Former Vice President Joe Biden recently released the Biden Plan for Education beyond High School, which details several policy proposals that would take higher education in the wrong direction. The recommended policies would make higher education costlier and degrees less meaningful--all while pouring billions of dollars into a broken system. The…

As the novel coronavirus spreads across the country, the pandemic has raged through United States correctional facilities with little regard to the health of the incarcerated. The pandemic also affected access to postsecondary education and adult education in correctional facilities. As a result, prison education programs--including postsecondary…

In accordance with the Reports Consolidation Act of 2000, the OIG reports annually on the most serious management and performance challenges the Department faces. For FY 2024, we identified seven management challenges for the Department: (1) Implementing pandemic relief laws for elementary and secondary education; (2) Implementing pandemic relief…

Workforce development in the United States today is spread across higher education institutions (primarily public two-year and for-profit colleges), labor market institutions, and workplaces, with public funding from a range of sources. But outcomes for students and workers are weaker than they could be, especially among disadvantaged students and…

Nearly four million U.S. undergraduate college students are parents or guardians of children under the age of 18. These student parents, who already faced immense financial, child care, food, and housing insecurity before the COVID-19 pandemic, are now dealing with multiple new barriers, including school closures, lay-offs, and child care…

In accordance with the Reports Consolidation Act of 2000, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) reports annually on the most serious management and performance challenges the Department faces. OIG's reports include a brief assessment of the Department's progress in addressing the challenges. They also identify further actions that, if properly…

Higher education is increasingly important for individual wellbeing, the economic competitiveness of Washington state, and the state's recovery from the COVID-19 crisis. However, postsecondary enrollment trends have not kept pace with the state's changing economic needs and expanded financial aid programs. Issues with stagnant direct enrollment…

This report, the sixth in this series, brings together again in partnership the Pell Institute with the Alliance for Higher Education and Democracy of the University of Pennsylvania (PennAHEAD). These reports draw from multiple sources of existing data to provide, in one place, indicators that describe trends in equity in postsecondary enrollment,…

As the Biden-Harris administration seeks to hasten the country's recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, reforming the U.S. higher education system to ensure equitable access and attainment for all adults is more important than ever. Most student parents are mothers, students of color, adult and working learners, students with low incomes, and…