The White House released an executive order to protect free speech on college campuses, appropriately highlighting the issue of ongoing threats to expression in the ivory tower. The President and his Administration exercised restraint with this order by directing federal agencies to stay within the bounds of existing law as the agencies implement…

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…

This hearing of the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions examines the role of states in higher education. Following opening statements by Honorable Tom Harkin (Chairman, Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions) and Honorable Lamar Alexander (U.S. Senator from the State of Tennessee), the following senators provide…

Career Technical Education (CTE) teacher recruitment is a challenge that has dogged state CTE leaders for decades. According to a recent survey of State CTE Directors, 98 percent said that increasing access to industry experts is a high priority in their state. And 20.4 percent of rural districts with CTE teacher vacancies report that CTE…

College students who are parents or caregivers of dependent children make up more than one in five U.S. undergraduates. Colleges need basic information about the experiences and outcomes of the student parents they serve, since these students face distinct challenges, including high rates of economic insecurity and significant time and caregiving…

Passage of the "Every Student Succeeds Act" (ESSA) provides opportunities to improve how schools address barriers to learning and teaching and re-engage disconnected students and families. Of particular relevance to these concerns, ESSA replaces what has been described as a maze of programs with a "Student Support and Academic…

This hearing of the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions examines reauthorizing the Higher Education Act, focusing on opportunities to improve student success. Following an opening and prepared statement by Honorable Lamar Alexander (Chairman, Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions) and an opening statement by Honorable…

During the aftermath of the First Red Scare in the 1930s and during the early stages of the Cold War in the 1940s, the United States engaged in a great national effort to preserve and protect its capitalist system from international rival--the communist Soviet Union. In the American South, states such as Georgia, Mississippi, and Alabama faced a…

Despite some cuts to the nation's oldest Federal College Access Programs, known as the TRIO programs (e.g., Upward Bound), new education policies have emphasized college and career readiness. In 2010, Congress approved the College Access Challenge Grant Program, which aims to increase the number of low-income students who are ready for college.…