by Dr. Watson Scott Swail, President & CEO, Educational Policy Institute A few weeks ago, InsideHigherEd.com reported about the Oregon’s proposal to eliminate tuition fees at public colleges and universities. That statement, in isolation, isn’t exactly factual. Nothing is for free, is it? Or, at least, nothing good is generally for free. And the Oregon plan is not remotely close to free. What Oregon plans to … Continue reading College for Free? Not Really…
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
By Watson Scott Swail, President & CEO, Educational Policy Institute Two days ago, Quebec Deputy Premier Line Beauchamp vacated her position in the Quebec government over the tuition increase impasse between the provincial government and the student union. Apparently, the student union has won, which is too bad because they couldn’t be more wrong. Several months ago, the liberal government, headed by Premier Jean Charest, … Continue reading The Problem with Quebec
By Watson Scott Swail, President & CEO, Educational Policy Institute/EPI International An article in today’s The Chronicle of Higher Education, “Hey, Students, Your Education Costs More Than You Might Think,” discusses how Hamilton College’s cost per student is over $63,000. Hamilton College is a private liberal arts college based in Clinton, New York that serves 1,812 students with a cost of attendance of about $54,000. … Continue reading Way Too Much!
By Watson Scott Swail, President & CEO, Educational Policy Institute/EPI International This morning, InsideHigherEd.com reported on Indiana’s plan to double the number of college degrees by 2025, from 60,000 to 120,000. Indiana, led by Governor Mitch Daniels (George W. Bush’s former Director of the OMB), uses a performance funding approach to higher education. In 2009, Daniels signed a 6 percent budget across-the-board cut, and most … Continue reading Indiana’s Higher Education Plan to Save the World
The Swail Letter on Higher Education 