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Teacher Pay Is the Symptom of Deeper ProblemsState spending per Hoosier student is down more than 7.0 percent since 2010.

Questions from an Economic ForecastThe economic recovery is in the hands of vaccine distributors, not economic policymakers.

Stop Restricting Indianapolis GrowthIn the 21st century, a full 85 percent of the state’s population growth happened within the Indianapolis metro area.

Indiana’s Lagging Educational AttainmentFinancial security without a college degree is possible but not probable.

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Commentaries tagged with education

February 28, 2021 Teacher Pay Is the Symptom of Deeper ProblemsState spending per Hoosier student is down more than 7.0 percent since 2010.
February 7, 2021 Indiana’s Lagging Educational AttainmentFinancial security without a college degree is possible but not probable.
October 25, 2020 Indiana’s Hidden Fiscal DeficitSince 2009, Indiana slipped in every key measure of long-term growth.
September 6, 2020 COVID-19 and InequalityThe pandemic continues to exert a historic effect on our economy, and we must confront it with honesty, facts and determination.
July 26, 2020 Challenges for Indiana’s Colleges Threaten Long-term GrowthSome of the costs of COVID-19 on US colleges are already emerging.
July 19, 2020 School Re-opening Decision Is Tough, Politicizing Masks Makes It HarderIndiana has about 1.1 million kids in grades K-12, and many have little-to-no high-speed internet access.
July 12, 2020 Assault on Prosperity ContinuesThe U.S. economic loss of foreign college students would be enormous.
June 21, 2020 Changing Dynamics in Modern FatherhoodFamily formation varies depending on race, income, and education level.
February 9, 2020 Back to Basics in Education, and Away from Vocational IndoctrinationThe only skill that we are certain will be needed by today’s kids in 20 years is the ability to learn and master new skills.
February 2, 2020 The College Wage Premium and Indiana’s Slow RecoveryIn the fastest growing urban places, half of all job advertisements are for college grads.
January 19, 2020 Tough Questions Demand Good ResearchUniversity researchers are tasked to ask tough questions and answer them publicly.
December 8, 2019 The Recovery Has Not Been Kind to IndianaIndiana should have enjoyed a far more robust economic recovery.
November 25, 2019 Time for an Education Tax IncreaseNothing predicts the income of a region better than the average education of its citizens.
October 27, 2019 Indiana’s Human Capital Policies Are Causing Brain Drain and Weakening Our EconomyThe nation may not slip into recession, but Indiana now has.
October 20, 2019 Automation Risk, Trade Risk, and Public Policy We have 6 million fewer factory jobs since 1969.
July 14, 2019 Economic Research Points the Way for Different Education PolicyThis column is part of my effort to draw out two or three critical lessons from the last two or three decades and tie them to state policies.
June 30, 2019 Erasing College Debt Is an Astonishingly Bad IdeaTo expand college access, we need to make it less expensive up front, which requires more public investment at the front end of the college experience.
June 16, 2019 My Talk to School SuperintendentsFuture job skills are likely to demand more fundamental learning.
April 14, 2019 We Need to Send 10,000 More Hoosier Kids to College Next YearIf only 20 percent of the gains of higher education are due to actual learning or acquired skills, it may still be the best investment our state and local governments can make.
April 7, 2019 Diverging Regional EconomiesThe places that are most eager to attract new factories are far less likely to get them.
March 24, 2019 A Frank Column on Education, Subsidies and PayWe should be very careful about promoting job training in careers that offer low wages.
March 10, 2019 Lessons Learned from an Economics ConferenceI found two elements very intriguing, and worth sharing in this column.
March 3, 2019 Some Unpleasant News on Education Spending PrioritiesThe State of Indiana funds K-12 education, and school boards pay teachers.
February 24, 2019 Poor Policy Has Weakened Indiana’s EconomyA return “to trend” is not good news for Indiana.
February 3, 2019 Another Brookings Study Marks Indiana “at Risk”Hoosier workforce and education policies have increased our vulnerability to job losses.
January 20, 2019 Indiana’s Labor Markets Aren’t Ready for a RecessionThe long-term effect of a recession is mostly determined by the labor market response of businesses.
