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Using data from the Quarterly Workforce Indicators, this brief explores changes in the Los Angeles County labor market and in the working-age population as a plausible explanation for some of the enrollment decline at the county's community college campuses.

This paper examines the impact, characteristics, and entrepreneurial proclivities of foreign-born college graduates in the United States. A significant body of research has found that immigrants are more likely to start businesses than those born in the U.S., and the propensity of international students to concentrate in STEM fields indicates enormous potential for economic contributions and innovation. Yet the static nature of the immigration system, with visa pathways and restrictions that discourage business creation, hamper the nation's ability to take full advantage of the benefits immigrants can provide. In fact, this study finds that the U.S. immigration system likely delays foreign-born graduates from creating incorporated firms by as many as five years. The authors estimate that the creation of 150,000 incorporated firms and 580,000 jobs were delayed between 2013 and 2021. Without reform, the U.S. will continue to depress high-value firm creation by international students and cease to be the primary destination of global talent.

An ongoing debate in K-12 education policy has been between the "reform" agenda, including charter schools and school vouchers, and advocates of traditional public schools, led by educator unions. A similar split has emerged in higher education, particularly community colleges. Using California as an example, this paper: 1) summarizes the evolution of the current political divide between advocates of the "completion and success" agenda and faculty-led opponents, including the major reforms involved, 2) discusses the claims that leading organizations on each side have made, including their policy priorities, and 3) argues that the two sides share do share some areas of mutual agreement. The paper concludes by noting future policy considerations that could complicate reform efforts.

We study the effect of educational attainment on family formation using regression discontinuity designs generated by centralized admissions processes to both secondary and tertiary education in Finland. Admission to further education at either margin does not increase the likelihood that men form families. In contrast, women admitted to further education are more likely to both live with a partner and have children. We then pre-register and test two hypotheses which could explain each set of results using survey data. These suggest that the positive association between men's education and family formation observed in the data is driven by selection. For women, our estimates are consistent with the idea that, as increased returns to social skills shift the burden of child development from schools to parents and particularly mothers, education can make women more attractive as potential partners. [Funding for this report was provided by The Strategic Research Council, the Research Council of Finland, and Palkansaajasäätiö.]

The Campaign for College Opportunity has always been a champion of ensuring equal and equitable treatment of all students in higher education. The Campaign for College Opportunity recognizes the value and necessity of understanding the experience of diverse learners by disaggregating data to explore trends, opportunities, and challenges. More importantly, it seeks to bring attention to the expertise, assets, and strengths of Americans from all backgrounds, while ensuring that solutions are targeted to support these same students. This is the first of four briefs within the Campaign for College Opportunity's national initiative that highlight specific practices to support American Indian/Alaska Native (AIAN), Latinx, Black, Asian American and Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (NHPI) students more equitably. This brief is tailored and informed by experts, best practices, and an authentic commitment to ensure that all American Indian and Alaska Native students can go to college and succeed without sacrificing or leaving their cultural assets behind. [Additional funding for this series of briefs was provided by Eileen and Harold Brown.]

Increasing educational attainment is one of the most important and effective tools for health and economic improvements. The extent to which extreme climate events disrupt education, resulting in fewer years of schooling and reduced educational attainment, remains under-studied. Children in low- and middle-income countries may be uniquely vulnerable to loss of schooling after such disasters due to the poor physical condition of schools and the lack of resources to rebuild and mitigate unexpected household shocks. Our analysis assesses this overlooked social cost of tropical cyclones on schooling attainment. We study the education records of nearly 5.1 million people living in 13 low- and middle-income countries that were exposed to tropical cyclones between 1954-2010. We find that exposure to tropical cyclones during preschool age is associated with a 2.7 percentage point decrease in primary school enrollment on average (14.2% decrease), with larger effects from more intense storms (up to 28% decrease for the most intense storms). These effects are more pronounced among school-age girls compared to boys and are greater in areas less accustomed to experiencing tropical cyclones. We estimate that, across all LMICs, tropical cyclone exposure has resulted in more than 410,000 children not attending primary school in the last 20 years, leading to a reduction of more than 4.1 million total years of schooling. These impacts, identified among some of the world's poorest populations, may grow in importance as exposure to severe tropical cyclones is projected to increase with climate change.

