Recent changes to the federal student loan program will affect student loan borrowing, repayment, and debt. Payments on student loans, which were suspended during the coronavirus pandemic, restarted in October 2023. A new repayment plan introduced in August 2023 will significantly reduce interest accrual and payments for certain borrowers.…

The 101 Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) play an important role in higher education and in their local and regional economies. Among African Americans who obtained a doctorate in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics in 2005-2010, more than one-third earned their undergraduate degrees from an HBCU. The Government…

Many welfare programs give greater benefits to unmarried individuals than to a married couple of otherwise identical income. The resulting marriage penalty discourages marriage and rewards single parenthood. Combined marriage penalties across federal and state welfare programs can reach tens of thousands of dollars per year for a given family. One…

In recent years, the federal government (under Republican and Democratic administrations alike) has encouraged the outsourcing of core parts of public education's work, including testing and test preparation, teaching and tutoring, data collection, and human resources management. However, researchers have found little evidence to support policy…

Twenty-first century education reform shifted the pursuit of public education from democratic principles to the pursuit of private interests for individual benefit. Reasoning from an applied behavior economic theoretical framework assumes consumers seeking economic benefits from their public schools will seek public schools with more resources.…

All children deserve the best possible future. But in this era of increasing economic and social inequality, more and more children are being denied their fair chance at life. This book examines the impact of inequality on children's health and education, and offers a blueprint for addressing the impact of inequality among children in economic,…

Oftentimes, policymakers discuss school reform only in terms of its benefits to students. In this brief, researcher Bartley R. Danielsen identifies how more multifaceted reforms can not only improve educational outcomes for students but also revitalize communities by encouraging wealthy families to remain in lower-income areas, thereby raising…

Pursuing new, commonsense approaches to education reform and work-family policies, from childcare and early education through higher education and workforce flexibility, will foster the conditions for family flourishing and increase birth rates for married couples. Affordable childcare from a variety of providers, including at-home options, access…

In this article, Ajay Chaudry and Heather Sandstrom review research on child care and early education for children under age three. They describe the array of early care and education arrangements families use for infants and toddlers; how these patterns have changed in recent decades; and differences by family socioeconomic status, race, and…

Because the earliest years of life are a period of incredible growth, they present an opportunity to shape strong and positive development. Good health, secure and stable families, and positive early learning environments are necessary to foster children's physical, intellectual, and social-emotional development during this significant period. Yet…

Across the U.S., large numbers of young children are affected by one or more risk factors that have been linked to academic failure and poor health. High quality early care and education can play a critical role in promoting young children's early learning and success in life, while also supporting families' economic security. Young…

In 2013, preschool education received more attention in the media and public policy circles than it has for some time, in part because of a series of high-profile proposals to expand access to quality pre-K. The scientific basis for these proposed expansions of quality pre-K is impressive. This paper brings to bear the full weight of the evidence…

The Academy for Educational Development (AED) has many opportunities to apply expertise and creativity to the solution of perplexing human problems. It is much more rare, however, to find oneself at the nexus of a set of opportunities that make it possible to make a greater contribution than the original objective. Macedonia's commitment to…

Every parent recognizes the inextricable connections between where we live and the quality of our children's education. Although public policies have historically contributed to disparities in both neighborhood affordability and school quality, federal programs focused on affordable housing rarely take public schools into account and school…

In the past 150 years, educational systems have expanded and become integrally linked with economic, political, and social status in modern nation-states. As the stakes for education have risen, so has the call for more and improved use of scientific evidence as a basis for educational policymaking. Evidence from averaged scores on international…