This study used the historical research method to explore the Chinese government's role in building world-class universities. We traced the government's role in pushing policies for: (1) accelerating academic improvement; and (2) enhancing the involvement of provincial governments in achieving universities' world-class status. The findings…

The federal government now offers a multitude of complicated income-driven repayment (IDR) plans that are difficult to understand, enroll in, and stay in. Many students who would benefit from IDR do not enroll, and others will have large amounts of debt forgiven despite earning high wages. The current problems with IDR are not an indictment of the…

According to a 2019 Pew Research Center survey, 67% of Americans support raising the federal minimum hourly wage from $7.25 to $15 per hour, with 41% strongly supporting the increase. Raising the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour has been the battle cry for many members of Congress, while others have opposed or expressed concern regarding, such…

Comprehensive child care and early learning policy benefits everybody. From the benefits to the American economy and businesses, to the ways it improves healthy child development and educational outcomes, to the prospects for greater gender, racial, and economic equity, everyone in the United States has something to gain from a significant…

The coronavirus pandemic has led to the most difficult semester in generations on college campuses across the United States. With that semester now wrapping up, public colleges and universities are facing costs that already dwarf the $7.6 billion in federal stimulus funds that are on their way to these institutions. Absent dramatic new action from…

Can an academic institution be truly free if it relies on government funding? Federal dollars mean federal mandates, and those mandates grow increasingly draconian. More and more, they stifle debate on open questions, demand denial of verifiable scientific truths, eliminate due process for students accused of misdeeds by other students, or insist…

The chronic underfunding of early care and education (ECE) is compromising the well-being of educators and the children they teach and threatening the economic security of millions of families in the United States. The current ECE system demands large contributions from the parents of young children, both through payments for ECE services and…

The 2019 Local School Finance Study examines data from the 2016-17 school year. The purpose of this annual study is to isolate local spending from state and federal spending to examine the capacity and actual effort of counties to support public schools. The Local School Finance Study focuses not only on the amount that counties spend on schools,…

Education in the 21st century is subject to standardized testing with financial implications associated with testing. Under continued focus at the federal level to close the socioeconomic achievement gap, equitable distribution of funding is critical to ensure all schools have resources available to offset impacts of low socioeconomic status on…

With the total student debt in the United States at nearly $1.5 trillion, loans are affecting the lives of many students. But while higher education pays off for the average graduate, the student loan data illustrates a unique and severe situation for Black students that has reached crisis level, even if the same isn't true for other racial and…

Federal spending dedicated to children represents just 7.83 percent of the federal budget in fiscal year 2016, and total spending on children's programs has decreased by five percent in the last two years, according to "Children's Budget 2016." The federal government makes more than 200 distinct investments in children. These include…

The "Almanac of American Education" helps users understand and compare the quality of education at the national, state, and county levels. Compiled from official U.S. government sources, the book contains historical and current data, insightful analysis, and useful graphs that provide compelling insights into the state of education in…

The U.S. Census Bureau conducts the Census of Governments and the Annual Surveys of State and Local Government Finances as authorized by law under Title 13, U.S. Code, Sections 161 and 182. The Census of Governments has been conducted every 5 years since 1957, while the annual survey has been conducted annually since 1977 in years when the Census…

This report provides an overview of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) programs, accomplishments, challenges, and Management's accountability for the resources. It provides fiscal and summary performance results that enable the President, Congress, and the American people to asses their accomplishments for the reporting period…

"Children's Budget 2019" is a comprehensive analysis of how kids and families have been faring in the federal budget over the past five years. The book captures and analyzes historical funding data and spending trends across a wide range of policy areas including child welfare, early childhood, education, health, housing, income support,…