Podcast appearances and mentions of sandy baum

This fall is the first college application season in which schools are prohibited from considering race and ethnicity when making admissions decisions, after June's landmark Supreme Court ruling. Sandy Baum, a senior fellow at the Urban Institute's Center on Education Data and Policy, joins John Yang to discuss how this affects college-bound students and their families. PBS NewsHour is supported by - https://www.pbs.org/newshour/about/funders

This fall is the first college application season in which schools are prohibited from considering race and ethnicity when making admissions decisions, after June's landmark Supreme Court ruling. Sandy Baum, a senior fellow at the Urban Institute's Center on Education Data and Policy, joins John Yang to discuss how this affects college-bound students and their families. PBS NewsHour is supported by - https://www.pbs.org/newshour/about/funders

Season Finale: Dr. Joffery Gaymon,  Vice President for Enrollment at Auburn University, shares what it's like (and what it takes) to make the jump to one of the biggest roles at one of the most recognizable institutions in the U.S. She shares the essential and timeless tools to keep in your toolbox, whatever your ambitions may be, as well as how to keep yourself focused and grounded as the work gets tougher. (And there may be a reference to teaching spin classes.)Rapid DescentWalkout sons: Special by LizzoBest recent read: Campus Economics: How Economic Thinking Can Help Improve College and University Decisions by Sandy Baum and Michael McPherson, a gift from Sam Waterson at RHB.Eager to read next: "I have to finish that one."Favorite podcast: Unreformed: the Story of the Alabama Industrial School for Negro ChildrenFavorite thing to make in the kitchen: Anything with brunch ... with a mimosa on the sideWhat she uses to take and keep notes: old fashioned pen and legal pad, and EvernoteMemorable bit of advice: there are actually three (1) We are always called to serve. (2) When you're in a position of leadership, be mindful of what you say, because what you say carries authority. (3) Every time you go to a meeting, it's a like a zoo: everybody brings their own monkey. Your job is to not leave with anybody else's monkeys.Bucket list: Write a book.Theme music arranged by Ryan Anselment.Many thanks to the National Association for College Admission Counseling for supporting this podcast through the NACAC Podcast Network.

Harry Brighouse and Hannah Bounds interview Sandy Baum and Michael McPherson about their book, Can College Level the Playing Field?: Higher Education in an Unequal Society (2022). Links: Book: Can College Level the Playing Field?: Higher Education in an Unequal Society Episodes mentioned: The Plumber Episode, The Right to Higher Education, and The True Costs of College Produced by Harry Brighouse, Hannah Bounds, and Carrie Welsh. Music by Fred Table and the Chairs. Transcript Website: https://ethicsandeducation.wceruw.org/podcast/can-college-level-the-playing-field/

Bloomberg Washington Correspondent Joe Mathieu delivers insight and analysis on the latest headlines from the White House and Capitol Hill, including conversations with influential lawmakers and key figures in politics and policy. Bloomberg Government Congress reporter Jack Fitzpatrick was filling in for Joe today. Guests: Bloomberg Supreme Court reporter Greg Stohr, Sandy Baum, Nonresident Senior Fellow at the Urban Institute Center on Education Data and Policy and Republican Chair of the House Budget committee, Jodey Arrington of Texas. Plus, our politics panel, Bloomberg Politics Contributors Jeanne Sheehan Zaino & Rick Davis.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Andy Borst,  Director of Undergraduate Admissions at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, shares tips on nurturing and managing relationships with the media (with hat-tips to Scott Jaschik and Eric Hoover). Andy also shares his morning routine (itself a pro tip) as well as the origins of his name, which we somehow accidentally trip over early in the episode. Rapid DescentWalkout song:  Know Your Enemy by Green DayBest recent read: The Black Family's Guide to College Admissions by Tim Fields and Shereem Herndon-BrownEager to read next: Campus Economics: How Economic Thinking Can Help Improve College and University Decisions by Sandy Baum and Michael McPhersonFavorite podcast(s): The Truth About College Admission, the  new podcast by Rick Clark and Brennan Barnard. Favorite thing to make in the kitchen: Crab boilWhat he uses to take and keep notes: leather-bound notebook stuffed with Post-it notes.Memorable bit of advice: No-one owns the university loyalty.Bucket list: Write a book about college admission.Theme music arranged by Ryan Anselment.

