by Dr. Watson Scott Swail, President & CEO, Educational Policy Institute Eight years ago I wrote a piece for EPI’s Student Success Magazine titled “Seven Guiding Questions for Student Retention.” That seems ions ago, but people still come up to me and comment on that particular writing sample of mine. I came across it the other day and found that, for better or worse, the … Continue reading Seven Guiding Questions for Student Retention
By Dr. Watson Scott Swail, President & CEO, Educational Policy Institute This morning, the President and First Lady spoke at the White House Summit on College Opportunity. This was their bully pulpit push to expand postsecondary opportunity, especially to low-income and first-generation students. First Lady Michele Obama spoke about the “limitless capacity” that lies in our young people and reminded us that education is a two-way … Continue reading A White House Summit on College Opportunity
By Dr. Watson Scott Swail, President & CEO, Educational Policy Institute Last month, Time Magazine and Minnesota Public Radio both interviewed me about the use of the Collegiate Learning Assessment PLUS (CLA+) as a measure of “workforce readiness.” For the uninitiated, the CLA+ is a reuse of the “College Learning Assessment,” created by Rand Corporation with support of several large philanthropies back in the 2000s. … Continue reading Really? Another Standardized Test for College Graduates? Really!
By Dr. Watson Scott Swail, President & CEO, Educational Policy Institute About a month ago, I was privileged to participate in the annual “college orientation” indoctrination process at a major public institution. My middle son is off to college in a few weeks, and, for our part, we were to visit the institution, he was to stay over the night, and I was to hang … Continue reading My College Orientation
by Dr. Watson Scott Swail, President & CEO, Educational Policy Institute I am stunned how many really bright people still want to fix college during the college years. OK, let’s back up. What do I mean? The biggest challenges with college, with regard to college access and completion, occur way, way before a student approaches matriculation. College access is fundamentally about academic preparation. All other … Continue reading Addressing our Higher Education Woes
The Swail Letter on Higher Education 