This chartbook is the 14th version to be produced for the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) by the Population Reference Bureau (PRB). The Chartbook describes the diversity of the Appalachian Region on a host of demographic and economic measures and provides an important annual view of the area and its people. The data contained in the 2018-2022 Chartbook describe how residents in the Appalachian Region were faring before and during the COVID-19 pandemic that began in March 2020. Nearly half of the years during this time period were pre-pandemic and half were during the pandemic era. Thus, this Chartbook is a blend of these two eras. As future data releases reflect the post-pandemic era, data users will have additional insights on the long-term changes that the pandemic brought to Appalachia's social and economic dynamics. Most of the data shown here come from the 2018-2022 American Community Survey (ACS), a nationwide study collected continuously every year in every county in the United States by the U.S. Census Bureau. The ACS is designed to provide communities with reliable and timely demographic, social, economic, and housing data each year. To provide as much county-level data as possible, we use ACS 5-year data files which provide reliable estimates for geographic areas with fewer than 20,000 people. Since many counties in the Appalachian Region have fewer than 20,000 residents, these data permit comparable statistics for all 423 counties in the Region. The primary purpose of the ACS is to measure the changing characteristics of the U.S. population in a way that is continually updated. The estimates in this Chartbook, therefore, are data collected over the five-year (or 60-month) period from January 2018 through December 2022. These ACS estimates are not averages of monthly or annual values, but rather an aggregation of data collected continuously over that time period.

Most students who begin at a community college do not complete their desired credential. Many former students fail to graduate due to various barriers rather than their academic performance. To encourage previously successful non-completers to re-enroll and eventually graduate, a growing number of community colleges have implemented re-enrollment campaigns focused on former students who have already made substantial progress toward graduation. In this study, we randomly assigned over 27,000 former community college students to a control group, "information-only" treatment group, or "information and one-course waiver" treatment group to examine whether re-enrollment campaigns can improve their likelihood of long-term persistence and credential completion. Although we showed in earlier work that the "information and one-course waiver" treatment had a positive impact on former students' likelihood of re-enrollment, our findings reveal the re-enrollment intervention has no effect on students' likelihood of long-term persistence or credential completion for the pooled sample or any subgroup of interest, including low-income students, racially minoritized students, or adult students. Simply put, this particular re-enrollment intervention including one-time, one-course tuition waivers increased former students' likelihood of re-enrollment but was not an effective lever to increase "long-term" academic outcomes among previously successful community college students who departed early without earning a credential.

The fall 2023 and spring 2024 undergraduate enrollment increases, marking the first growth since the COVID-19 pandemic, show signs of a post-pandemic turnaround for higher education. However, a significant share of current undergraduates will eventually disengage from college before earning a degree or other credential. They will join tens of millions of other adult Americans who are Some College, No Credential (SCNC). The SCNC population has been consistently rising over time. Re-engaging those who stop out remains a persistent challenge and a priority for the forty states that have set ambitious postsecondary attainment goals. This report aims to provide timely insights into the SCNC population, offering state leaders and policymakers accurate data on its current status, along with tracking progress and outcome measures for SCNC students. The first section of this report describes who makes up the SCNC population and how it has changed since the last report. In this section, the authors pay particular attention to Recent Stopouts, who joined the SCNC population after being stopped out between January 2021 and July 2022. In the second section, the authors report on SCNC re-enrollment in the 2022-23 academic year as well as first-year credential earning for re-enrollees. The authors also provide new updates on continued enrollment and second-year credential earning for SCNC re-enrollees in the 2021-22 academic year, whom were first reported on last year.

