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How changing demography is changing a nation

Higher Education

9 Questions With the Man Who Oversaw Higher Education Under Obama

Ted Mitchell has some advice for Betsy DeVos, Donald Trump’s pick to lead the U.S. Education Department.

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  1. Criminal Justice
    Jim Young / Reuters

    What's Causing Chicago’s Homicide Spike?

    President Trump is vowing to “send in the Feds,” but researchers aren’t convinced they understand the rise, or how to stop it.

  2. Criminal Justice
    Teresa Crawford / AP

    What the Investigation Into the Chicago Police Department Found

    The year-long inquiry uncovered “systemic” violations of Chicago residents’ civil rights.

  4. Higher Education
    Mead Gruver / AP

    Dozens of For-Profit Colleges Could Soon Close

    A new study offers a look at what happens when schools shutter.

  5. Higher Education
    Mary Altaffer / AP

    The Gaps in New York's Free-College Plan

    Critics worry that the students who need the most help might be among the least likely to receive it.

  6. Higher Education
    Reuters

    How Teachers Learn to Discuss Racism

    Urban-education programs prepare them for imperative contemporary conversations with students.

  7. Higher Education
    Carlos Barria / Reuters

    Taking Stock of Educational Progress Under Obama

    Secretary John King’s exit memo offers a first look at what the administration thinks it has—and hasn’t—achieved.

  8. Higher Education
    Mary Altaffer / AP

    The Free-College Dream Didn't End With Trump's Election

    New York Governor Andrew Cuomo unveiled a plan to make the state’s public colleges and universities free for families earning less than $125,000.

  9. Higher Education
    Jonathan Ernst / Reuters

    5 Numbers That Explain Education in 2016

    From record-high graduation rates to the percentage of students who attend charters, here are some figures that help tell the story of U.S. schools over the last year.

  11. Higher Education
    Monkey Business Images / karelnoppe / Aleksandar Kamasi ...

    Ending Extracurricular Privilege

    One man’s mission to make college admissions sane (and fair) again

  12. Higher Education
    Eric Gay / AP

    School Discipline in a Post-Obama World

    It’s unclear whether the Trump administration will also see the issue as a matter of civil rights.

  13. Higher Education
    Mike Segar / Reuters

    Colleges Really Need to Rethink the Career Advice They Deliver

    A new report suggests most graduates don’t find the current offerings very helpful.

  14. Higher Education
    Fred Thornhill / Reuters

    Mentoring's Promise and Limits

    Research on the long-term effects of advisers is mixed, and some programs are now relying on video-game networks and other technology to forge stronger relationships.

  15. Early Childhood
    Ted. S. Warren / AP

    Why Doesn't Public School Start at Birth?

    The economist James Heckman argues in a new paper that early-childhood education should commence at the very beginning of life.

  16. Early Childhood
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    The American Obsession With Parenting

    Parents of all income and education levels are spending more time promoting their kids’ development—yet socioeconomic gaps in childrearing behavior are growing.  

  17. Early Childhood
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    How to Predict a Baby's First Word

    A new study suggests what a toddler sees plays a major role.

  18. Higher Education
    Emily Jan / The Atlantic

    Where Students Get Two Years of College in High School for Free

    A small private school in western Massachusetts has launched a network of tuition-free early colleges across the country.

  19. Criminal Justice

    Only Ever Knowing Your Brother Behind Bars

    A reader in Chicago details her first memory of her older brother—“behind the Plexiglas”: Across from him…

  20. Criminal Justice

    ‘Our Father Didn't Show Up to Court for the Child He Ruined’

    The latest story in our reader series comes from a young woman, Ngeri, who is “still personally working through my…

  21. Criminal Justice
    Charlie Riedel / AP

    The Link Between Race and Solitary Confinement

    Men of color are overrepresented in isolation, while whites are typically underrepresented.

  22. Early Childhood
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    The Playground Where Babies Learn to Talk

    A campaign to encourage brain development is using parks to deliver its message to children and their caregivers.