Sound advice on k-12 education
Two recent editorials laid out the path we should be on when it comes to k-12 education. The first from Stephen Henderson, editorial page editor of the Free Press, entitled “State must get tougher if charter schools fail to make the grade”. The second for the Detroit News by Sandy Baruah, CEO of the Detroit […]
Ohio
Interesting New York Times Sunday Magazine article on the Ohio economy and politics. The article is primarily about the intersection between the state’s economy and the presidential election. What is of more interest to me is three insights about the long-term success of the state’s economy. Each matter to Michigan as well as Ohio. First […]
Going backwards on college attainment
“Too much emphasis on a four-year degree, says Michigan Governor” was the headline of a recent Michigan Radio article. How distressing! The reality is that Michiganders are suffering because not enough of us have four year degrees. Michigan is now 36th in per capita income, down from 18th in 2000, largely because we are 34th […]
Lessons from D.C. and Portland
Recent articles about Washington D.C. and Portland Oregon once again highlight the essential role that education attainment is playing in defining what places are doing best in post Great Recession America. You can find the D.C. story in a New York Times article by David Leonhardt. Portland’s story is told in a Matthew Yglesias’ article for […]
A Michigan urban agenda
All of sudden their seems to be a renewed interest in developing an urban agenda for Michigan. If this is more than just talk that would be very good news. Having vital central cities that anchor big metropolitan areas is a core characteristic of the most prosperous states––particularly those with high private sector employment earnings […]
What we do
Don Grimes and I are just putting the finishing touches on our annual report on the Michigan economy. It will be out in mid September. The genesis of these reports is the publication in 2006 of Michigan Future’s A New Agenda for a New Michigan. Which lays out our vision for a prosperous Michigan and our […]
Lessons from the Blanchard Administration
In an earlier post we quoted Thomas Friedman and Michael Mandelbaum from their book That Used to Be Us on tax and spending policy. They wrote: … the purpose of the exercise: It is not simply to reduce the deficit but to insure prosperity. Solvency is vital, but it is not enough. To uphold American […]
The increasing value of a college degree
There is growing chorus of policy makers and pundits questioning the value of a college degree. In their telling we have too many, not too few, college graduates. Don’t believe it! A new study, The College Advantage: Weathering the Economic Storm, from the the Center on Education and the Workforce at Georgetown University, provides the […]
More Jim Blanchard, taxes and jobs
As a follow up to my previous post on Governor Blanchard’s record of both raising taxes and a job creator, Don Grimes sent me an analysis of job growth in Michigan compared to the US and the state income tax rates during the full terms of Governors Romney, Milliken, Blanchard, Engler and Granholm and the […]
Jim Blanchard, taxes and jobs
As many of you know I worked for Governor Blanchard, I thought then – and even more so now – he was real good for the people of Michigan. His administration was about one thing: jobs. His record is exemplary. What follows are the facts on the economic results during his eight years in office […]