Providing workers with the right sets of skills is an urgent necessity in the modern labor market. Postsecondary education and K–12 both have important roles to play, and can be improved with the help of ongoing research on what does and does not work in education policy. K-12 schools could be doing more to increase high school student engagement and preparation for college; and the teacher shortages K–12 schools face in specific subject and geographic areas must also be addressed. Furthermore, at postsecondary institutions, federal aid must provide incentives to raise the quality of the college experience, protect the taxpayer investment, and enhance college access for workers who need to reskill.
On April 26, The Hamilton Project hosted a policy forum to explore the best ways to address these policy challenges. The forum began with introductory remarks by former U.S. Treasury Secretary Robert E. Rubin, followed by three roundtable discussions featuring panelists including: Andy Smarick (American Enterprise Institute); James Kvaal (University of Michigan); Sandra Black (University of Texas at Austin); Charlene M. Dukes (Prince Georges Community College); Michael Dakduk (Career Education Colleges and Universities); Sarita E. Brown (Excelencia in Education); Belle Wheelan (Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges); and Heather Wathington (The Maya Angelou Schools and See Forever Foundation).
Agenda
12:30 PM Registration Opens
1:00 PM Welcome and Introductions
Robert E. Rubin
Co-Chair, Council on Foreign Relations;
Former U.S. Treasury Secretary
1:05 PM Roundtable: Policy Options to Better Finance Higher Education
Author: David Deming
Professor of Education and Economics, Harvard University
Author: Sarah Turner
University Professor of Economics and Education and Sounder Family Professor, University of Virginia
Discussant: Ofer Malamud
Associate Professor, Harris School of Public Policy, The University of Chicago; Visiting Fellow, Economic Studies, The Brookings Institution
Discussant: Charlene M. Dukes
President, Prince George’s Community College
Discussant: Sarita E. Brown
President, Excelencia in Education
Moderator: Diane Schanzenbach
Director, Hamilton Project; Senior Fellow, Economic Studies, Brookings Institution
2:00 PM Break
2:10 PM Roundtable: Risk-Sharing in the Student Loan Program
Author: Adam Looney
Senior Fellow, Economic Studies, Brookings Institution
Author: Tara Watson
Associate Professor of Economics, Williams College
Discussant: Michael Dakduk
Executive Vice President and Director of Government Relations, Career Education Colleges and Universities
Discussant: Sandra Black
Visiting Fellow, Economic Studies, Brookings Institution;
Audre and Bernard Rapoport Centennial Chair in Economics and Public Affairs, University of Texas at Austin
Discussant: Belle Wheelan
President, Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges
Discussant: James Kvaal
Towsley Foundation Policymaker in Residence, University of Michigan
Moderator: Ryan Nunn
Policy Director, The Hamilton Project; Fellow, Economic Studies, The Brookings Institution
3:05 PM Roundtable: Addressing K-12 Teacher Shortages and the College and Career Pipeline for Disengaged Students
Author: Thomas S. Dee
Professor and Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs, Graduate School of Education, Stanford University
Author: Dan Goldhaber
Director, Center for Education Data & Research, University of Washington
Author: Louis Jacobson
President, New Horizons Economic Research; Research Professor, George Washington Institute of Public Policy
Discussant: Andy Smarick
Morgridge Fellow in Education Studies, AEI
Discussant: Heather Wathington
Chief Executive Officer, The Maya Angelou Schools and See Forever Foundation
Moderator: Diane Schanzenbach
Director, Hamilton Project; Senior Fellow, Economic Studies, Brookings Institution
4:00 PM Forum Adjourns
