Higher Ed Policy
May 9, 2011
Tuition Setting
Friday, the Seattle Times published an article about a potential agreement between lawmakers to, given several years of steep funding cuts, allow Washington’s universities to set undergraduate resident tuition rates for a limited number of years and with new financial aid and accountability requirements. News of this agreement comes as the Legislature is in the…
May 5, 2011
Momentum Building to Reign in For-Profits
It was speculated that Republican gains in Congress last November could stall the Senate’s aggressive investigation of the for-profit higher education industry and sweeping new Department of Education regulations that are set to go into effect July 1. While bipartisan action in the House did attempt to block some of the regulations, particularly the controversial…
May 4, 2011
Turmoil in Texas Over Higher Ed Reforms
Recent higher education reform efforts in Texas, developed by the conservative think tank Texas Public Policy Foundation (TPPF) and championed by Governor Rick Perry, have many wondering how much damage might be done to one of the country’s largest and best public university systems. The ‘solutions‘ proposed by TPPF, and marketed heavily by board member…
April 19, 2011
UC System Boosts Nonresident Enrollment
Last year, the UC Board of Regents increased the system-wide cap on nonresident undergraduate enrollment from 6 percent to 10 percent based on final recommendations from the University of California Commission on the Future. Newly released 2011 UC freshman admissions statistics for all nine campuses show how aggressively UC has moved to increase nonresident enrollment…
April 15, 2011
Fast Track to Graduation: WA Senate Bill 5442
In an effort to give more students the opportunity to earn a bachelor’s degree and enter the workforce early, the legislature passed SB 5442, “Requiring the development of three-year baccalaureate degree programs.” The bill, which was delivered to the Governor for approval on April 12th, requires institutions of higher education to provide degree programs that…
April 11, 2011
Tuition-Setting Authority Coupled with Accountability: Two Bills Propose Reforms
Preserving the access to and quality of higher education is paramount in the face of massive budget cuts. Two bills, HB 1795 (Enacting the higher education opportunity act) and SB 5915 (Regarding higher education funding and performance), seek to achieve this goal by: 1. Giving tuition-setting authority to universities 2. Reforming Financial Aid 3. Strengthening…
April 8, 2011
A Master Plan for Higher Ed in the Midwest?
Earlier this week, the Chicago Council on Global Affairs released a new report authored by current professor and former University of Michigan President James Duderstadt. The report, A Master Plan for Higher Education in the Midwest: A Roadmap to the Future of the Nation’s Heartland, chronicles the overall failure of the Midwest to transform itself…
April 6, 2011
Quest for Greater Autonomy for Public Higher Ed Continues
As state legislative season wears on, here is an update on some of the efforts in other states to achieve greater financial and regulatory freedom for public higher education institutions facing another year of steep budget cuts. Virginia: The legislature passed the Virginia Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2011. For details on the major aims…
April 1, 2011
Western Governor’s University: WA House Bill 1822
This is the first in a series of blog posts that presents a Washington State Legislative bill that we are tracking and provides more information about what the bill does and why it is relevant to the UW. As the demand for higher education increases, especially among students who are place-bound or have outside commitments…
March 14, 2011
Education Roundtable with US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan
US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan joined Governor Chris Gregoire and legislative leadership today for an education roundtable. Duncan congratulated state lawmakers on discussing the issue of education reform, even through tough budget times. He further drew attention to the grave problems troubling education in the United States—a 25% national dropout rate, poor STEM education,…
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