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Michael Dannenberg

@mdannenberg1.bsky.social
55 followers 97 following 47 posts

Deputy Commissioner for Policy, MA Dept of Higher Ed; former aide Sec. Arne Duncan (Obama Admin), Sen. Kennedy (D-MA), & Sen. Pell (D-RI). Posts my own.

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Reposted by Michael Dannenberg
Conor P. Williams @conorpwilliams.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
“That means more firmly committing to holding our public systems — including K–12 education — accountable to serving public goals.” www.the74million.org/article/scho...
the74million.org
School Accountability Is Back: Here’s Why It’s Key to Restoring Public Trust
Public education is central to 'the most elemental promises of our 250-year-old creed,’ and making it answer for student outcomes would go a long way.
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 10/06/2026
This NYT op-ed on Trump’s planned political takeover of higher ed and other research is 100% correct. But needed is more than op-eds in the NYT and the like. Where is the PAC to Defend Academic Freedom and Support Higher Education? Fight fire with fire. www.nytimes.com/2026/06/09/o...
nytimes.com
Opinion | Trump’s Assaults on Scientific Research Just Got Worse
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Reposted by Michael Dannenberg
Matt Barnum @mattbarnum.bsky.social · 03/06/2026
To the extent "Gen Z" thinks this — and such broad generalizations are often dubious — it partially reflects a relentless and misleading media narrative that in recent years has ignored the actual data here.
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 13/05/2026
Unpopular fact: No Child Left Behind worked until we took our foot off the gas I submit the animating development was the Chicago teachers strike & NY opt-out movement. Those led to Obama era ESEA waivers & that was the beginning of the end @mattyglesias.bsky.social www.nytimes.com/2026/05/13/u...
nytimes.com
Your School District Is Probably Scoring Worse Than 10 Years Ago
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Reposted by Michael Dannenberg
Jenn Borgioli Binis @jennbinis.bsky.social · 07/05/2026
This is a really interesting project and it's really interesting to poke around, even if you're not a Californian.
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 02/05/2026
Rich, progressive donors that want to reach young people should fund — with no content strings attached — independent college newspapers. They’re a low cost charitable investment with high civic returns.
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 17/04/2026
The colleges of education lobby group now says, “Congress should modernize the nation’s education data infrastructure so that information on educator preparation, placement, & performance can be _directly linked to student learning outcomes_.” aacte.org/report/feder... Are the times a-changing?
aacte.org
Federal Support for Systemic Approaches to Educator Workforce Development & Design - American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education
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Reposted by Michael Dannenberg
Akil Bello @akilbello.bsky.social · 16/04/2026
Skip the article about/from the employees of the Yale corporation and read this from SUNY Geneseo www.geneseo.edu/enrollment-m...
geneseo.edu
The College Affordability Crisis is Real, but the Media is Looking at the Wrong Schools
Sturges Hall (Photo by Keith Walters ’11) Opinion By Costas Solomou, Vice President, Enrollment Management Published by the Office of Enrollment Management When Yale University released its Committee ...
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Joshua Goodman @joshua-goodman.com · 31/03/2026
Fascinating work that at first appears in tension with the extensive lit showing students on the margin of 2- vs. 4-yr colleges do better in the long run by choosing 4-yr colleges. The key is that the 2- and 4-yr colleges at play here are of roughly similar quality. College quality is always key.
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Reposted by Michael Dannenberg
Matt Barnum @mattbarnum.bsky.social · 02/04/2026
Special education is one of our country's biggest investments—but does it actually work? Yes! According to a rigorous new study. Identification for services can fundamentally alter a student's trajectory. Via @joshua-goodman.com, et al. cbnewsletters.chalkbeat.org/p/special-ed...
cbnewsletters.chalkbeat.org
A major study finds special education helps students. But is it enough?
The findings are strikingly positive: Students made large, sustained gains after getting services. The harder question is whether special education could work even better.
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Reposted by Michael Dannenberg
Arne Duncan @arneduncan.bsky.social · 27/02/2026
This is the reward Columbia got for their early capitulation to Trump. Please remember: Bullies never get tired of bullying you, and the weaker you appear, the more they will attack, because they prey on the most vulnerable. The only path that makes sense for Universities is collective resistance!
