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Blog
Rethinking Predatory Student Lending
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act ended the Grad PLUS loan program for new borrowers and replaced it with annual and aggregate limits on federal borrowing that came into effect on…
Blog
Student Loan Policy Uncertainty Has Real Costs
…forgiveness cost borrowers up to 7 percent of their loan balances—thousands of dollars for a typical loan. “When policymakers announce policies that later face legal or political obstacles,” write Koustas,…
Blog
Capping Student Loan Interest Would Cost Billions, Help Well-off Borrowers
…overkill. The plan would benefit well-off professionals far more than most struggling borrowers, especially since Congress has already enacted a plan to waive some interest for lower-income people. If lawmakers…
Blog Post
Education Scorecard Looks Beyond Recovery
…well before the pandemic, and it is both deep and widespread. This is the central problem in American education. Schools, families, and policymakers ought to pay it far more attention….
Blog Post
States Are Taking the Reins on College Accountability
…the states. In March 2025, Utah lawmakers passed H.B. 265, directing public institutions to redirect funding toward areas aligned with state workforce needs. The legislation emphasized strengthening programs that feed high-demand…
Blog Post
Beware Graduate Programs Masquerading as “Professional” to Increase Student Debt
…numerous speakers representing graduate schools clamored for their programs to be labeled “professional.” A representative of the Council on Social Work Education argued that “a [Master of Social Work] provides…
Blog Post
The Senate’s Higher Education Reforms Are Strong (But Could Be Stronger)
…outcomes. The Senate will need to approve the full package, and lawmakers must reconcile its differences with another higher education reform plan recently passed the House. There are more steps before these…
Blog Post
To Improve Student Outcomes, Focus On Classroom Practice, Not Policy
…by my recent Marquette Today piece, the event—hosted in collaboration with the College of Education—brought together educators, researchers, and policymakers to discuss how improving classroom practice is the linchpin of meaningful…
Blog Post
Turn Public Service Loan Forgiveness into a State Block Grant
As Congress negotiates a bill to overhaul the federal budget, lawmakers looking to save money should note $30 billion in potential savings hiding in plain sight. The Public Service Loan…
Blog Post
Reimagining Federal Education R&D: IES, Workforce Skills, and State Leadership
…countries that participate in the study (over 30 in PIAAC). This produces a diffuse survey covering far too many aspects of skills than are needed by US policy makers. An…
Blog Post
Congress Can Block Student Loan Cancellation—Forever
…extend the 2017 tax cuts, increase funding for immigration enforcement, and pursue other priorities. Lawmakers will need to find budget offsets to pay for all this. Most of the savings…
Blog Post
Don’t Write Off Workforce Pell Grants
…by an average of $4,000. High-quality programs such as FastForward shouldn’t lose out on federal funding simply because other workforce education courses demonstrate worse outcomes. Policymakers should adopt a posture…