Education is the first stepping-stone on the path to success, but Pennsylvania students face severe inequality among public school districts. Thousands who can’t afford private school are trapped in failing schools or situations that aren’t the right fit. The solution to this crisis is school choice. By offering families options outside their zip code-assigned district schools, students are better able to find their path to success. Charter schools, tax credit scholarships, education savings accounts (ESAs), homeschooling, and other types of education choice must become a priority in Pennsylvania.

Education

Penn State to Launch Inquiry in “Climategate”

  • Nathan Benefield
  • November 30, 2009

Penn State University is going to “look into” the emails from and about university professor Michael Mann, which indicate, among other things,…

Media

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Education

Taxing Tuition: The Future of Higher Education?

  • Elizabeth Stelle, Nathan Benefield
  • November 30, 2009

With Pittsburgh on the brink of bankruptcy thanks to its continual out-of-control spending, Mayor Ravenstahl and his allies on City Council have hatched a new scheme to collect more money…

Commentary

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Education

Teacher Merit Pay May Come to Pittsburgh

  • Elizabeth Stelle
  • November 23, 2009

Pittsburgh City Schools may soon finalize their second huge grant. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is granting the system $40 million over 6 and half years to improve…

Media

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Education

Taxing Students For Past Mistakes

  • November 21, 2009

Pittsburgh’s financial problems are such that it gave rise to the Intergovermental Cooperation Authority(ICA) – formed by none other than, perennially in-deficit Governor, Ed Rendell. The ICA was put…

Media

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Education

CF Facts Irk Governor Rendell

  • November 18, 2009

Normally I don’t respond to allegations of untrue research, but I feel compelled to do so because it is the Governor of Pennsylvania. I am not sure what the…

Media

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Education

Privatizing School Bus Drivers

  • Elizabeth Stelle
  • November 9, 2009

In last Tuesday’s race for Central Dauphin school board candidates clashed over the privatization of the district’s busing. The pro-privatization candidate- Chris Judd narrowly won, but that hasn’t silenced the…

Media

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Education

Privatizing State Universities

  • Elizabeth Stelle
  • October 23, 2009

In wake of a state budget crisis and a temporary infusion of stimulus funds, Colorado State University is considering a partial privatization of the public university. By 2011, it will…

Media

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Education

Despite Recession, Pennsylvania College Costs Increase

  • Elizabeth Stelle
  • October 22, 2009

On Tuesday, the College Board released their annual report on tuition and financial aid. Despite a national recession, college tuition is still rising at an alarming pace. On average,…

Media

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Education

Misguided Efforts Fail to Make College More Affordable

  • October 15, 2009

Gubernatorial hopeful Jack Wagner pledged to start a scholarship program to help students who decide to stay in Pennsylvania to attend college. The proposed HOPE (Helping Our Pupils to…

Media

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Education

Is Preschool for All a Good Idea?

  • Nathan Benefield
  • October 9, 2009

Chester Finn of the Fordham Foundation has a good article in the latest Education Next on the movement for “preschool for all.” Finn is generally supportive of government…

Media

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Education

Conservative College Professors: An Endangered Species

  • October 7, 2009

Robert Maranto, a former professor of political science at Villanova, recently published a new book through AEI Press, The Politically Correct University, which highlights the scarcity of conservative and…

Media

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Education

Charter School Students Outperform Peers

  • Elizabeth Stelle
  • October 5, 2009

The results of a recent study by a Stanford economist strengthens the case for charter schools by debunking the myth that charter school student outperform traditional students because…

Media

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Education

Is Gov. Rendell “for the Kids” at All?

  • Nathan Benefield
  • September 28, 2009

On Friday, the REACH Foundation hosted a rally at the state capitol in defense of Pennsylvania’s Educational Improvement Tax Credit, which…

Media

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Education

Will Lawmakers Put Hollywood Before School Children?

  • Elizabeth Stelle
  • September 24, 2009

Governor Rendell and three legislative caucuses are kicking low-income children out of their classrooms to fund handout to Big Hollywood studios. This is beyond bad policy – it’s blatant…

Media

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Education

Reform, Not More Spending, Key to College Affordability

  • Elizabeth Stelle
  • September 24, 2009

This year's budget debate has generated several silly schemes, including a few related to higher education funding. But Gov. Rendell's proposed video poker tax and  House Democrats' ploy to move university appropriations off-budget do…

Commentary

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Education

Government Takeover: The Student Loan Industry

  • Elizabeth Stelle
  • September 22, 2009

Last week the US House voted to prohibit private lenders from issuing government backed loans. The bill amounts to a government takeover of the student loan industry complete with…

Media

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Education

America’s Troubling College Graduation Rate

  • Elizabeth Stelle
  • September 17, 2009

A recent study from AEI compares graduation and drop-out rates among American colleges and finds a disturbing trend. Colleges are graduating less than 60% of their student…

Media

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Education

State-Run Preschool Doesn’t Make the Grade

  • Nathan Benefield
  • September 15, 2009

Cato has a new policy report, as well as a recent blog post which sums up the arguments, on why large-scale government preschool programs are not what…

Media

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Education

The Right Direction

  • Nathan Benefield
  • September 11, 2009

A colleague of mine suggests that the budget deal (see our grade of the budget agreement) is better than we say it is,…

Media

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Education

What the Public Thinks of Public Schools

  • Nathan Benefield
  • September 9, 2009

Paul Peterson has a good column in today’s Wall Street Journal about the public’s perception of public schools — they are (correctly in Peterson’s judgment) unerwhelmed by school’s performance,…

Media

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