post-secondary performance in Canada. The study investigates several categories of interaction between levels of…

A task force is established to analyze how public schools use English learner (EL) revenue at the site level and administrative level, consider how microcredentials or other certifications may be used to improve collaboration between teachers working with ELs, and make recommendations on how EL revenue can be used more effectively to help students…

Public higher education leaders have entered 2024 aided by tailwinds of fiscal stability in many states and a strong national economy, but some challenges of the post-pandemic era remain, including strengthening the value proposition of higher education, building public trust, and meeting changing economic and workforce needs. This paper presents…

Thirty years ago, charter schools embodied possibility. They were envisioned as nimble, innovative, community-driven alternatives to traditional public schools -- laboratories of experimentation led by teachers and grounded in equity. The grand bargain was clear: more freedom from regulations and bureaucracy in exchange for heightened…

The federal government currently provides more than $150 billion each year to students and their families in the form of grants, loans, work-study funds, and tax credits to help make college more affordable. This sizable public investment in higher education has indeed made college attendance possible for a larger share of Americans. However,…

New Jersey's state grant program delivers the highest level of need-based aid per student in the country. And the state's major grant program, the Tuition Aid Grant (TAG), funds all eligible students, rather than excluding students when the funding runs out. But different levels of grant aid for enrollment in different institutions within sectors,…

After decades of slow growth, the share of young Americans completing college has increased to 48 percent in 2019, from 39 percent 10 years earlier. What accounts for the rise? Are more students clearing a meaningful bar for graduation, or are colleges and universities engaging in credential inflation and lowering their academic standards? This…

This report is an update to "Credentials Matter. Report 1: A National Landscape of High School Student Credential Attainment Compared to Workforce Demand" (ED612414). It explores the credentials earned by both K-12 and postsecondary students. The report examines whether those credentials are, or are not, aligned with employers' demand.…

Funding for California schools had improved rapidly in recent years but is still insufficient to meet educational goals and address the needs of students. Now, schools and districts face three major challenges: precipitous declines in student academic achievement and social-emotional wellbeing; increased costs associated with distance learning and…

Funding for California schools has improved rapidly in recent years but remains insufficient to meet educational goals and address the needs of students, particularly given California's high cost of living. Now, school districts face flat or declining revenues and rapidly growing student academic and social-emotional needs due to COVID-19.…

In spring 2020, New America and the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association (SHEEO) partnered on a year-long research project to understand the effect of the confluence of the pandemic, economic crisis, and racial reckoning on America's colleges and universities. We interviewed over 100 college leaders from across higher education…

The passage of the "Every Student Succeeds" Act (ESSA) provides states the opportunity to craft new goals and strategies for science education. By setting clear goals for science achievement, states can leverage existing policies, including assessments and graduation requirements, to help drive toward set goals. This brief provides a…