September 23, 2018 Critiques of Capitalism All About State and Local PoliciesYoung people turning to our workforce development system will find it focused wholly on supplying workers to businesses rather than offering a resource for career-minded adults.
September 16, 2018 Some Advice for High School GraduatesMost young workers will have to look to the private sector for training.
August 26, 2018 College Starts AgainHere you can entirely reinvent yourself in ways that will never again be possible.
June 3, 2018 Workforce Development Problems Are Deeper Than They SeemSince 1990, the United States has not created a single net new job for workers who have not been to college.
May 20, 2018 School Referenda and Local GovernmentRecent examples reinforce the simple notions of local governance.
February 4, 2018 Most Indiana Counties Should Stop Pursuing Economic GrowthEighty or more Indiana counties are in absolute or relative decline.
January 28, 2018 HB 1315 Is a Pragmatic Fix to Muncie School DilemmaThis school corporation needs a restoration of confidence before it can achieve any real stability.
January 14, 2018 School Financial Problems an Important Issue for This Legislative SessionSchool children in poor areas receive more funding than students in rich areas.
November 12, 2017 Time for More Strategic Thinking on EducationThe skills students need over the long run are those that enable them to master non-routine cognitive tasks.
October 22, 2017 Rustbelt Was Losing People Long Before They Lost Factory JobsIn the 1960s, population decline was already evident in the fated Rustbelt cities.
August 27, 2017 To Afford Small Schools, Merge Small School CorporationsSchool corporations with enrollment of at least 2,000 students enjoy higher pass rates, higher SAT scores, and more advanced course offerings.
August 20, 2017 How an Economic Study WorksEconomic research can help us identify the real problems instead of trying to remedy vague or fictitious ones.
May 21, 2017 Some Hard Truths on School Funding in IndianaThere are four sources of revenues for schools.
April 16, 2017 School Quality Drives Enrollment and Economic GrowthThe ISTEP pass rate is a strong predictor of school enrollment change.
March 12, 2017 We Need Better Planning for Automation-Related Effects on WorkersOur workforce must learn to adapt to automation.
July 10, 2016 Indiana’s Economy: Better than expected, worse than it should beIndiana outperforms the nation in most every metric except education.
June 26, 2016 Income Inequality and EducationThe link between education and earnings is very strong.
June 5, 2016 More Free Speech ShenanigansAs citizens, we must necessarily make judgments about research in which we aren’t experts.
May 29, 2016 unKoch My Campus Is Soros-Funded HypocrisyThe contracts and grants we receive fund research on nonpartisan issues.
May 22, 2016 We Must Take Federal Tax Dollars, then Elect a Better PresidentFederal funding typically amounts to about 10 percent of the budget.
May 15, 2016 Economic Development Conference is a ‘Must Attend’ EventSchool improvement is the first step in modern economic development policies.
May 1, 2016 The Future of Ivy TechA nearby state sets an excellent example of an efficient community college model.
April 24, 2016 Labor Markets Outcomes Value EducationThere are lots of jobs available for workers, but only if they have college degrees.
April 17, 2016 Free Tuition a Gift to Rich FamiliesMost students already receive some sort of tuition discount.
January 31, 2016 Facing Up to the ‘Cost Disease’Modern productivity advances have their limits in the education sphere.
July 26, 2015 A Teacher Shortage?Changes in the unemployment rate and student enrollment levels affect the true supply and demand for teachers.
June 28, 2015 Some Truth about Hoosier School BudgetsToday’s funding is tied to students, not schools.
May 10, 2015 Measuring School QualityMuch of individual student performance depends on the family, not the school.
May 3, 2015 No Jobs for High School Grads Since 2009Job creation has occurred only for workers with an education beyond the high school diploma.
March 8, 2015 Market Forces Have Changed Teacher EducationTwo factors affect enrollment in teaching programs, but not the factors many think of first.
March 1, 2015 We Need to Study, Modify and Preserve TIFIn the coming months we must better understand the characteristics of good and bad TIFs using data, not just anecdote.
