"Straight A's: Public Education Policy and Progress" is a biweekly newsletter that focuses on education news and events both in Washington, DC and around the country. The following articles are included in this issue: (1) Duncan Makes $44 Billion in Education Funding Available to States: Education Secretary Says Stimulus Money Must Go…

Like most other state and local government employees, teachers participate primarily in defined benefit pension plans whose benefits are based on final average salaries and length of service. Such pensions have been replaced in many private sector firms by defined contribution pensions. A number of questions have arisen about the feasibility and…

In response to a journalist inquiry regarding research on funding of Ohio's teacher retirement system and its effect on school district finances, this analysis by the Thomas B. Fordham Institute points to serious questions and profound concerns about the health of Ohio's teacher pension system, and that similar time bombs may be ticking in other…

The tension at the heart of pension politics is the incentive to address today's claimants and focus on the here-and-now at the expense of long-term concerns and more dispersed constituencies. In the private sector, rules and regulations seek to tame corner-cutting and short-sighted behavior. In the public sector, the primary safeguard is the…

Policy discussions about teacher quality and teacher "shortages" often focus on recruitment and retention of young teachers. However, attention has begun to focus on the incentive effects of teacher retirement benefit systems, particularly given their rising costs and the large unfunded liabilities. In this paper we analyze accrual of…

This essay attempts to do the following: first, offer a definition of early retirement in order to establish boundaries for the discussion. Second, sketch some of the background and reasons why early retirement may be desirable; also it suggests why early retirement might not always be a constructive practice. Then the essay turns to the main…

Hofstra University reduces its tuition by $500 for students from families grossing between $10,000 and $25,000 a year; Palo Alto and Los Altos, California, school districts have pre-retirement programs designed to phase out older teachers and administrators and to phase in younger ones. (Author/MLF)

This digest summarizes and condenses some of the information about higher education in the United States provided by the U. S. Office of Education and other public and private educational organizations. Eleven tables with accompanying texts cover areas of higher education: number of institutions, enrollment, public/private ratios, 4-year/2-year…

A study examined effects of early retirement plans (ERP) at Canadian Universities. In response to current conditions within Canadian universities and a Canadian Supreme Court decision upholding mandatory retirement requirements, many universities have sought to encourage faculty retirement through ERPs. In order to study the cost of such programs,…

Over the period of 40 years public sentiment in this country in favor of provisions for the comfort and security of aged groups has had a steady growth. The sentiment in favor of provisions for the retirement of public-school teachers is now so general that it is often felt unnecessary to include any consideration of the social and economic…

Private schools can "...provide much more attractive retirement benefits for the same cost by funding retirement plans outside Social Security. (Author)

In "Market-Based Pay Reform for Public School Teachers"--a paper presented at the National Center on Performance Incentives research to policy conference in February--Michael Podgursky, professor of economics at the University of Missouri, examines the effects and unintended consequences of the current compensation system for teachers in…

The major legislative goals of the National Education Association are outlined. (JD)

To offset declining enrollments, financial constraints, younger faculties, and high tenure ratios, some institutions are considering early retirement programs to facilitate faculty turnover. A University of Virginia faculty committee reviewed several early retirement options and selected a cost-effective bridging program with ample incentives and…