The prevalence of educator shortages has long been a topic of research and policy discussions in Illinois. Across multiple years, the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) and Illinois Association of Regional Superintendents of Schools (IARSS) have collected data and reported on the magnitude, severity, and impact of shortages statewide. Prior…

The community schools strategy transforms a school into a place where educators, local community members, families, and students work together to strengthen conditions for student learning and healthy development. As partners, they organize in- and out-of-school resources, supports, and opportunities so that young people thrive. A growing number…

In recent decades, education leaders and researchers have increasingly sought to disaggregate key higher education outcome data--graduation rates, attainment, employment, and income--by race and ethnicity in order to uncover and narrow equity gaps. The same is true, recently, for affordability, especially as it relates to the differential impact…

This Policy Brief provides a detailed look at 529 education savings plans -- investment accounts with tax advantages -- including a breakdown of maximum annual dollar amounts and state tax deductions allowed, state responses to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, information on legislation in 2018 that changes eligible expenses allowed under 529 plans and…

State early childhood administrators are planning to strategically invest the federal appropriations in the American Rescue Plan Act (ARP) to address disruptions in children's care and learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic. State leaders must consider how this one-time funding can be used effectively while understanding the context around…

A new approach is suggested that depends on and measures how spending on higher and basic education is really an investment in the future, not consumption spending. This is a vital distinction because investment in human capital contributes heavily to growth and development, but also to higher state tax revenue and lower Medicaid, child care,…

Public education funding relies on revenues from a variety of sources, from local taxpayers to federal programs targeting students with specific needs. The vast sum of funding collected--in excess of $600 billion annually--often masks which entities fund the education of our nation's youth. Questions of funding adequacy and equity across school…

This article focuses on the increased power of venture philanthropy to shape education in urban communities of color in the USA. The author situates venture philanthropy's expanded influence in urban school districts in the nexus of urban disinvestment, neoliberal governance, wealth concentration, and economic crisis. The author argues that…

The institutional costs of higher education have been rising. With diminishing public support per student, tuition and fees private costs have also been rising. But so have the real earnings of college graduates. Are there still sufficient incentives on efficiency grounds for additional public investment in higher education? And in particular,…

After several years in which only superficial outcomes measures were used to evaluate grants funded by the Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE), the Illinois State University Center for the Study of Education Policy piloted a new approach by which real project assessment could be embedded in Improving Teacher Quality (ITQ) project designs…

In contrast to much of this year's frightening economic news, many states are investing in initiatives to strengthen local economies. This article describes how several states are improving education and training so they match business needs and the labor pool.

While educators have long argued that when local schools are successful, local communities benefit; there's now clear evidence that is the case. A new report, "The Economic Benefits from Halving the Dropout Rate: A Boom to Businesses in the Nation's Largest Metropolitan Areas," released in January by the Alliance for Excellent Education…

Almost 7 million young Americans (age 16-24) are insufficiently attached to school or work. Based on conservative estimates, we can generate over $1 billion just by helping a mere 0.1 percent earn a high school credential and complete their first year of college through Back on Track Designs. This brief lays out the cost of setting up these GED-…

What happens when local school leaders sit down to talk with teachers, parents, and other members of the community about the ends and means of local education? Can people bringing different perspectives and experiences to the issue agree on top goals for their communities? Can they settle on needed changes and decide what signifies genuine…

Distressed urban neighborhoods face challenges on multiple fronts, but most efforts to confront these problems work in isolation of one another. The New Communities Program (NCP) is an exception, helping selected Chicago neighborhoods develop partnerships to address challenges involving employment, education, housing, and safety in a…