There's been a lot of debate about President Biden's plans to erase a portion of the $1.7 trillion in student debt. But most analysts agree on one thing: high college costs aren't going away. And while we figure out how to make college more affordable, economist Sandy Baum wants to ask an even more fundamental question: is college the “great equalizer” we often think it is? Ben sat down with Sandy to look at why college has become so expensive, and whether higher ed can truly “level the playing field”.  Higher Ed Spotlight is a new podcast, sponsored by Chegg's Center for Digital Learning, that aims to explore the future of higher education today.

Is a college degree really worth the investment? And does higher education improve inequality in America or make it worse? Dr. Sandy Baum and Dr. Michael McPherson, economists and authors of the book, “Can College Level the Playing Field: Higher Education in an Unequal Society,” discuss the benefits, challenges, and opportunities of our post-secondary education system, and whether it can help to create a more equitable society.

Episode 53: President Joe Biden said his administration plans to forgive up to $10,000 in federal student loan debt for anyone who earns less than $125,000 a year. People who went to college on Pell grants can have up to $20,000 forgiven. Hosts Rick Kyte and Scott Rada debate this significant and expensive policy, and what it means about fairness and the structural funding problems in higher education. Links to stories discussed during the podcast: The moral failure of student debt relief, by Richard Kyte, The Ethical Life Analysis: Biden's student loan forgiveness may erase savings of climate, drugs law, by David Lawder, Reuters Student loan cancellation: Congress proposes 0% interest rates for student loans, Zack Friedman, Forbes Who owes the most in student loans: New data from the Fed, Sandy Baum and Adam Looney, Brookings Institute About the hosts: Scott Rada is social media manager with Lee Enterprises, and Richard Kyte is the director of the D.B. Reinhart Institute for Ethics in Leadership at Viterbo University in La Crosse, Wis.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, with the Biden Administration weighing whether to extend the federal student loan payment freeze, we're re-airing one of our most timely debates from last year: Canceling student loan debt. The problem of student loan debt has reached crisis proportions. As a college degree has grown increasingly necessary for economic mobility, so has the $1.7 trillion in student loan debt that Americans have taken on to access that opportunity. President Biden has put some debt cancellation on the table, but progressive Democrats are pushing him for more. So what is the fairest way to correct course?Astra Taylor — an author, a documentarian and a co-founder of the Debt Collective — dukes it out with Sandy Baum, an economist and a nonresident senior fellow at the Center on Education Data and Policy at the Urban Institute. While the activist and the economist agree that addressing the crisis requires dramatic measures, they disagree on how to get there.Is canceling everyone's debt progressive policy, as Taylor contends? Or does it end up being a regressive measure, as Baum insists? Jane hears them both out. And she offers a royal history tour after Oprah Winfrey's interview with Meghan Markle and Prince Harry.Mentioned in this episode:Astra Taylor in The Nation: “The Case for Wide-Scale Debt Relief”Sandy Baum in Education Next: “Mass Debt Forgiveness Is Not a Progressive Idea”Astra Taylor's documentary for The Intercept: “You Are Not a Loan”Sandy Baum for the Urban Institute: “Strengthening the Federal Role in the Federal-State Partnership for Funding Higher Education”Jane's recommendation: Lucy Worsley's three-episode mini-series “Secrets of the Six Wives”

In today's episode, host Dr. Jason Altmire talks with Dr. Sandy Baum, nonresident senior fellow at the Urban Institute, and co-author of “Achieving the (almost) impossible: Consensus on for-profit education.” Dr. Altmire and Dr. Baum discuss if there is common ground between critics and defenders of for-profit institutions to implement lasting regulations.Tune in to hear Dr. Altmire and Dr. Baum have a candid conversation about if for-profit institutions should be held to different accountability measures, what accountability should look like across all educational institutions of higher education, and can a consensus be reached.To learn more about Career Education Colleges & Universities, visit our website.  

