“We do not need to be shoemakers to know if our shoes fit, and just as little have we any need to be professionals to acquire knowledge of matters of universal interest” — Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, 19th century German philosopher. * Fascinating essay that weaves through the motivations of a young Henry Ford to […]
Land O Links
Posted inTalent & Education
Ready for college? In Michigan, likely not.
If you live in Michigan, your high-schooler is probably less prepared for college than the average American student. Your teen has only an average chance of graduating from high school, and a below-average chance of enrolling in college. And if your son or daughter makes it to campus, he or she is less likely to […]
Posted inTalent & Education
Michigan's 'Faltering 40' on college prep
If you want your son or daughter to succeed in college, there are 40 public school districts you may want to avoid. In an analysis by Bridge Magazine and Public Sector Consultants, these 40 districts, spread across the state and ranging from urban to rural, scored in the bottom rungs of four different college-readiness measures. […]
Posted inTalent & Education
A decade of slipping: Michigan's students fall behind
Michigan is falling behind other states in preparing its teenagers for college, a trend that could hobble the state’s efforts to revitalize its economy. The percentage of Michigan high school graduates going to college has been inching upward, from 57.5 percent in 1992 to 59.4 percent in 2008, according to the National Center for Higher […]
Posted inTalent & Education
Parsing the 3 Rs: Rigor, responsibility, readiness
College readiness means knowing how to solve an algebraic equation, but it also means knowing how to set an alarm clock. That’s the advice of Jim Montoya, former dean of admissions at Stanford University and now president of higher education relationship development at the College Board, which runs the SAT college admissions test. In an […]
Posted inTalent & Education
Spend a little on kids now, save a lot later
Call it common sense, call it common knowledge, but now it has a number attached: $40,000. Or $100,000. The first number is the amount the state of Michigan saves on every child who arrives at kindergarten “ready to learn,” that is, with an adequate preschool or similar early-childhood experience. The six-figure sum is what the […]
Posted inPhil's Column
Michigan, learn the lessons of early childhood
There are two approaches to justify initiatives in public policy: arguing from assertions of morality and reasoning from return on investment. The former method is by far the most common in today’s discourse. It’s relatively easy to do and comforting, as well, to wrap one’s preferences in the gauzy warmth of moral principles. And in some […]
Posted inLand O Links
Land O Links
“The benefits of education and of useful knowledge, generally diffused through a community, are essential to the preservation of a free government” — Sam Houston, Texan revolutionary. A task force looking for ways to improve how the state selects its Supreme Court justices suggested the creation of an “open primary” to have voters select the […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
Snyder builds tax plan on complicated tax credit math
The Snyder administration’s plan to give tax relief to businesses by reducing the personal property tax rests … on the end of tax breaks for businesses. Yes, you read that correctly. Over the next several years, Michigan will stop sending hundreds of millions of dollars of business-tax credits out the door. The corresponding expected increase […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
In Ohio, tax repeal advocates tout anecdotes
While Michigan tinkers with its tax structure in an effort to improve its business climate, its neighbor to the south already is collecting accolades and attracting investments. Site Selection magazine, in its March issue, awarded Ohio its Governor’s Cup for attracting 498 major capital investment projects in 2011, the most among the 50 states. Michigan […]