We assess the potential for expanding regional planning by asking local government officials their perspectives on the potential for increasing regionalism in their communities, and the most promising approaches to achieving greater regionalism. Our...

Policymakers are increasingly relying on emissions trading programs to address environmental problems caused by air pollution. If polluting firms in an emissions trading program face different economic regulations and investment incentives in their...

When exploring the K-12 curriculum structure, it is important to note what the most effective methods are when it comes to making sure that students are getting all of the training that they need in order to be ready for college when the time comes....

Only one in two Michigan 3rd graders were proficient in reading at the end of 2015, according to the M-STEP, and this number is only decreasing (EdTrust Midwest, 2017). The MSTEP is the Michigan Student Test of Education Assessment, an annual...

During, and in the wake of, Michigan’s Lost Decade and the Great Recession, Michigan’s urban centers struggled to retain and attract young people. This dilemma became known as the “brain drain” and led to a number of issues, including an unwelcome...

This paper focuses on the labor market outcomes that represent a key marker of the transition to adulthood—the attainment of economic stability and self-sufficiency. Achieving labor market success is a necessary condition for a successful transition...

We analyze SSI applications and benefit receipt after the 1996 welfare reform by single mothers who received cash assistance in February 1997. We address these questions: First, what characteristics are associated with SSI applications and how do...

Since the early 1970s, dramatic changes in the economy, demographic composition of the population and in public policies have combined to reduce the antipoverty effects of economic growth. Because economic growth is now necessary, but not...

Over the last three decades, structural changes in the American labor market eliminated many highly‐paid, stable jobs that had previously been available to workers with a high school diploma or less. Job security is important, particularly for the...

This report seeks to identify and quantify some of the challenges faced by districts as they push their students to higher academic levels in a time of fiscal hardship. We have conducted surveys and interviews of school and district level personnel...