This policy change would replicate how the government resolved the Latin American debt crisis of the 1980s — by negotiating steep discounts from the bank lenders, which allowed countries to repay much lower amounts, restoring their credit ratings. We should borrow from that experience.
Bob Hildreth
Posted inOpinion
Don’t fixate on the state’s elite private schools
LOCAL COVERAGE of the latest US News and World Report ranking of US colleges has focused on the fact that 7 Massachusetts schools made the top 50. People have questioned […]
Posted inOpinion
College dorms are becoming financial albatrosses
IVY-COVERED DORMITORIES nestled around grassy quads have long been the classic image of college life, especially in Massachusetts. Perhaps not for much longer. During the COVID-19 pandemic, dormitories are costing […]
Posted inEducation
Despite COVID, families prioritizing college savings
THE ECONOMIC DISRUPTION induced by the COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the extreme financial vulnerability that exists in America. The sudden economic crisis revealed what experts have been saying for years: […]
Posted inEducation
Making college more affordable sounds good…
AMERICA’S HIGHER EDUCATION system is mired in crisis. Colleges are increasingly unaffordable for lower- and middle-class students, and student debt is now at record levels. As Massachusetts prepares to vote […]
Posted inEducation
Real problem isn’t sudden college closures, but student debt
IN RESPONSE TO the sudden closure of Mount Ida College last year, legislation requiring public and private non-profit colleges to report on their long-term financial stability is now moving forward […]
Posted inEducation
Legislature should look to private donations to fund UMass
HIGHER EDUCATION FUNDING and the cost of attending the University of Massachusetts generated significant controversy in the budget just passed by the Massachusetts Legislature and signed by Gov. Charlie Baker. […]
Posted inOpinion
The college bubble is starting to burst
This op-ed has been updated with a revision to the initial reference to Hampshire College. THE FOURTH SHOE has dropped. Hampshire College just joined Wheelock, Mt. Ida, and Newbury College […]
Posted inEducation
Why I’m giving $50 to every new child born in Massachusetts
OVER THE LAST DECADE, I’ve created three non-profit organizations with the shared mission of getting low-income students to college without taking on crushing debt. I’ve seen the life-changing impact a […]
Posted inEducation, Opinion
The dawn of a new era in savings
Not since the 1970s, when IRAs and 401(k)s were created to encourage retirement planning, has the issue of savings raised so much interest. Several bills have been filed on Beacon […]
Posted inEducation, Opinion
Scholarships that keep students in the high school race
High school graduations are around the corner, and that means education officials are preparing thousands of scholarships to award to graduates. They are like volunteers at the famed Boston Marathon […]