This report describes results from the Long-Term Impact of Early College High Schools Study--funded by the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) (#R305A210017)--which aimed to explore the long-term impacts of early college (EC) high schools on students' academic outcomes (e.g., college enrollment, degree attainment) and workforce, financial, and later life outcomes after schooling. In this report--the second follow-up report on our initial EC impact study--we focus specifically on key questions about workforce, financial, and other life outcomes: What were the impacts of ECs on workforce, financial, and other life outcomes in the 12th to 14th years after expected high school graduation? Did the impacts of ECs vary by participant characteristics? This report describes findings which build on a previous EC impact study, which was a multisite student-level randomized controlled trial with randomization based on admission lotteries. The analyses in this report focus on individuals who originally participated in 17 admission lotteries conducted by seven ECs for three cohorts of students, and examined outcomes after formal schooling. Key takeaways include the following: (1) Participants who were admitted to an EC, regardless of whether they attended the EC, did not experience a significant effect on any of the workforce, financial, and other life outcomes measured with survey data 12 to 14 years after expected high school graduation; and (2) EC impacts on workforce, financial, and other life outcomes measured 12 to 14 years after expected high school graduation did not differ significantly by individuals' race/ethnicity, low-income status, or prior achievement. While our initial impact study and first follow-up study found that attending an EC had effects on secondary and postsecondary enrollment, and completion for participants with different background characteristics, we found that attending an EC had no impact on any of the workforce, financial, and other life outcomes that we analyzed 12 to 14 years after participants' expected high school graduation. Future studies could consider examining workforce, financial, and other life outcomes in years before the 12th to 14th year after expected high school graduation using administrative data sources (e.g., IRS or unemployment insurance records). Further research may also examine if other factors, such as EC students' college major or labor market opportunities, influence the impact of ECs on longer-term outcomes.

Globally, climate change disproportionately affects women and girls, intensifying and heightening their vulnerability to natural disasters, food insecurity, caregiving responsibilities, displacement, and related challenges as well as hindering opportunities for their social and economic empowerment (UN Women 2022). In Bhutan, as temperatures rise, the country has become increasingly vulnerable to a multitude of climate-related threats and disasters like glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs), with implications for the well-being of all and with heightened risk for girls and women (NCWC and UNDP 2020). In the face of these challenges, Bhutan has taken on ambitious climate goals through its climate leadership and environmental stewardship. Though Bhutan also has a strong track record in achieving gender-focused educational milestones--with over 90% school enrollment at gender parity and a largely matrilineal society--patriarchy is strong and ingrained, and there is much to be done to achieve gender equality. Furthermore, efforts within the three areas of climate, gender, and education still mostly operate in silos, with little intersectoral work. This policy brief presents results of the research conducted through two focus group discussions with 16 girls (ages 13-18); an online survey of 52 district education officers; and interviews with eight organizations from the government, civil society, and international partners from June to August 2023 in Thimphu and Paro. The study explored girls' understanding of climate change and its impacts on them (individual level), what and how climate education is taught in the education system (systems level), and who and what the different actors are doing and could potentially do collaboratively (ecosystem level). The findings of this study clearly indicate that there is a need to rethink and reframe climate literacy in Bhutan in ways that recognize the gendered impacts of climate change and promote learning spaces and pedagogical approaches for supporting Bhutan's green growth and climate strategies. Gender-invisible approaches to climate, climate education, and climate literacy have neither effectively addressed the gendered impacts of climate change nor promoted the learning and participation of girls and women in climate action. Therefore, this policy brief proposes gender-transformative climate literacy (GTCL) as a novel solution path for a green and gender-equal future. GTCL would be an interdisciplinary approach that challenges underlying gender inequalities within the context of climate change while endeavoring to reshape societal gender norms and attitudes. At the nexus of climate, gender, and education, GTCL would empower individuals to actively engage in climate action and decision-making processes while promoting gender equity to achieve a reality where climate and gender are embedded within the teaching and skills training functions of the education system. The education system is an untapped space to advance climate action by developing skills for a climate-informed, climate-resilient individual. Incorporating GTCL within education would present a window of opportunity to strengthen climate literacy while highlighting and reshaping gender dynamics and norms.

