OPtimizing EDucation

man in cap and gown at graduation
When federal data leaves students invisible, state data finds them again

In Accountability, by Mia Murphy July 26, 2018

When last we checked in on our friends at the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS, the federal government’s higher education data center), their graduation rate data was, uh, not very good. As I said at the time, if you don’t count a significant…

Present Value of Net Lifetime Fiscal Impact graph
The conservative argument for state investment in public higher education – in one chart

In Higher Ed Finance, by Mia Murphy May 17, 2018

The leaders of Michigan’s 15 public universities, joined by the staff of the Michigan Association of State Universities, have long touted the personal return on investment a student earns with a four-year college degree. We’ve also long talked about the benefits that accrue to…

railroad tracks
Michigan’s Fiscal Train and the Cliff Ahead: Maybe We Should Switch Tracks

In Higher Ed Finance, by Mia Murphy January 19, 2018

One thing that’s always perplexed me is how drivers occasionally get hit by trains. Trains don’t veer off course. Trains don’t suddenly make a right turn in front of you on your way to the grocery store. Trains just lumber steadily down the track, unable to slow down or speed up…