7 Education Policy Headlines in 2023

This is the first in our 2023 Year in Review listicles highlighting the top Harris news, accomplishments, and perspectives from across our community in Education, Technology, and Climate Policy. Life in the Keller Center has seen many changes this year and each day brings new challenges and successes. Here are some of the events, publications, podcasts, and achievements that shaped our thinking in education in 2023:

Harris Hosts Policy Forum: Opening Wide the School House Doors

Natalie Y. Moore, a 2021 CEG Democracy Fellow and award-winning author and journalist, hosted a discussion on October 12 with Harris Professor Ariel Kalil, former US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, and Martin V. Torres, Illinois Deputy Governor for Education in Illinois, Martin V. Torres, MPP’09, CLA’17 about providing access to higher quality education for more people in the US. Together, they considered the effect that a higher education can have on people’s outcomes and the determining factors of one's access to education from Pre-K to Higher Ed programs.

Professors Sonin, Gehlbach Foster Education and Resilience in Ukraine

When Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Professor Konstantin Sonin, the John Dewey Distinguished Service Professor at Harris, along with Scott Gehlbach, the Elise and Jack Lipsey Professor in the Department of Political Science, the Harris School, and the College, wanted to offer their services to help. This year, the two professors traveled to Kyiv to teach at the Kyiv School of Economics.

Sonin said Ukrainians are prioritizing education during the war to preserve human capital in the face of physical damage being inflicted. While he was there for two weeks in March, he taught classes on macroeconomics and the history of economic thought.

Also in March of this year, five days after being recognized by the Russian Investigative Committee with a criminal case for posts he made on social media in 2022, Sonin was recognized by the Academic Communicators Network (ACN) Excellent Awards. His voice provided insight to the news of Russia's invasion of Ukraine in national and international media outlets, as well as on his Twitter account where he educated his followers on the conflict and its consequences with ongoing commentary.

New Faculty Member Brings Discussion of Student Loans to Harris

Among the four new faculty members who joined this 2023-24 academic year is Associate Professor Leslie Turner, whose research focuses on the roles that government should play in providing, financing, and regulating education markets.

Turner was a Senior Advisor in the Office of the Under Secretary and Office of the Chief Economist at the U.S. Department of Education in 2022 and an education fellow in the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee in 2018-19. She is also a research fellow of the National Bureau of Economic Research and CESifo research affiliate. One of Turner’s recent research projects looked at the Grad PLUS loan program to see how well it increased access and success. With her arrival at Harris, she continues her education research that she hopes will help inform education policy.

The Inclusive Economy Lab Reports Framework for Post-Secondary Success

The Inclusive Economy Lab, one of Harris’ Chicago Urban Labs, published a study sharing insight into what challenges Chicago Public School (CPS) students are facing that hinder their pursuit of college degrees. The study “delves into the complex dynamics of college aspirations, access, application, enrollment, and persistence among CPS students.”

This report can be used by educators, policymakers, and parents as a resource to help students open up new opportunities in higher education.

Alumni Awards Recognize Latinx Education Advocate

The Alumni Awards presented Sylvia Puente, President and CEO of the Latino Policy Forum, with the Career Achievement Award. Puente advocates for equity, justice, and economic prosperity on behalf of Latinos in Chicago and Illinois. She was chosen by Governor JB Pritzker to be a member of the Educational Success Committee as part of his transitional team and was also appointed to the Illinois Early Learning Council and the Illinois Education Funding Advisory Board by previous governors.

For these achievements and a number of other successes in advocating for education and justice on behalf of Latinos in the state, the Alumni council recognized her as a significant leader who has created meaningful positive change in society.

Stone Center Premieres “The Inequality Podcast” and Discusses Affirmative Action

In June of this year, the James M. and Cathleen D. Stone Center for Research on Wealth Inequality and Mobility published the first episode of “The Inequality Podcast” hosted by economists Steven Durlauf and Damon Jones, psychologist Ariel Kalil, and sociologist Geoff Wodtke. This podcast invites academics across a variety of disciplines to discuss the consequences of inequality.

The podcast is described as bringing “pioneering research on inequality to life for a broader audience through conversations with leading voices across a wide range of academic disciplines.”

Their episode “Conversations on Inequality and Public Policy: Affirmative Action with Glenn Loury” was recorded live at Harris in November and focuses on the 2023 Supreme Court decision in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard and UNC. Durlaf and Brown University economist Glenn Loury discuss their different perspectives on affirmative action.

Students Compete to Solve Student Debt Crisis

In January, Harris and the Institute of Politics (IOP) hosted a policy competition across campus where students could submit their proposals for solving the $1.6 Trillion Student Debt Crises. IOP Pritzker Fellows Laura Dove, former U.S. Senate secretary for the majority, and former U.S. Senator Doug Jones, D-Ala., mentored students before they presented their solutions to Dove and the University’s Associate Vice President for Federal Relations, Trudy Vincent. 

The final round contestants then presented to new IOP Director Heidi Heitkamp who chose the winning team made up of Emily Barnett, Graham Harwood (both MPP’2023), and Robert Callahan, a 2023 University of Chicago MA candidate.

 

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