This week on “Off The Cuff,” Justin is joined by Dr. Sandy Baum, a nonresident senior fellow for the Center on Education Data and Policy at the Urban Institute, as they discuss higher education priorities and how in a world of limited resources the federal government can best allocate and target spending. The conversation touches on free community college, debt forgiveness, doubling the Pell Grant, and dives into which of these investments could have the biggest impact on students. Justin and Sandy also cover topical higher education news like recent issues surrounding institutional accountability, student loan repayment plans, and more. Hugh then provides an update on some of the biggest financial aid news on the student loan portfolio, remarks from Education Secretary Miguel Cardona, and highlights profiles of our latest Diversity Leadership Program class.

MIR Responds is our new series where MIR's podcasters will respond to writers about their articles. We may agree and we may disagree, but regardless, we'll make sure to keep this series filled with civil debate and lively discussion. In our debut episode, host Andrew Xu sits down with MIR writer Matthew Farrell to discuss his article on the US's inordinately large college tuition prices.   References   "Universal University: How College Education Can Be Democratized in the United States" by Matthew Farrell, The McGill International Review   "Mass Debt Forgiveness Is Not a Progressive Idea" by Sandy Baum, Education Next   "Measuring College Prestige vs. Cost of Enrollment" by Paul Sullivan, The New York Times   "When private colleges lose prestige, they raise tuition" by Jillian Berman, MarketWatch

This week, while I'm on vacation, we'll be sharing work from two other New York Times Opinion podcasts. First up, an episode from our friends at The Argument about how to cancel student-loan debt. Host Jane Coaston is joined by activist Astra Taylor and economist Sandy Baum, who agree that addressing the crisis requires dramatic measures but disagree on how to get there.Thoughts? Guest suggestions? Email us at ezrakleinshow@nytimes.com.The Ezra Klein Show is produced by Annie Galvin, Jeff Geld and Rogé Karma; fact-checking by Michelle Harris; original music by Isaac Jones; mixing by Jeff Geld. Special thanks to Shannon Busta and Kristin Lin.

The problem of student loan debt has reached crisis proportions. As a college degree has grown increasingly necessary for economic mobility, so has the $1.7 trillion in student loan debt that Americans have taken on to access that opportunity. President Biden has put some debt cancellation on the table, but progressive Democrats are pushing him for more. So what is the fairest way to correct course?Astra Taylor — an author, a documentarian and a co-founder of the Debt Collective — dukes it out with Sandy Baum, an economist and a nonresident senior fellow at the Center on Education Data and Policy at the Urban Institute. While the activist and the economist agree that addressing the crisis requires dramatic measures, they disagree on how to get there.Is canceling everyone’s debt progressive policy, as Taylor contends? Or does it end up being a regressive measure, as Baum insists? Jane hears them both out. And she offers a royal history tour after Oprah Winfrey’s interview with Meghan Markle and Prince Harry.Learn MoreAstra Taylor in The Nation: “The Case for Wide-Scale Debt Relief”Sandy Baum in Education Next: “Mass Debt Forgiveness Is Not a Progressive Idea”Astra Taylor’s documentary for The Intercept: “You Are Not a Loan”Sandy Baum for the Urban Institute: “Strengthening the Federal Role in the Federal-State Partnership for Funding Higher Education”Jane’s recommendation: Lucy Worsley’s three-episode mini-series “Secrets of the Six Wives”

On a special episode of “Off the Cuff,” Megan is joined by Sandy Baum from the Urban Institute and Lauren Walizer from the Center for Law and Social Policy to discuss their contributions to NASFAA’s series of 10 papers that provide policy recommendations to help streamline the FAFSA. Lauren discusses her paper — co-authored by Elizabeth Lower-Basch — that analyzes the impact of using public benefits to reduce paperwork for students completing the FAFSA and how it would maximize financial aid. Sandy gives an overview of her three papers in the series, which detail the current methodology used to measure a family’s ability to contribute toward educational expenses and reviews the various methods proposed to simplify the FAFSA. The two also gave their answers to what the perfect FAFSA looks like. Keep an eye out for more special episodes from our FAFSA paper series throughout the month of August!

