Category: 2013

2013, Research/Policy

Peace Corp II? Time to Reimagine our National Service Programs

By Dr. Watson Scott Swail, President & CEO, Educational Policy Institute I began this morning by reading an article in the Washington Post about the trouble institutions of higher education are having filling freshman seats, noting that college admissions have dropped two percent over the last year. The reasons are plenty, but the article points to the challenges of college costs on families as the primary … Continue reading Peace Corp II? Time to Reimagine our National Service Programs

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2013, K12, Research/Policy

Gone Viral—The Hidden Agenda of a High School Student’s YouTube Video

By Dr. Watson Scott Swail, President & CEO, Educational Policy Institute Last week, a video of a high school student in Tennessee went viral. The student, Ethan Young, made an extraordinarily impressive statement to the Knox County School Board about the challenges and problems with Common Core Standards. Anyone who watches the video will undoubtedly be impressed by this young man’s oratorical skills. I immediately wanted … Continue reading Gone Viral—The Hidden Agenda of a High School Student’s YouTube Video

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2013, admissions, College Access

Really? Another Standardized Test for College Graduates? Really!

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!

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2013, admissions, College Access, Retention

My College Orientation

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

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2013, College Affordability, Financial Aid, Research/Policy

College for Free? Not Really…

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…

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