In-State Tuition for All Massachusetts Residents

PHENOM has worked closely with the Student Immigrant Movement (SIM) and the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Association (MIRA) on Education Opportunity.  Right now, children of undocumented immigrants must pay out-of-state tuition rates at public colleges even if they have gone to Massachusetts public schools their whole lives.  We seek to rectify this inequity either through legislation […]

Read more
PHENOM Calls on the Senate to Level Fund Public Higher Education

PHENOM has been at the forefront of pressuring the state to give public higher education its fair share of the federal stimulus monies. In 2009, PHENOM filed a formal complaint with the U.S. Secretary of Education, arguing that the state had failed to honor the letter and spirit of the federal stimulus law (American Recovery […]

Read more
Rep. Patrick on Equitable Taxes

Read this important viewpoint on Revenues from Rep. Matthew Patrick who recently introduced an amendment to the House budget that would have restored the 12% rate on unearned income (dividends and interest).  PHENOM thanks him and the brave Representatives (Kocot, Malia,Provost, Scaccia, Sciortino, Story, Swan, Toomey) who voted in favor of this in the midst of […]

Read more
Educational Rewards Program

PHENOM has followed the lead of the Crittenton Women’s Union in advocating for funding for the Educational Rewards Program.   It was established as part of the 2006 Economic Stimulus bill to encourage and aid low-income students seeking education leading to jobs in high-demand occupations.  This program is unique in allowing students to use a portion of […]

Read more
Taxes for Public Higher Education

On May 18, voters in Arizona approved Proposition 100, which will temporarily increase the sales tax by one cent on the dollar to fund both K-12 and higher education.  In Oregon, voters approved changes in bond rules that will allow public colleges and universities to finance the purchase of existing buildings, not just the construction […]

Read more
Work Less, Study More, and Succeed

This report from Demos documents how “financial supports can improve postsecondary success”. Just as a postsecondary education has become essential for getting a decent job and entering the  middle class, it has become financially out of  reach for many of America’s young people. The  cost of going to school has increased exponentially, while financial aid […]

Read more
Federal Bailout: Not for Education?

Congress took a step Thursday toward disappointing education leaders who are hoping for another large injection of federal funds, even as the Obama administration stepped up its advocacy for such a boost. The Senate Appropriations Committee approved a $58.8 billion bill to provide emergency spending for the 2010 fiscal year, but despite pleas from the […]

Read more
Letter on “Vision Project” in Boston Globe

For higher ed, ‘Vision’ first, then follow-through May 14, 2010 KUDOS FOR editorializing that “there is something fundamentally wrong with a state education system that puts so much attention on getting its K-12 students ready for college only to give short shrift to the state’s five public university campuses, nine state colleges, and 15 community […]

Read more