Endowments allow colleges and universities, like other public and charitable organizations, to fund a portion of their work continuously, generation after generation. The ways in which these funds have been solicited from donors, applied to expenses, and stewarded over time are ultimately unique to each institution, and public misconceptions have proliferated on each of these points. Hear from Sandy Baum, a nonresident fellow at the Urban Institute and trustee of Bryn Mawr College, explain why endowments exist, what they provide to institutions and students, and why they are at risk.

Research shows that online classes are most effective when there is substantial interaction among the students and between the students and the instructor. In this episode, Dr. Spiros Protopsaltis and Dr. Sandy Baum join us to discuss the possible adverse effects of proposed changes in federal regulations that may reduce the extent of this interaction.     Dr. Protopsaltis is an Associate Professor and Director of the Center for Education Policy and Evaluation at George Mason University, and he was a Deputy Assistant Secretary for Higher Education and Student Financial Aid at the U.S. Education Department during the Obama administration. Dr. Baum is a Fellow in the Center on Education Data and Policy at the Urban Institute, and a professor emeritus of economics at Skidmore College. A transcript of this episode and show notes may be found at http://teaforteaching.com.

The college affordability crisis is a familiar story to most Americans. A simplified version often goes that state funding for higher-ed institutions has decreased dramatically over the years, which has translated into massive tuition hikes for students and their families. Sandy Baum, a fellow in the Education Policy Program at the Urban Institute, watches the issue—and its proposed solutions—closely. The story usually gets encapsulated into examples of students trapped in hundreds of thousands of dollars of debt. And while this may be the case for some students, Baum notes that it’s not always the full picture. EdSurge talked with Baum about these issues—and about how innovative approaches are or aren’t helping solve the college affordability crisis.

Having the right information is crucial when responding to questions about why college costs so much. But does it? Most students don't pay the full "sticker price" once financial aid is taken into consideration. Listen to Sandy Baum, economist and senior fellow at the Urban Institute, discuss the costs and benefits of a college degree–and why you never hear a news story about an unemployed high-school graduate. More about AGB's Guardians Initiative and The Business of Higher Education report mentioned in the podcast at www.agb.org/guardians.

