The efficiency tax is, at its core, a certainty tax—a gravitational pull toward what is measurable, predictable and defensible, even when the cost of that certainty is potential growth.
More recent high school graduates are choosing community college as students look for lower-cost, career-focused alternatives to four-year degrees. New data shows younger students now make up the largest share of first-time associate degree earners.
Colleges and states are stepping up efforts to help millions of former students return and finish their degrees, but financial and personal barriers continue to keep many from the credential they once set out to earn.
The dominant metaphor for colleges of education is a pipeline. Candidates enter, complete preparation, and exit into schools. That model is no longer sufficient.
Institutions are no longer debating whether AI will transform the sector; instead, they are focused on how quickly they can translate its many possibilities into meaningful progress.
Trump's FY27 proposal marks the White House's latest attempt to remodel higher education, as the president's proposal would apply Pell Grants to short-term workforce credentials
The inclination to buy small but lavishly doesn't reflect irresponsibility as much as the need to have some agency in an economy that has outpaced young people's means.
