on December 29, 2017

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A View on Higher Ed: Results show 2-year degree holders often outearn college-educated peers

This commentary originally appeared December 12, 2017 in the Duluth News Tribune. It’s common wisdom in our society that you’ve got to have a four-year college degree to get ahead. If you don’t, you’re doomed to second-best in life, the thinking goes. This stereotype is based, to a good extent, on the belief that people with a bachelor’s degree can expect to make a lot more money over a lifetime than their peers. They’re sure to have nicer homes, fancier cars, more exotic vacations, and a bigger nest egg for retirement. Right? A new study from the Twin Cities-based Center of the American...

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on December 28, 2017

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U of MN Refutes Memo that Calls Santa Claus & Christmas Trees “Not Appropriate”

Written by Catrin Wigfall

in Education

In the name of “diversity,” a memo distributed by a U of MN employee at a lunch meeting told attendees Santa Claus, Christmas trees, and bows and wrapped gifts were “not appropriate for gatherings and displays at this time of year.” The backlash on social media caused the U of MN to distance itself from the document and label it as an "ill-advised attempt to spark a dialogue" on religious diversity and holidays. ...

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on December 20, 2017

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Millennials: The School Choice Generation

Written by Catrin Wigfall

in Education

A recent GenForward survey confirms support for school choice is high among Millennials across racial and ethnic lines. The bimonthly survey of Millennials is conducted by researchers at the University of Chicago. Over 1,750 young adults between the ages 18 and 34 were asked about education in the United States and responded favorably toward voucher programs and charter schools....

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on December 18, 2017

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Season Cheer: Edina Student Wins the Congressional App Competition

Written by Kim Crockett

in Education

Congratulations to the winner of this year's Congressional App Competition, Jack Hong of Edina High School. Jack invented an app called Pomo Timer that helps students increase their productivity by blocking distracting websites for periods of time. ...

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on December 17, 2017

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What’s Wrong with Our Schools?

Written by John Phelan

in Education

In 1980, Nobel prize winning economist Milton Friedman turned TV presenter. Over ten episodes, his PBS program Free to Choose explored the workings of the market economy and explained how free economies and free people were indivisible. After nearly four decades, it remains well worth watching. ...

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on December 14, 2017

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Why Would Congress Punish Colleges That Decline Federal Funds? A Hillsdale Mom Makes the Case for That ‘Hillsdale Exemption’

Written by Kim Crockett

in Education

I checked with experts on the Hill this morning: the tax bill could be amended in conference to add new provisions like the 'Hillsdale Exemption' (it's called "air dropping"). But since the Senate is using the reconciliation process to pass the bill, it could get hung up under the Bird Rule as "too prescriptive" and force another vote on the bill. That is a risk too great to take. Corrections should be made later. College-bound scholarship students are counting on Congress to take that vote. ...

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on December 14, 2017

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“Legacy Minnesota” Program Prepares High Schoolers for Careers in Energy Industry

Written by Catrin Wigfall

in Education

The need for skilled workers in Minnesota is on the rise. Many companies are struggling to find diverse, qualified candidates who have the right knowledge and skills to enter critical workforce positions. As a result, industries are facing significant workforce shortages and are seeing a growing skills gap in their applicants. But an initiative called Legacy Minnesota wants to turn this trend around in the state’s energy industry by preparing underserved high school juniors and seniors from diverse backgrounds in Minneapolis and St. Paul schools to become the future employees that energy companies are looking for....

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on December 13, 2017

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Learning and Doing Math Vocationally

Written by Mitch Pearlstein

in Education

A frequent theme in the many interviews I’ve conducted over the last year, as well as in much of the reading I’ve done for American Experiment’s “Great Jobs Without a Four-Year Degree” project, has been the importance of people in manufacturing, the trades, and other fields having a reasonably solid grounding in math. ...

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on December 11, 2017

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Free Speech Is Under Attack On Minnesota’s Campuses

Written by John Hinderaker

in Education

Today's Star Tribune has a front-page story on the assault on free speech at the University of Minnesota, in which I am quoted: The barricades were in place outside Anderson Hall, and a half-dozen police officers stood guard inside long before the guest speaker arrived. Charlie Kirk, a 24-year-old conservative firebrand, was bringing his pro-capitalism, small-government message to the University of Minnesota on Dec. 5. And he clearly was expecting some blowback. “Tonight I will be smashing socialism at the University of Minnesota!” Kirk, the founder of Turning Point USA, tweeted that morning. “Protests expected from the intolerant campus left. Will be fun!” As...

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on December 08, 2017

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US Civil Rights Commission Turns to American Experiment on School Discipline Issue

Written by Katherine Kersten

in Education

[caption id="attachment_8611" align="alignleft" width="266"] U.S. Commission on Civil Rights member Peter Kirsanow[/caption] Today the United States Commission on Civil Rights will hold a public briefing in Washington, D.C., entitled The School-to-Prison Pipeline: The Intersections of Students of Color with Disabilities. The briefing will examine the race-based school discipline policies imposed on public schools by the Obama administration in its notorious January 2014 “Dear Colleague” letter. At the briefing, the Commission will hear presentations from various parties, including advocacy groups and academics. In the open comment period that follows, U.S. Civil Rights Commissioner Peter Kirsanow will read into the record the following statement...

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