Locking Up Rich Parents Won’t Get Us the New Deal We Need for College

College acceptances and rejections—those letters upon which millions of high school seniors place their highest hopes—are currently pouring into American homes. This year they are…

Episode 24: Strengthening and Diversifying the Teacher Workforce ft. Kate Walsh

Our guest for this episode is Kate Walsh, president of the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ). We discuss the NCTQ’s surprising findings in their…

We Know All About College Financial Assistance, Here’s How You Do It Better

Financial assistance for families with college-bound students has seen big changes in timing since 2016. The new process begins much earlier with students now able…

How Free College Programs Can Increase Equity in Our Schools

As someone who has studied free-college Promise programs for over a decade, I read with interest the recent Education Trust report on equity in free-college…

The Kids Aren’t Here for Half-Baked Schoolwork and Shady Politics

Outrage: If They Don’t Believe In Them, They Shouldn’t Be Teaching Them This was my story entering freshman year of college. Many students are earning…

I’m a Cambodian Kid From Compton and Because of My Mom, I Graduated From College

As a young man growing up on the East Side of Compton, California, I never quite understood my place in my community or society. I…

Separate But Equal Doesn’t Work, Except When We’re Talking Graduation Ceremonies

Dear White Elementary and High School Administrators: Did you see what happened at the University of Florida’s graduation ceremony on Saturday? Did you see that…

College Isn’t for Every Student But We Should Prepare Them for It Anyway

“College isn’t for everybody.” This quote has become chic in educator circles. After years of trying to push everybody toward college degrees, people are now…

Illinois Makes Paying For College Harder for Low-Income Students, But We Can Fix That

In 1991, I was admitted to Southern Illinois University at Carbondale. My mother worked as a telephone operator and didn’t have the money to pay…

Accountability Doesn’t Lie With a Number, It Lies With Our Students

Accountability is one of those words that means a million different things to a million different people. For many in my state (and even those…