Each year, over a thousand public schools in the US close due to declining enrollments and chronic low performance, displacing hundreds of thousands of students. Using Texas administrative data and empirical strategies that use within-student across-time and within-school across-cohort variation, I explore the impact of school closures on students' educational and labor market outcomes. The findings indicate that experiencing school closures results in disruptions in both test scores and behavior. While the drop in test scores is recovered within three years, behavioral issues persist. This study further finds decreases in post-secondary education attainment, employment, and earnings at ages 25-27. These impacts are particularly pronounced among students in secondary education, Hispanic students, and those from originally low-performing schools and economically disadvantaged families.

The "Report on the Condition of Education" is an annual report from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) that is mandated by the United States Congress. Using data from NCES and other sources, NCES compiles a set of "indicators" of the condition of education in the United States at all levels, from prekindergarten through postsecondary, as well as labor force outcomes and international comparisons. The full contents of the Condition of Education Indicator System can be accessed online or by downloading PDFs for the individual indicators. The "Report on the Condition of Education 2024" comprises key findings from the Indicator System. This summary report provides a brief overview of information available on various topics as well as direct links to the online versions of indicators discussed. This year's report also includes select content from sources outside the Indicator System, such as the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) and the Integrated Postsecondary Education System (IPEDS).

The 2024 Nebraska Higher Education Progress Report is the 18th annual progress report designed to provide the Nebraska Legislature with comparative statistics to monitor and evaluate progress toward achieving three key priorities for Nebraska's postsecondary education system. These priorities were developed by the 2003 LR 174 Higher Education Task Force and described in detail in a 2004 report published by the Coordinating Commission. They are: (1) Increase the number of students who enter postsecondary education in Nebraska; (2) Increase the percentage of students who enroll and successfully complete a degree; and (3) Reduce, eliminate and then reverse the net out-migration of Nebraskans with high levels of educational attainment. This report is a comparative analysis that measures and evaluates performance in respect to each priority. [For the "2023 Nebraska Higher Education Progress Report," see ED627820.]

This brief examines the experiences of California high school seniors from the graduating class of 2023, offering insights into their preparation, plans, and concerns for college prior to enrollment. Drawing on results from a large-scale survey of seniors, the findings reveal important variation in students' secondary school experiences and their plans for college, particularly by race/ethnicity and gender identity. As students' experiences in high school influence concerns about their college futures, these results represent an important marker of what college going may look like for future graduating cohorts and can help policymakers and practitioners better understand the context of students' postsecondary decisions and pathways.

The describes the nation's progress in (1) providing a free appropriate public education (FAPE) for children with disabilities under IDEA, Part B, and early intervention services to infants and toddlers with disabilities and their families under IDEA, Part C; (2) ensuring that the rights of these children with disabilities and their parents are protected; (3) assisting States and localities in providing IDEA services to all children with disabilities; and (4) assessing the effectiveness of efforts to provide IDEA services to children with disabilities. The report focuses on children with disabilities being served under IDEA, Part B and Part C, nationally and at the State level. Part B of IDEA provides funds to States to assist them in making FAPE available to eligible children with disabilities, ages 3 through 21, who are in need of special education and related services, whereas Part C of IDEA provides funds to States to assist them in developing and implementing statewide, comprehensive, coordinated, multidisciplinary interagency systems to make early intervention services available to all eligible children with disabilities, from birth through age 2, and their families.

Multi-campus public higher education governance systems exist in 44 of the 50 U.S. states. They include all the largest and most influential public colleges and universities in the United States, educating fully 75 percent of the nation's public sector students. Their impact is enormous. And yet, they are largely neglected and as a tool for improvement are underutilized. Meanwhile, many states continue to struggle achieving their goals for higher education attainment, social and economic mobility, workforce development, equitable access and affordability, technological innovation, and human and environmental health. The dearth of scholarly research on these systems and their more effective use is explored in a forthcoming volume edited by the author. This paper extracts from that volume a set of specific ways in which systems can leverage their unique ability to use scale in service to their mission.

