MaryEllen McGuire: All Publications, Events and Press

Stimulus Money Helps Colleges Avoid Slashing Budgets Now, but Big Cuts May Loom | Chronicle of Higher Education

Cecille Isidro — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 13:59:00 -0400

MaryEllen McGuire, who directs the education-policy program at the New America Foundation, a Washington-based, nonprofit public-policy group, said lawmakers are under pressure from the White House as well as constituents to quickly fill budget gaps and save education jobs. "Governors want to be able to respond now," she said. Original article

In Urban Classrooms, the Least Experienced Teach the Neediest Kids

Cecille Isidro — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 12:53:00 -0400

Imagine for a moment that you are driving your child to the hospital. She has a high fever and is suffering from severe abdominal pain. It's unclear what's wrong but she is in definite need of medical attention.

Now imagine that the only doctor on call is a recently graduated medical student. It's her first day on the job and there is no experienced physician or surgeon available for consultation. Are you satisfied with this level of care for your child? I wouldn't be. I'd want to benefit from the knowledge of a more experienced physician. Wouldn't you?

Playing Fair

Stephanie Gunter — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 17:00:00 -0400

A New America Event
06/08/2009 - 9:30am

On Monday, June 8, the New America Foundation's Federal Education Budget Project released "Equitable Resources in Low Income Schools: Teacher Equity and the Federal Title I Comparability Requirement" at an event on Capitol Hill. This event featured representatives from the White House, Representative George Miller's committee staff, and the National Education Association to discuss teacher equity and the comparability requirement in the law.

10 Ideas to Ensure College Readiness in the No Child Left Behind & Higher Education Acts

Communications — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 13:40:00 -0400

WASHINGTON, DC-- Today the New America Foundation's Federal Education Budget Project (FEBP) released its issue brief "10 Ideas to Ensure College Readiness in the No Child Left Behind & Higher Education Acts" by Education Policy Program Director MaryEllen McGuire. The issue brief lays out strategies for federal policymakers to incorporate college readiness proposals into legislation.

10 Ideas to Ensure College Readiness in the No Child Left Behind & Higher Education Acts

Education Policy — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 17:53:00 -0400

It is a stark, indisputable fact that many of America's high school graduates are not ready for the rigors of college. Fewer than half of the high school juniors and seniors who took the ACT national college admissions test in 2008 met its college readiness benchmark in mathematics.^[1] Of the 40,000 freshmen admitted into the California State University system in 2007, more than 60 percent needed remediation in English or math.^[2] Nationwide, nearly a third of all incoming freshmen—42 percent of first-year students at public two-year colleges—require remediation.^[3]

A 'Third Way' on Student Loans? | Inside Higher Ed

Cecille Isidro — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 02:06:00 -0400

The latest installment of the debate unfolded Tuesday during a forum here at the New America Foundation, a think tank whose higher education analysts are strongly allied with and generally supportive of the new administration's policies, including its plans to restructure the loan programs.

The Future of Federal Student Loans

Cecille Isidro — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 00:00:00 -0400

A New America Event
03/31/2009 - 9:30am

On Tuesday, March 31, the New America Foundation's Education Policy Program hosted "The Future of Federal Student Loans." This event featured representatives from the Obama administration, the student loan community, and New America's Education Policy Program to discuss the pros and cons of the President's proposal to stop guaranteeing federal student loans and to instead make the loans directly.

Bridging the Gap

Stephanie Gunter — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 14:30:00 -0500

A New America Event
01/29/2009 - 1:00pm

It is a stark, indisputable fact that many of America's high school graduates are not ready for the rigors of college. While the nation's secondary schools bear much of the responsibility, colleges and universities have done a poor job of communicating the skills expected of incoming freshmen and an even worse job of providing effective remediation and extended support services to ensure that underprepared students eventually graduate. Only 30 percent of students who take remedial reading courses go on

College Readiness and Remediation Crisis: New America Foundation's "Bridging the Gap" Report

Communications — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 10:31:00 -0500

Washington DC -- Today the New America Foundation's Federal Education Budget Project released a report on America's college readiness and remediation crisis. The paper, "Bridging the Gap: How to Strengthen the Pk-16 Pipeline to Improve College Readiness," by Ulrich Boser and program fellow Stephen Burd, details the failings

Changing the Odds for Children at Risk

Communications — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 13:45:00 -0500

A New America Event
12/01/2008 - 12:15pm

Data show that children who are born in poverty to young, poorly educated parents have much lower chances of succeeding in school, college, and the workforce than their less-disadvantaged peers. They are also at greater risk for a host of negative outcomes, including poor academic performance, being held back a grade, dropping out of high school, being unemployed, and participating in criminal activity.

MaryEllen McGuire in Education Week | ' K-12 Issues Will Await President'

Cecille Isidro — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 11:36:00 -0500

“There can be a case to be made that education becomes the vehicle that helps fuel the economy,” said MaryEllen McGuire, the director of the Education Policy Program of the New America Foundation, a Washington think tank. “Education is the building block, and we can’t lose sight of that now.” LINK (subscription required)

MaryEllen McGuire in the San Antonio Express | 'For Some Voters, College is a Real Test'

Cecille Isidro — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 09:59:00 -0400

MaryEllen McGuire, director of education policy program at the New America Foundation, a nonpartisan think tank, said both platforms are fairly general, but Obama offers more details and more specific spending proposals.

“I really feel it mirrors where they are on K-12,” McGuire said. “Obama invests in the public system; McCain is about influencing it from the outside.” LINK

MaryEllen McGuire in The National Journal | 'What's At Stake: Education'

Cecille Isidro — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 13:08:00 -0400

After this Congress's failure to renew the six-year-old law, Obama and McCain will face the same grassroots pressure to act. No Child Left Behind requires states to set increasingly tough annual standards to ensure that all students are proficient in reading and math by 2014. With the deadline closing in and standards getting higher, more schools are failing and consequently more teachers, parents, school administrators, and state officials are pressing for an overhaul.

"Congress as a whole is committed to [reauthorizing] NCLB. This is on people's mind," said MaryEllen McGuire, director of the nonpartisan New America Foundation's Education Policy Program. "I think Obama will be more proactive, but ultimately it will get done regardless of who is president."

"The tricky piece for Obama will be teachers unions," McGuire added. The National Education Association and the American Federation of Teachers are spending millions of dollars to elect Obama, and they will push him to ease the law's testing requirements and harsh sanctions, and not to use students' test scores to award merit pay to teachers. LINK

Where Should the Dems Be on Education?

Communications — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 06:00:00 -0400

A New America Event
09/19/2008 - 11:00am

The forthcoming reauthorization of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) will require political parties to define their positions on public education. In a recent article in the American Prospect, analyst Kevin Carey of Education Sector argues that the Democratic Party has lost its edge on education issues, allowing Republicans to narrow their historical disadvantage in the field. On September 19th, Carey joined Rep. Artur Davis (D-AL) and education consultant Bella Rosenberg for a lively discussion on Capitol… more