February 15, 2015 Jobs Report and the Polarized Labor MarketJob growth was very focused and specific to educational attainment.
November 16, 2014 We Need Thoughtful, Sustained Policies for Growth, Not GimmicksLet's focus on an educated workforce and quality of place.
November 9, 2014 We Need the Right Early Childhood Education ProgramsIn this case, turning down federal funding may actually be the right move.
August 31, 2014 Liberalism on Campus Is Mostly IrrelevantIn my experience, few professors use their political feelings to inspire their coursework.
August 17, 2014 Embrace the College ExperienceFor academic success, nothing replaces pure dogged effort and drive.
April 20, 2014 Taxes and Government ValueAs with any value determination, the price (or tax rate) is only half the story.
February 23, 2014 Assortive Making, Social Mobility and Income InequalityA century ago, most Americans married young and locally, with education playing a much smaller role.
September 15, 2013 School Reform Two Years OnThe U.S. ranks at the top for elementary attainment but at the bottom for secondary (high school) attainment.
August 4, 2013 Reforming Teacher TrainingChanges in the last two years to teachers’ promotion and compensation rules focus on classroom performance.
August 4, 2013 Reforming Teacher TrainingChanges in the last two years to teachers’ promotion and compensation rules focus on classroom performance.
January 27, 2013 Middle Class and Income InequalityThe middle class was built upon an abundance of well-paying but relatively low-skilled jobs.
September 23, 2012 Performance Evaluations and the Way We Teach TeachersPerhaps we ought to entirely rethink the role of teachers colleges.
September 23, 2012 Performance Evaluations and the Way We Teach TeachersPerhaps we ought to entirely rethink the role of teachers colleges.
August 26, 2012 The Arts Matter, When Art Lovers Are FreeThe measurement of value in an artistic endeavor will always lie in the hearts of men and women.
August 26, 2012 The Arts Matter, When Art Lovers Are FreeThe measurement of value in an artistic endeavor will always lie in the hearts of men and women.
August 20, 2012 A College Diploma Is Worthless, but the Education Is Priceless It is the college education that matters most, not the diploma.
August 20, 2012 A College Diploma Is Worthless, but the Education Is Priceless It is the college education that matters most, not the diploma.
August 20, 2012 A College Diploma Is Worthless, but the Education Is Priceless It is the college education that matters most, not the diploma.
June 11, 2012 The Failure of Public UnionsWhat this election portends is a serious conversation about public unions and their benefits.
April 23, 2012 Spending, Debt and Long-Run GrowthThe past four or five years have exposed many Americans to a continuing debate over the role of government spending in a recession and resurrected for them the ghosts of many long-dead economists.
March 19, 2012 It Is the Value Proposition, Not Costs, That Should Drive the Higher Education DebateThe real problem isn’t increasing costs, but uncertain benefits.
March 19, 2012 It Is the Value Proposition, Not Costs, That Should Drive the Higher Education DebateThe real problem isn’t increasing costs, but uncertain benefits.
January 9, 2012 College Debt and College MajorsA growing percentage of college graduates has pursued degrees that offer no employment prospects to match the cost of college.
January 9, 2012 College Debt and College MajorsA growing percentage of college graduates has pursued degrees that offer no employment prospects to match the cost of college.
November 28, 2011 The Super Committee and our Long Term ChallengesAs I write this, I am unsure what the Deficit Super Committee will have done by their Thanksgiving deadline to stall the wayward flight of our national debt.
November 21, 2011 Some Penn State Lessons, Economic and OtherwiseThis cover up isn’t the failure of an idea, but of men.
November 7, 2011 The Skinny on Community GrowthThe quality of the workforce matters more than anything else in the long haul of economic development.
October 24, 2011 Human Capital, Income Inequality and Our FutureMore than half of Americans compete with perhaps two billion men and women worldwide who are better educated and yet willing to work for far less.
August 22, 2011 Vouchers and the LawThe real purpose of vouchers was to add incentives for public schools to improve.
August 22, 2011 Vouchers and the LawThe real purpose of vouchers was to add incentives for public schools to improve.
