Studies of "cost and value" in anatomical sciences education examine not only what works, but at what cost, thus evaluating the inputs and outputs of education. This research provides insights into how to use available resources (e.g., academic time, budgets, infrastructure) as a mechanism to obtaining the maximum outcomes available. The…

This brief argues that charter school programs can have direct fiscal impacts on school districts for two reasons. First, operating two systems of public schools under separate governance arrangements can create excess costs. Second, charter school financing policies can distribute resources to or away from districts. Using the city school…

Postsecondary student demographics are dramatically shifting in the state of Texas, resulting in an increased need for state government resources to ensure college access affordability in the state. It is critical that lawmakers prioritize higher education to allow Texans from all backgrounds access to afford higher education. This editorial is an…

Few subjects have suffered as much as the liberal arts from the power of stale rhetoric, hollow appeals to tradition, and journalistic misrepresentation. Leon Botstein, begins this article by saying that together, these three factors have generated and legitimated public skepticism about the liberal arts. A liberal arts education (which is rarely…

Nearly a year ago, "NEJHE" launched its "New Directions for Higher Education" series to examine emerging issues, trends, and ideas that have an impact on higher education policies, programs, and practices. In this installment, DiSalvio interviews Muriel A. Howard, president of the American Association of State Colleges and…

A recent report from Michigan's Mackinac Center asserts that there is little or no relationship between student achievement and marginal increases to what the report characterizes as the already "high" levels of spending in that state. Yet the report never substantiates its assertion that present spending levels are high, on average, or…

School systems across the country are experiencing collateral damage from the Great Recession and struggle to balance their budgets in the face of decreased local revenue, cuts to state funding, and the disappearance of federal stimulus and jobs money. School district leaders describe their fiscal problems in crisis terms, and respond to immediate…

After receiving his PhD in 1970, the author has spent almost 30 years conducting research on the economics of higher education, chairing faculty budget committees at Cornell, serving as a Cornell vice president and then as a trustee of both Cornell and SUNY, and being associated with innumerable national commissions and higher education…

Offering some relief from a raft of reports about declining education attainment and increasing college costs, Anya Kamenetz celebrates Prior Learning Assessment (PLA) for boosting higher education productivity, access, and affordability ("Change," September/October 2011). According to Kamenetz, PLA is transforming higher education by leveraging…

In April 2013, "NEJHE" launched its "New Directions for Higher Education" series to examine emerging issues, trends and ideas that have an impact on higher education policies, programs, and practices. In this installment, Philip DiSalvio interviews U.S. Department of Education Deputy Under Secretary Jamienne S. Studley, who…

In this essay I argue that online education, artificial intelligence, and market pressures are driving higher education to adopt the industrial model and to find a new paradigm for delivering education at low costs. In addition, there is tremendous pressure from the federal government to make universities more accountable while making higher…

Since 2006, it has been clear that the system of capped variable fees hasn't worked, either in practice or in principle. The system fails when it comes to delivering admission by ability, rather than the ability to pay. It fails in the allocation of bursaries, and it fails because, while there is guaranteed debt, there is no guarantee of financial…

The investigation of New York State's attorney general, Andrew M. Cuomo, into the questionable practices of lenders in federal student-loan programs has helped raise public awareness of one of the greatest scams in our government: The Federal Family Education Loan program, otherwise known as the guaranteed-student-loan program, is unnecessarily…

The paper discusses report of The Spellings Commission for Future of Higher Education that was set up to look into the issues facing the higher education system in the U.S., outline the challenges and offer recommendations to tackle the problems. Most importantly, The Spellings Commission Report raised the issue of the role of federal government…

While tuition costs are likely the most talked about topic in higher education, focusing on the institutional finance is equally important. The growing expenses associated with educating students is often a catalyst for rising tuition and fees, and they play a large role as educators plan for the future of their institutions. Although higher…