The Cowen Institute has conducted annual polls on perceptions of public education in New Orleans since 2007. Our polls are designed to provide insight into how parents, guardians, and the general public view New Orleans' highly decentralized K-12 public education system. Each year, we ask some new questions about the most relevant and pressing issues facing educators and families. We also repeat questions from our previous polls to assess how opinions change over time on a few key topics. We now release the poll findings in a series of briefs at the start of each year. This is the second of two briefs that will be released in 2024 with results from polling conducted in the fall of 2023. We present the data in this way to make it more accessible and understandable for the general public -- the briefs allow us to group the findings by topic, enabling us to surface trends about particular areas of the city's education system. To capture the experiences and attitudes of a wide range of parents, as we have done since 2020, we polled 1,000 public and private school parents and guardians in Orleans Parish, as well as a small number who homeschool their children.

Youth and young adults experiencing homelessness face many challenges while pursuing postsecondary credentials. Low education attainment is occurring in higher education institutions across the county, with more than a quarter of first-year college students not returning for their second year in community college. This National Center for Homeless Education brief: (1) provides information for State Coordinators, local liaisons, school counselors, and school social workers on supporting students experiencing homelessness transitioning from secondary to postsecondary education; (2) spotlights promising practices for supporting college completion for students experiencing homelessness; and (3) offers partnership strategies for supporting students experiencing homelessness with college completion.

A bachelor's degree is increasingly necessary for securing a job that pays a family-supporting wage, yet while most community college students aspire to transfer and complete a bachelor's degree, too few make it through to this goal. As is clear from the companion report on community college transfer outcomes, some responsibility for this lies with community colleges. But four-year institutions--which tend to have more financial resources to invest in student success--also need to do more to serve students who transfer from community colleges. These students make up a substantial proportion of four-year enrollments and tend to be more diverse in terms of family income, race, and age than students who start college at a four-year institution. Yet, as this report shows, although more than 80% of community college transfer students are retained into their second year, only about half complete a bachelor's degree within four years after transferring, and completion rates are even lower for low-income, Black, Native American, and older students. This report, which provides first-of-its-kind data on four-year institution outcomes for community college transfer students, is designed to be used by university and state-system leaders to set clear goals for eliminating disparities and expanding transfer opportunity for all students who start at a community college with the dream of earning a bachelor's degree. The analysis in this report offers insights into how effective four-year institutions are in enrolling and supporting community college transfer students. Using data on students who entered four-year institutions in 2015-16, we report on the prevalence of transfer, the retention and bachelor's completion outcomes of community college transfer students, and the extent to which they are represented among graduates in various majors. We disaggregate findings and examine differential outcomes for low-income, Black, Hispanic, and older students (those 25 years old or older). [The authors acknowledge research for this report was conducted through a partnership between the Aspen Institute's College Excellence Program; the Community College Research Center (CCRC) at Teachers College, Columbia University; and the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. Additional funding was provided by Belk Center for Community College Leadership and Research.]

A bachelor's degree is increasingly necessary for securing a job that pays a family-supporting wage, yet while most community college students aspire to transfer and complete a bachelor's degree, too few make it through to this goal. This report, along with the companion report on four-year institutional outcomes, is designed to be used by college, university, and state-system leaders to set clear goals for eliminating disparities and expanding transfer opportunity for all students who start at a community college with the dream of earning a bachelor's degree. The analysis in this report offers several insights into whether transfer pathways from community colleges to four-year institutions are effective for all students. We discuss overall transfer rates and bachelor's completion rates of the 2015 entering cohort of community college students, and further investigate disparities in outcomes for low-income, Black, Hispanic, and older students (students 25 years or older) in comparison to national averages. We also provide a state-by-state look at these outcomes. In a companion report, "Tracking Transfer: Four-Year Institutional Effectiveness in Broadening Bachelor's Degree Attainment," we examine what happens to community college students after transferring to a four-year institution by reporting disaggregated measures on the enrollment, retention, and bachelor's completion outcomes of transfer students in the 2015 four-year entering cohort. [The authors acknowledge research for this report was conducted through a partnership between the Aspen Institute's College Excellence Program; the Community College Research Center (CCRC) at Teachers College, Columbia University; and the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. Additional funding was provided by Belk Center for Community College Leadership and Research.]

