Posts Categorized: Economy

National Think Tank Finds US Households Getting Poorer, Calls for College Savings Incentives

More than one in four U.S. households are asset poor, meaning they lack savings or other assets to cover basic expenses for three months if a layoff or other emergency leads to loss of income, according to the 2012 Assets & Opportunity Scorecard published by the Corporation for Enterprise Development (CFED).The Scorecard also shows 43% of households are "liquid asset poor," which excludes as...

NE College Prices Continue to Outpace Nation’s; Obama Unveils New Tuition Proposals

New England's public and private two- and four years colleges continue to charge higher prices than the U.S. average, according to new data posted to the Financing Higher Education section of NEBHE's Trends & Indicators. To view the latest updates to our Higher Education Financing section, visit Trends & Indicators: Continually Updated Stats on New England’s Education and Economy...

Breathe Easier: EPA Announces Grants to New England for Healthy Communities

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) awarded approximately $372,000 in grants to support 13 New England community projects that address environmental and public health issues.Among examples:•   Bridgeport Neighborhood Trust in Connecticut was awarded $25,000 for its “Bridgeport East Side Healthy Homes Initiative” to address environmentally related illnesses inc...

New Enrollment Data Show NE College Student Pop. Nears Million Mark, But Region’s Share of US Total Dips

New England's public and private nonprofit colleges and universities enrolled nearly a million full- and part-time students in 2010. But the region's historically disproportionate share of total U.S. enrollment continued to decline to 4.7%, down from 5.4% early in the decade.For more than a half-century, NEBHE has been publishing tables and charts exploring "Trends & Indicators" in New Engl...

DC Shuttle: One Report Finds Fears of STEM Overlap Exaggerated; Another Counts Schools Not Making Adequate Yearly Progress

On Thursday, the White House National Science and Technology Council released a report detailing science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education spending across all federal programs. According to the report, 13 federal agencies spent about $3.4 billion on STEM programs in 2010, 80%  of which was split between the National Science Foundation ($1.2 billion), the Education Department...

DC Shuttle: Obama Meets with University Presidents on College Costs

On Dec. 5, President Obama held a meeting with Education Secretary Arne Duncan, university presidents and higher education policy experts which focused largely on the issue of college affordability and productivity. Participants discussed how new strategies for increasing affordability and producing more graduates at individual institutions could be scaled up to the state or national level. Jamie ...

Ross Gittell Named NH Community College Chancellor

Trustees of the Community College System of New Hampshire (CCSNH) appointed University of New Hampshire economist Ross Gittell to be the system's new chancellor.Gittell will assume the post in February, succeeding J. Bonnie Newman, who has served as interim chancellor since August, while the national search for a permanent chancellor was underway.A distinguished professor at the University of New ...

Mass. OKs Casinos, Redistricting, Transgender Equality; Mass. and RI Reform Pensions

After decades of debate, the Massachusetts Legislature passed and Gov. Deval Patrick signed legislation providing for casino gambling in the Bay State. The law creates the Massachusetts Gaming Commission to regulate casino gambling and authorizes three licenses for a resort casino in three regions of the state: Eastern Massachusetts between Boston and Worcester, Western Massachusetts which encompa...

Science (Non)-Fiction … The Latest from NE Campuses

A look at recent developments in New England higher education shows a region struggling to hold onto its historical research  prowess and adding new health programs, but also facing rising costs and declining funds.Holding onto research  power University of Connecticut Vice President for Research Suman Singha reported to university trustees that research dollars are drying up. Resear...

DC Shuttle: Obama Admin Cuts Pell Grant Overpayments, New Eye on Private Student Loans

As part of the Campaign to Cut Waste, the Obama administration cut erroneous Pell Grant payments to 2.7% in 2011, the lowest it has been since 2005. White House officials estimate that reform measures saved $300 million in overpayment through the Pell Grant student aid program. The 2011 payment errors totaled $1 billion, approximately the same as the payment errors for 2010, but an increase in the...