Askwith Essentials: Education and the 2016 Election

On Wednesday, October 19, several faculty members of the Harvard Graduate School of Education will gather to explore where education fits into the 2016 election. The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), passed in December 2015, shifted accountability authority downward to states and curtailed the role of the Secretary of Education. How could the outcome of the election affect education in America? What will the next president really be able to do for education? Professor Paul Reville will lead the discussion.

An Education Election?

• Republican nominee Donald Trump has not released an education plan, but has supported expanding school choice and vouchers and reducing the cost of college. He is also “totally against” the Common Core State Standards.
• Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton’s plan includes “elevating” the teaching profession, rebuilding schools, breaking the school-to-prison pipeline, the expansion of affordable preschool and child care, and making college more affordable by offering free tuition at community colleges and four-year public universities.
• This year, “down-ballot” races like Question 2 on expanding the cap on charter schools in Massachusetts and the gubernatorial race in North Carolina are generating particular interest as barometers for where state policy might move.
• Some estimate that between10 and 13 state legislative chambers are candidates to flip from Republican to Democrat after this year’s elections, which would shift the course of education policy in many states.

The Panel

• Professor Meira Levinson is a 2014 Guggenheim Fellow and co-editor of Making Civics Count. Her research includes studying justice and democracy within schools.
• Associate Professor Martin West is the director of Harvard Kennedy School’s Program on Education Policy and Governance and the executive editor of Education Next.
• Assistant Professor Roberto Gonzales studies the experience of immigrant and Latino/a students in the U.S. education system. He recounted the lives of 150 undocumented Los Angeles students for his book Lives in Limbo.
• Professor of Education and Economic David J. Deming studies the economics of education and long-term education outcomes.

Event details:

Wednesday, October 19, 5:30pm

Askwith Hall, Longfellow Hall
13 Appian Way
Cambridge, MA, 02138

NOTE: Seating is first-come, first-seated.