In this paper, we engage with the Research Excellence Framework (REF) -- the UK government's national policy tool for competitive allocation of scarce research funding. Success on the terms of the REF provides guaranteed income for UK Universities for a 6- or 7-year period -- and as a result, we suggest that the REF operates as an asset-like…

Texas's educator workforce has been characterized over the past few decades by high attrition rates contributing to persistent teacher shortages and increased hiring of underprepared and uncertified teachers. These conditions have motivated state investment in a multifaceted strategy to seed and support teacher residency programs. State guidance,…

The increasing professionalisation, mixed profiles, and institutional formal recognition of research managers and administrators (RMAs), namely at higher education institutions, has led to an increasing but modest volume of academic studies focused on their professional identity, roles, functions and impact. Based on an extensive literature…

Too many earlier attempts to use R&D investment for 'levelling up' have started with big ambitions but not survived long enough to deliver economic benefit. The purpose of regional R&D investment needs greater clarity. This report unpicks assumptions about the spread of research funding across the UK and finds them wanting. Comparable…

The quest for structural transformation has been a crucial challenge in Africa in spite of the huge amounts of aid disbursed, investments undertaken, policies implemented, etc. Notwithstanding several important reasons highlighted in the literature, they are insufficient because they focus on the role of financial resources but neglect…

Despite growing evidence to the contrary, researchers continue to posit causal links between cannabis, crime, psychosis, and violence. These spurious connections are rooted in history and fueled decades of structural limitations that shaped how researchers studied cannabis. Until recently, research in this area was explicitly funded to link…

UK social care policy has "traditionally" sought to minimise organisational and sector boundaries through cooperation and partnership. This discussion paper argues that there is a case for a social care system based openly on separation of powers to address the conflicts of interest that inevitably exist between the actors--notably local…

In order to understand our present and future work in planting the seeds of solidarity, we excavate the past, through an exploration of transnational solidarity and the vestiges of U.S. legislative policy and philanthropy. Through life notes and sharing circles, we examine policies (Morrill Act of 1862, Refugee Act of 1980, and the Gates…

Budgets are moral documents, reflecting our priorities as a nation by deciding where to allocate resources. Congress is targeting cuts and policy changes that limit access to health care, nutrition programs, and basic financial stability for millions of children, including Medicaid, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), and the…

The U.S. federal government has invested considerable resources in place-based programs to improve local economies, amenities, and infrastructure. Although urban place-based policies have received the most attention, place-based approaches have long been central to efforts addressing rural poverty as well. Using a novel dataset, we document a…

Parenting students work hard every day to pursue their goals, often juggling work, classes, and caregiving responsibilities. Public systems and programs can provide critical support, but frequently create additional hurdles for parenting students and their families-- especially those with low incomes. In 2022, the Center for the Study of Social…

This chapter traces the influence of the EU Youth Guarantee (YG) in Denmark and discusses how Danish education and labour market policy relates to the Youth Guarantee principles. The political context is that Denmark is a parliamentary democracy and a welfare state of the social-democratic type. The Youth Guarantee has had limited direct…

This chapter explores the United Kingdom's (UK) response to the Youth Guarantee (YG) in the two largest of its four constituent countries -- England and Scotland. The chapter examines the forms, systems and funding which underpin the YG and the conditions currently affecting young people socially, economically and geographically in England and…

"COVID-19 and Well-being: Life in the Pandemic" explores the immediate implications of the pandemic for people's lives and livelihoods in OECD countries. The report charts the course of well-being -- from jobs and incomes through to social connections, health, work-life balance, safety and more -- using data collected during the first…

In Australia and Europe, government agencies and not-for-proft organisations (NFPOs) have had long involvement in the funding and provision of community disability services. Signifcant change has occurred in Australia over the past two decades in the way government funds are expended, with marketplace mechanisms increasingly being used. As a…