All Research
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…
Testimony
Protecting Students and Taxpayers: Strengthening Accountability and Value in Higher Education
…those changes were necessary; and third, what work remains unfinished and what Congress could consider in a second reconciliation package. Read and watch the full testimony here (testimony begins at 16:50). Akers_House-Education-Workforce-Testimony_02-04-2026Download…
Op-Ed
A Bipartisan Step Toward Smarter College Accountability
Rarely do Washington policymakers find common ground on higher-education reform. Conservatives often call for discipline in how taxpayer dollars are spent. Progressives typically focus on protecting students from predatory institutions…
Op-Ed
Our Wishlist for Higher Ed Reform
…2.0. We should first acknowledge how much lawmakers accomplished in the first reconciliation effort. The “One Big Beautiful Bill” introduced long-overdue accountability in higher education, finally tying colleges’ access to…
Article
America’s Distorted Market for Higher Education
In the United States, K-12 education is mostly run as a government service. By contrast, higher education is supposed to operate more like a marketplace. In theory, that means competition…
Op-Ed
America’s Distorted Market for Higher Education
In the United States, K-12 education is mostly run as a government service. By contrast, higher education is supposed to operate more like a marketplace. In theory, that means competition…
Op-Ed
The Big Beautiful Fix for Graduate School Borrowing
When policymakers and the public talk about student debt, they usually picture undergraduates: young people taking their first steps into higher education and making some of their first consequential financial…
One Pager
The Challenge: A Complex and Inefficient Student Loan System
OP_Akers_The-Challenge-A-Complex-and-Inefficient-Student-Loan-System-1Download…
Op-Ed
Republicans Unveil Plan to Rein in Student Debt and Waste in Higher Education
In a significant development for higher education policy, House Republicans have unveiled a sweeping proposal to reform student loans and financial aid through the federal budget reconciliation process. This effort, which complements…
Op-Ed
It’s About Time: Bring Back Those Student Loan Collections
This week, the Department of Education announced that on May 5 it will begin collecting on defaulted student loans. This will be the first time since March 2020 that borrowers who have…
Op-Ed
A Historic Opportunity for Higher Education Reform
…policy divides between mainstream Democrats and Republicans used to be trivial. For example, 10 years ago, Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s (D-Mass.) proposal to lower student loan interest rates to 3.9 percent seemed radical. It was…
Report
A Conservative Vision for Higher Education Reform
…point in the national discourse on higher education policy. On April 22, 2019, Senator Elizabeth Warren, vying for the Democratic nomination for president, announced that as president she’d cancel up…