Colleges, universities, and the communities they serve have always been concerned about students' abilities to pay and the systems of aid to support students' learning. This article reviews the history of aiding student in higher education. Early student- and institutionally-led programs are discussed along with initial philanthropic and…

The 2012 federal Budget marks the beginning of a painful and unnecessary fiscal retrenchment. Despite boasting one of the lowest debt-to-GDP ratios amongst industrialized countries, the Conservative government is pressing ahead with deep cuts of more than $5 billion across departmental budgets by 2014-15. For post-secondary education and research,…

The Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE), in conjunction with local school systems (LSS) and institutions of higher education (IHE), has conducted an annual educator supply and demand study since 1986, the original purpose of which was to determine critical teacher shortage areas. Although data are collected annually, since 2008 the…

The Commission to Study the Adequacy and Equity of Certain Cost Components of the School Funding Formula was created in legislation crafted by the Joint Standing Committee on Education of the 126th Legislature (the "Education Committee"). The legislation was enacted as Resolve 2014, chapter 114. Creation of the Commission is the latest…

This Technical Committee Report examines four tiers of retirement income: (1) social security; (2) private and public occupational pension programs; (3) income from assets and savings; and (4) needs-tested programs. A summary of principal findings and recommendations is followed by three sections discussing the statistical basis for this report.…

The data presented in this combined report--"Rankings & Estimates"--provide facts about the extent to which local, state, and national governments commit resources to public education. As one might expect in a nation as diverse as the United States--with respect to economics, geography, and politics--the level of commitment to…

For more than a century, a succession of New York City (NYC) mayors have claimed that they were reducing administrative overhead in the school system and driving more resources to instruction. These claims have been dutifully reported by the press with rarely any effort to verify them. For the last 50 years, the salaries of teachers were increased…

Air traffic controllers no longer able to perform their highly specialized duties must be removed in the interest of aviation safety. Because few employment opportunities exist outside the government for controllers' skills, Congress established a second-career training program in 1972 for controllers so removed by the Federal Aviation…

As a result of the new tax law, many tax benefits have been reduced or eliminated, creating a number of financial challenges to colleges and universities. Most major sources of revenue are impaired, while some expenditures are likely to increase. Fund-raising methods, operating costs, and tuition payments will change. (MSE)