Today’s episode focuses on a higher education issue that we have talked about before at USACollegeChat, though not recently--that is, the pros and cons of attending a community college, which is a marvelous institution in theory, but a somewhat more disappointing institution in reality. At least, that has been our position in the past. When I read a recent article about where community colleges find themselves these days, I thought we might look at them one more time. If you are the parent of a senior, we will offer some recent facts that might affect your decision to send your own teenager to a community college next fall. If you are the parent of a junior, these same facts might affect your wanting to use a community college as your teenager’s safety school option or as your teenager’s only option during the application process next year. 1. The Funding Picture The article I read was written by Jeffrey R. Young and disseminated online by EdSurge. EdSurge is an organization that, in its own words, “report[s] on [the] latest news and trends in the edtech industry to help . . . entrepreneurs who build new products and businesses; educators who use these tools; [and] investors and others who support companies and schools” (quoted from the EdSurge website). So, here is some background for our discussion, thanks to Mr. Young and EdSurge: Nationwide, enrollments in community colleges have been declining for several years, in part because the job market as a whole has been improving, so fewer people have felt the need to . . . [head] back to school. And even as some states and cities propose efforts to make two-year colleges free to students, the broader trend is that many state governments have scaled back public support for community colleges in recent years. In Arizona, for instance, the state funding for two major community college districts [Maricopa Community College District and Pima Community College District] is down to zero. “Like all public higher education support, the funding is going down,” says Sandy Baum, a senior fellow at the Urban Institute. “It’s worse in some ways at community colleges,” she adds, because the total amount that community colleges spend per student has been decreasing, according to The College Board’s Trends in College Pricing. “They just don’t have the money to serve students the way they did,” she adds. “That’s a reason to be very concerned.” (quoted from the article) Yes, that is a reason to be concerned--for sure, if you live in the Phoenix-Tempe-Tucson area, where funding is “down to zero,” and presumably if you live in other community college districts in similar financial trouble. We have read plenty in the news over the past year about public four-year universities that are living in a world of declining state funding and, often, that are raising tuition to make up for that loss, much to the anger of the state residents. But, if you thought that public community colleges could be your fallback position, perhaps it is time for you to think again. Because what happens when state and local governments cut back on their funding of their community colleges? Clearly, the community colleges are going to have to raise their tuition--which, to be fair, is typically very low--or they are going to have to reduce educational and support services to their students. Unfortunately, there’s no free lunch, even at community colleges. For some students, whose only viable option is their local community college, either choice that a community college is forced to make will be a serious blow. 2. The Pros of Community Colleges: A Review Let’s review quickly some of the pros and cons about community colleges, also referred to as two-year colleges. Here’s a list of reasons to put two-year colleges on your teenager’s list of colleges to apply to (these reasons are conveniently taken from our first book, How To Find the Right College: A Workbook for Parents of High School Students): Two-year colleges offer associate’s degrees, which can be enough for some careers, including high-paying technical careers. Later, if the student wants to do so, the credits earned for an associate’s degree can be transferred to four-year colleges and applied toward credits needed for a four-year bachelor’s degree.   (In fact, some two-year colleges in some states are now authorized to offer bachelor’s degrees, especially in technical fields where workers in the labor force are in short supply. Students pursuing those bachelor’s degrees would need to stay at the two-year college longer, of course.) Two-year colleges offer students who have struggled in high school a chance to improve their academic record and gain the fundamental skills and study habits they will need to succeed in more advanced college study. After doing well at a two-year college, such students can get into a better four-year college than they could have gotten into right out of high school. Two-year colleges can be a good choice if a student is undecided about an academic field of study in college and/or about a future career. Trying out different academic majors and different programs leading to different career paths is cheaper and likely easier to do at a two-year college than at a four-year college. Two-year colleges offer their students core liberal arts courses (which can often be transferred to four-year colleges later) and/or technical training in many different fields at a very low price. Putting two-year colleges on your teenager’s list of college options is a reasonable decision if paying for college—either right away for a two-year degree or eventually for a four-year degree—is a critical concern for your family. Let’s underline that last point, which, I think, is the primary point for the kids who head to a community college right out of high school. The fact that it is so much cheaper than any four-year option is sometimes irresistible. We know that students can get financial aid of all kinds from four-year colleges, which could make their time there essentially free, but none of those deals is a sure thing. Paying the very low tuition at a community college, especially with whatever financial aid is available, is a sure thing. Let’s also acknowledge that we understand that there might be family reasons to keep a child close to home and within commuting distance and that a community college might fit those circumstances very nicely. Sometimes it is hard to argue against family reasons like that. 3. The Cons of Community Colleges: A Review So, what’s the downside of going to a community college? As we have said before at USACollegeChat, the choice of a community college for students coming right out of high school is quite different from that same choice being made by adults returning to college or starting college for the first time. But, we are focused here on students coming right out of high school, just like your own teenager. Here is what Mr. Young’s article says about one very important college statistic: … [T]he truth is that community colleges don’t always pay off for students. Completion rates are notoriously low--only about 38 percent of students who started at a community college in 2009 completed a two- or four-year degree within six years. And students who take out even small loans to attend can end up with crippling debt if they end up with no degree to show for their efforts. As [Sandy Baum, senior fellow at