June 6, 2011 Education and New JobsThe hard truth is that all the jobs lost in the economy that will return already have.
March 21, 2011 Bipartisan Education ReformWe should immediately ban all post-season team sports for schools without at least a C average.
November 15, 2010 The Need for Education Reformers Fixing schools won’t be easy, but it begins with an honest realization of the problem – not mendacious malarkey.
October 25, 2010 Early Childhood Education and the EconomyThe return on investment of early childhood education was clearly positive.
October 4, 2010 An Inconvenient Truth vs. Teachers UnionsExcept for spending, we sit dead last on all measures of schooling among the developed countries.
August 30, 2010 College Majors, Jobs and WagesEven college graduates with degrees in the lowest paying major at graduation were earning on average more than $50,000 within a decade.
August 23, 2010 Good Reads on America’s Car IndustryConsumers got fed up and foreign competitors clobbered the Big Three
June 21, 2010 Recommended Reading These four books are important if you want to be educated about current day matters.
April 19, 2010 Good Local Governance Will Support SchoolsReorganizing school districts is difficult, but we Hoosiers have done so before.
February 22, 2010 Tenure Not Relevant in a Modern UniversityThe continuation of tenure, in its current form, simply abets the disinvestment of relevance in the modern university.
November 16, 2009 Current Expertise Basis for Proposed Teacher LicensingAt the high school level, U.S. student performance has plunged to the bottom of the developed world.
August 24, 2009 Classes Begin and Students Rethink OptionsIn the world today, deep learning matters a great deal.
April 14, 2008 Long Term Prosperity Linked to Education“The most important issue looming for Indiana and the nation as a whole is education.”
April 2, 2008 Educating a Quality Workforce Begins at Home“Focusing investment on low productivity students with potential makes sense.”
February 11, 2008 The School Referendum Debate“Referendums provide the critical link to local government spending.”
October 22, 2007 Wage Inequality in America - A Quick Analysis "The largest and fastest growing source of inequality is due to the supply and demand of educated workers in the United States.”
June 4, 2007 Accountability in K-12 Education "...there are really two basic paths we can take to improve the quality of the graduates of our public schools."
March 12, 2007 Turnabout is Fair Play in Evaluating Education "It's all a form of denial...over the unpleasant truth that we collectively do not value education in Indiana as much as other states do, including our Midwest neighbors."
November 13, 2006 Look Early to Solve the Technology Deficit "The technological dominance that many of us take as a birthright has begun to erode at an astonishing rate."
October 23, 2006 Talent Does Not Come Cheap "...realizing our goals for growth in life sciences or any other knowledge-based sector may prove difficult without a bigger commitment to attracting and paying talent."
July 24, 2006 Education Really Does Matter "...technological change in the U.S. economy has increased the appetite of employers for more educated workers faster than the nation’s colleges and universities have been able to produce them."
March 6, 2006 What It Takes to Recruit Talent "What do prospects see when they evaluate your community against the competition?"
June 25, 2004 Education and the Indiana Workforce "When it comes to job growth and earnings growth in the national economy, the biggest strides have been made in white collar occupations where college degrees are required."
December 12, 2003 Understanding Indiana 's Brain Drain " ... the real problem associated with Indiana 's brain drain is not the exodus of our state's educated people to opportunities in other states."
June 6, 2003 Back to School for the Business Media "As arguments over economic policy routinely pit one advocate's statistics and projections against another's, the business media has too often failed to police the debate and flag the distortions that are inevitably served up by those in the arena. "
February 14, 2003 Rewards to Skill Just Keep Growing "Whichever way you look at it, the distribution of income in this country -- as in other developed nations -- has widened significantly."
October 25, 2002 Educational Attainment Across Indiana: Feast or Famine? "When it comes to counting people with college degrees, the disparity between the have's and have-not's among Indiana counties is quite large."
November 23, 2001 Indiana's Still a Production-Oriented State "Indiana has fewer people with college degrees than any other Great Lakes state."
December 31, 1969 Desert Storm, Twenty Years On . . .A common wartime experience wouldn’t make us agree more, but it should make us more agreeable and less often angry.

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