In 1993, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts dramatically overhauled its K-12 education system and created a new school finance formula, building an educational accountability structure to ensure every child has access to a high-quality education. The Massachusetts Education Reform Act (MERA) established academic standards in core subjects, mandated assessments to measure student outcomes on those standards, and established a system for holding schools accountable when students failed to meet basic expectations. This system has helped Massachusetts' public schools become the highest performing in the country. Student outcomes in all tested subjects and across demographic groups have improved steadily over time, but disparities in achievement and attainment exist between the Commonwealth's most privileged students and their less privileged counterparts, many of whom are black or Hispanic. Without the MERA and its requirement to assess every student and publish aggregate academic outcomes, policymakers may not understand the extent of disparity or how to address it as student outcomes data are integral to understanding where Massachusetts' public schools have been, where they are going, and how they can get there. This paper illustrates the importance of the Massachusetts Education Reform Act and how it has positively impacted students over time. It explains why the current accountability system evolved as it did and why preserving the most important aspects of that system is critical if the state is going to fulfill its constitutional obligation to educate all children to a high common standard.

This interim report shares emerging findings and recommendations from a collaborative project. The project examines post-16 Education and Training (E&T) in the UK. It is focused on analysing the divergent approaches to E&T policy across the four devolved nations to understand more deeply the key policy issues and challenges facing E&T and the kinds of structures that support young people's transitions from education to employment and help them live fulfilling lives. The authors, therefore, focus on the interplay between policies, participation, and outcomes across the four nations, particularly examining issues of inequality for young people. Through the combination of detailed comparative policy analysis and comparative quantitative analysis of a range of nation-specific datasets, the authors aim to address the following key questions: (1) Mapping the UK E&T policy contexts: In what key areas is post-16 E&T policy in the four nations converging and diverging?; (2) Comparing routes and choices: How are differences in post-16 institutions and policies reflected in participation and pathways for learners?; and (3) Outcomes and inequalities: How are differences in post-16 institutions and policies reflected in learner outcomes?

Student-parents face unique postsecondary persistence and completion challenges as they balance raising children with the demands of coursework and possibly employment. To help low-income student-parents earn degrees and credentials, the federal government provides Child Care Access Means Parents in School (CCAMPIS) grants to institutions of higher educations (IHEs). CCAMPIS grants support or establish campus-based child care services that primarily serve the needs of low-income students. CCAMPIS was first funded in FY1999 after enactment of the Higher Education Amendments of 1998 (P.L. 105-244). This report briefly describes the postsecondary undergraduate student-parent population and their dependent care costs. It then provides an explanation of CCAMPIS eligibility and program requirements. This is followed by a summary of program appropriations trends, program outcome data, and recent congressional proposals to reauthorize and modify the program. [For Version 2 of this report, see ED629780.]

Each year, more than a million young people in the United States experience homelessness; some of these young people, known as unaccompanied homeless youth, will face the challenges of homelessness while living on their own without the support of a caring adult. Unaccompanied homeless youth face the same struggles as other young people: trying to do well in school, "fitting in," and figuring out what their future will look like. Without adult guidance and support, however, they will face these struggles while also working to provide for their own livelihoods. Many of these youth hope to attend college but wonder how they will pay tuition without help from their parents, who will sign important paperwork on their behalf, how they will juggle long work hours and schoolwork, and where they will stay when the dormitories close during holiday and summer breaks. Fortunately, federal laws provide additional support for this vulnerable population. This brief aims to increase the awareness of postsecondary educators and education administrators of the issue of unaccompanied homeless youth by providing: (1) A better understanding of unaccompanied homeless youth and the educational and other challenges they face; (2) A summary of federal legislation, including the McKinney-Vento Act, the College Cost Reduction and Access Act, and the FAFSA Simplification Act, which give unaccompanied homeless youth access to critical educational supports; (3) Samples of promising practices implemented by high schools, colleges, and universities to assist unaccompanied homeless youth in succeeding in college; and (4) Additional resources for more information.

