The huge BA earnings premium for 25-34 year olds
The story we are told over and over again is for today’s students getting a four-year degree is no longer a good value for many. It may have been for their parents’ generation, but no more. Everything from student loans college graduates can’t afford because of low salaries; to employers getting smart and now hiring […]
More Michigan households unable to pay for necessities
The Michigan Association of United Ways reports that in 2017 43 percent of Michigan households were unable to pay for necessities. Up six percent from 2010 when the Michigan economy was just starting to grow after the Great Recession. How can that be? In an economy that President Trump calls the best American economy ever […]
A bold new Michigan playbook
Wow! Governor Whitmer’s first budget is a bold new playbook for improving the quality of life and standard of living of Michiganders. At its core it rejects the notion that the lever that matters most to improving the well being of Michiganders is low taxes. That low taxes––combined with minimal regulation––will attract employers who will […]
Michigan 2019: the state of the state
Terrific assessment of Michigan 2019 by Chad Livengood for Crain’s Detroit Business. (I did a podcast with Chad that accompanies the article.) He writes: There are potholes in Michigan — and not just in the roads. Potholes in household income. Potholes in the percentage of working adults. Potholes in student achievement and funding for K-12 […]
What we mean by career rock climbers
Governor Whitmer’s first State of the State address marks a major turning point in the state’s approach to improving the well being of Michiganders. One now public investment driven. After nearly three decades of disinvesting in education and infrastructure in favor of lower taxes, Governor Whitmer made the case that Michiganders have paid a high […]