By Watson Scott Swail, Ed.D. A new publication Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) report illustrates that the most popular undergraduate programs remain in the arts and humanities, social sciences, and journalism. However, they are also the least employed of college graduates. The best employed are the STEM graduates: those in engineering, manufacturing, and construction. They are employed at a rate of 88 percent compared … Continue reading Pushing Tin
by Watson Scott Swail, President & CEO, Educational Policy Institute According to a new study to be released in January of next year, the proportion of high school seniors earning an A average in school is increasing even as their SAT score is decreasing. One may suspect that teachers are passing on higher grades to students due to a variety of issues, not the least … Continue reading The Challenges of Grade Inflation
by Dr. Watson Scott Swail, President & CEO, Educational Policy Institute There is an interesting piece in the Chronicle of Higher Education today on federal student loans. The piece argues whether FSA should be taken out of the US Department of Education and moved to the Treasury Department. What would be the value in doing such a thing? There is some value in this argument. … Continue reading Moving Student Loans from the US Department of Education
by Dr. Watson Scott Swail, President & Senior Research Scientist Yesterday the Trump Administration, through the auspices of Steve Mnuchin and Gary Cohn, released a trial balloon to test their tax plan in the media and Congress. True to Trump’s word, this is potentially the biggest change in the tax system in generations, starting with the reduction of corporate tax from 35 to 15 percent … Continue reading What Impact do the Trump Tax Cuts Have on Education?
by Watson Scott Swail, President & CEO, Educational Policy Institute On Friday, the State of New York announced that it would provide free tuition to families earning less than $125,000. The cost of the program is budgeted at $163 million/year in today’s dollars, noting that those costs will escalate in the coming years beyond the cost of tuition. For those who support tuition-free policies, this is … Continue reading New York Takes the First Dive into Free Tuition
The Swail Letter on Higher Education 