Rural America has long been perceived as "left behind" by policies that leave it struggling while benefiting bustling urban cities and suburbs. That narrative holds some truth: rural America has a declining population, along with lower educational attainment and lower workforce participation than urban America. But while rural America certainly faces challenges, it also has its own strengths and assets. "Small Towns, Big Opportunities: Many Workers in Rural Areas Have Good Jobs, but These Areas Need Greater Investment in Education, Training, and Career Counseling" counters some of the negative stereotypes and finds that working adults in rural America are almost as likely (50 percent) as working adults in urban America (54 percent) to have a good job.

Concerns about rising college costs and uncertain economic returns have combined with a wave of populist backlash to reduce public trust in higher education, which plummeted to new lows in 2023. President Biden, who ran his 2020 campaign on a platform that included student loan forgiveness and free community college, has focused some of his recent public messaging on high-paying jobs for workers without college degrees--despite the fact that such jobs are rare. The data shows that time and again a college degree is the most reliable pathway to the middle class: 74 percent of workers with college degrees have good jobs, compared with 42 percent of workers with no more than a high school diploma. These statistics indicate that Americans need both more access to affordable college education and more and better pathways to economic opportunity for workers without college degrees. But they also demonstrate that college degrees remain valuable both to individuals and to society. This report documents the economic benefits associated with increases in college degree attainment that occurred between 2010 and 2020, both nationally and within each state. It also describes the nonmonetary ways in which education contributes to human flourishing.

Education plays a pivotal role in Zambia's vision of achieving prosperity as a middle-income nation by 2030. The Government is committed to delivering high-quality, relevant education and lifelong skills for all children. Despite progress in reading and mathematics scores, learning outcomes in Zambia remain low. Regional disparities within the country persist in primary school completion rates, with girls facing a higher likelihood of dropping out before reaching senior secondary levels. The 2017-2021 Education and Skills Sector Plan underscores the Government's focus on enhancing learning outcomes by addressing gaps in education quality, accessibility, equity and efficiency. In this context, the Ministry of Education (MoE) is leveraging an innovative research partnership with UNICEF to identify and scale local solutions already improving learning in Zambian primary schools. This report presents the local behaviours and practices found in positive deviant schools in Zambia, with the aim of helping to inform future education policy. This mixed-methods research has been co-created and co-implemented with MoE since 2021. [The Ministry of Education Zambia and UNICEF Zambia collaborated with this report.]

The theme of the Equity Indicators for 2024 is confronting the realities and exploring feasible solutions related to the paradoxical and unequal higher education system. As the figure shows, higher education in the United States is increasingly the major agent of overcoming poverty and of attaining upward mobility toward the so-called "American Dream." At the same time, the higher education system functions to sort and stratify society, leading to increased geo-political divides and the legitimization of large differences in wages and salaries, such that many noncollege jobs increasingly do not pay a living wage. The higher education system functions, paradoxically, as a source for innovation and problem solving at the same time it serves as a primary force to maintain the status quo. Further, higher education often functions to legitimize economic practices that increasingly pose an existential threat to environmental sustainability. This sober look at the historical trends in this Equity Indicators report suggests that overcoming these paradoxes is a major challenge.

The Cowen Institute has conducted annual polls on perceptions of public education in New Orleans since 2007. Our polls are designed to provide insight into how parents, guardians, and the general public view New Orleans' highly decentralized K-12 public education system. Each year, we ask some new questions about the most relevant and pressing issues facing educators and families. We also repeat questions from our previous polls to assess how opinions change over time on a few key topics. We now release the poll findings in a series of briefs at the start of each year. This is the first of two briefs that will be released in 2024 with results from polling conducted in the fall of 2023. We present the data in this way to make it more accessible and understandable for the general public -- the briefs allow us to group the findings by topic, enabling us to surface trends about particular areas of the city's education system. This brief covers general perceptions about New Orleans K-12 public education; the second brief will delve more deeply into specific areas of education. To capture the experiences and attitudes of a wide range of parents, as we have done since 2020, we polled 1,000 public and private school parents and guardians in Orleans Parish, as well as a small number who homeschool their children.