the Urban Institute] puts it: “You really can’t pay back anything if you’re working at the minimum wage.” (quoted from the article) That is a sobering statistic: Not even half of community college students complete any college degree in six years--not even a two-year associate’s degree. Admittedly, that statistic includes all kinds of students who attend community colleges--from bright kids right out of high school who need to save money to returning adults who have been out of school for a decade to kids who struggled in high school and couldn’t get into a more selective college. Nonetheless, we quoted evidence many episodes back that said that students are more likely to graduate if they go to a more selective college, for many reasons. You have to put that in the scale as you weigh college options for your teenager. In addition to that seriously low completion rate, the transfer rate of students from community colleges to four-year colleges to earn bachelor’s degrees is also shockingly low, as we reported back in Episode 64, based on an article in The Hechinger Report. Here is that statistic, which was taken from a report from Teachers College, Columbia University: . . . 80 percent of entering community college students say they intend to earn a bachelor’s degree, but only about a quarter actually make the transfer and 17 percent eventually get the degree. (quoted from the article) So, as parents, you need to think hard about whether your teenager is different from the typical community college student--smarter, harder working, more motivated, more goal oriented, or something. Because, otherwise, the statistics are telling you that he or she is likely not to graduate with even an associate’s degree and is likely not to transfer to that more expensive four-year college you say you are saving up your money for. We all think our own kids are different and, maybe, better. But how much are you willing to gamble on that? 4. What Is the Answer? Mr. Young’s article also noted that community colleges are trying out a few ideas in the hope of improving those statistics, and that’s a good thing. Let’s look at two of them. The first idea is something that community colleges are calling “guided pathways,” and the idea really couldn’t be simpler. Here it is: The metaphor for the traditional community college is a “cafeteria” of course offerings, says Melinda Karp, assistant director of the Community College Research Center at Columbia University’s Teachers College. “We’ve since realized that too much choice is actually overwhelming,” she adds, “and too many students are unable to put together a program of study that gets them where they want to go.” John Hamman, a dean at Montgomery College, agrees. “What we need to do is help and talk to students about, what do you want to do?” Many community college students who struggle with subjects like mathematics, for instance, might prefer a different track that requires less math—but may not know the option exists. . . . And we don’t do a good enough job helping students [take] those smart pathways.” (quoted from the article) Well, this problem exists at all levels of schooling and can be solved, at least partly, by intelligent and experienced advisors. Certainly, we had to serve in that capacity at the high school we co-founded in NYC. It was clear that we had to be vigilant to make sure that students were taking what they needed to take in order to graduate--and, in our case, to graduate early in three years. But, it is also true that four-year college advisors need to pay attention to course selection and graduation counseling--especially, as we just said in our last episode (Episode 112), if students are trying to do four years of college in three years. In this case of community colleges, given their low graduation rate, they absolutely need “guided pathways” to make sure that students get onto a track as soon as possible and stay on track to finish the courses needed to earn a degree. If you are looking at a community college for your teenager, it would be wise to check out whether it has these pathways spelled out and this kind of academic advising available. The second idea aimed at improving community college statistics is making online coursework more available. Here is what the article said: Community colleges are . . . starting to do more to offer online courses, says Rufus Glasper, president of the League for Innovation in the Community College. But they are more likely to offer blended programs and require at least some in-person attendance, rather than set up all-online programs, he adds. “Community colleges need to do more with online so that we can have lower price-point options for our students as well,” he says. That can be especially tough for two-year colleges, though, since they often don’t have the resources to invest in new online infrastructure that it takes to start fully online programs. (quoted from the article) On the other hand, I am wondering whether the fact that community colleges often offer blended courses instead of fully online courses is actually a plus. Quite recently, in Episode 107, we discussed the pros and cons of online courses for various groups of students. We remained concerned at the end of that episode about the ability of most freshmen to take important introductory or foundational courses online (like Calculus I or Composition 101 or Introduction to Sociology or Spanish I or Biology 101) and get everything out of them that they would get if they were in a classroom with a professor two or three times a week. Offering courses fully online to save the student money may backfire if the student cannot complete the course with a satisfactory grade or with a satisfactory amount of knowledge. We are going to remain concerned that fully online courses might not, in the long run, improve a community college’s graduation rate or successful transfer rate. 5. Where Does That Leave Us? Toward the end of Mr. Young’s article, he again quotes Ms. Karp, of the Community College Research Center at Columbia University’s Teachers College: “This is their moment because [community colleges] are the access and equity engines of higher education,” argues Karp. . . . “In this age when we’re talking about how do we open up access to higher education but also make sure our labor force is prepared for . . . jobs of the future, they’re in an ideal position.” (quoted from the article) Community colleges might indeed be in an ideal position in theory, but they are going to have to improve their results in practice. Those results are what continue to worry us as seniors choose their first step into higher education. Let me simply repeat what I said a few minutes ago: Unless you think your teenager is smarter, harder working, more motivated, and more goal oriented than the typical community college student, your teenager is likely to have some difficulty graduating from a community college and/or transferring to a four-year college. So, talk with your teenager and think hard about your choice. Ask your questions or share your feedback by... Leaving a comment on the show notes for this episode at http://usacollegechat.org/episode113 Calling us at (516) 900-6922 to record a question on our USACollegeChat voicemail if you want us to answer your question live on our podcast Connect with us through... 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