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 03/03/2026
In a subtle shift toward accountability, the schools of ed now say, “Congress should modernize the nation’s education data infrastructure so that information on educator preparation, placement, & performance can be directly linked to student learning outcomes.” www.edweek.org/teaching-lea...
edweek.org
Education Groups Push $2.5 Billion Plan to Rebuild Teacher Preparation
Teachers' colleges lead push to 'rebuild' after years of disruption and falling enrollment.
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 18/02/2026
As a policy wonk, I've long criticized our highly selective college admissions system. Big parts fail to reward achievement and undermine diversity. But as a parent going through it, I'm enraged by it. It puts heavy pressure on kids to be and do something they're not yet ready to be or do.
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 09/02/2026
. @arneduncan.bsky.social & @ambpressman.bsky.social are 100% correct that higher ed is in a war and should start acting like it. There should be a higher ed PAC that funnels donations to candidates that defend academic freedom and due process. Use democracy to defeat those who would destroy it
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Reposted by Michael Dannenberg
Washington Post Opinions @postopinions.bsky.social · 09/02/2026
"Silence is not neutrality; it is permission," @arneduncan.bsky.social and @ambpressman.bsky.social write. wapo.st/45YQ01X
wapo.st
Opinion | Universities are sending Trump a dangerous message
Higher education is under attack. Drop the appeasement.
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 05/02/2026
“This is unlawful, reckless, & legally & morally indefensible,” Democracy Forward president and CEO Skye Perryman said. “[C]hildren should never have to look over their shoulders at school or worry that their loved ones could be taken away at the schoolhouse gate” Someone knows how to give a quote
insidehighered.com
ICE Sued Over Policy Allowing Immigration Actions on Campus
A collection of public school districts and university faculty members are challenging Department of Homeland Security policies that allow Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers to conduct detai...
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 10/01/2026
Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin was an accountability hawk with K-12 public schools. Now he’s embracing an accountability-free voucher scheme for K-12 private schools. What a surprise @rweingarten.bsky.social @neatoday.bsky.social @arneduncan.bsky.social www.governor.virginia.gov/newsroom/new...
governor.virginia.gov
Governor Glenn Youngkin Announces Virginia is First State to Opt In Formally to the Education Freedom Tax Credit to Expand School Choice in Virginia
Governor Glenn Youngkin announced today that Virginia was the first state in the nation to opt in to the Education Freedom Tax Credit, also known as the Federal Scholarship Tax Credit (FSTC), a new fe...
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Reposted by Michael Dannenberg
Arne Duncan @arneduncan.bsky.social · 08/01/2026
Murder is murder- it doesn’t matter who the perpetrator is. #ICE
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Reposted by Michael Dannenberg
Joshua Goodman @joshua-goodman.com · 05/01/2026
"The College Backlash Is a Mirage" Americans are more pessimistic than ever about the value of a degree—but enrollment keeps going up. By @rosehorowitch.bsky.social in @theatlantic.com www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
theatlantic.com
The College Backlash Is a Mirage
Americans are more pessimistic than ever about the value of a degree—but enrollment keeps going up.
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James Fallows @jfallows.bsky.social · 30/12/2025
2/2 While I'm at it, how about profiles of 700,000+ people in DC—more than total pop of VT or WY—who have been long-term gerrymandered out of any Congressional voice at all. While on average paying more *federal* tax, per capita, than people in any "real" state. Do it in barber shop, vs diner.
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Anna Stansbury @annastansbury.bsky.social · 09/12/2025
In our research on socioeconomic background in academia, we ran a survey. Over 2,000 faculty members responded (thanks if you were one!) Social & cultural capital showed up time and again as key issues. A few findings you might be interested in...🧵
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Prof Dynarski @dynarski.bsky.social · 15/12/2025
This weekend has been a year long 😥
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Prof Dynarski @dynarski.bsky.social · 11/12/2025
Been there In the policy world, plagiarism is the highest form of flattery you’re having an impact!
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 10/12/2025
Yes, get rid of early decision and the legacy preference. But the truly progressive position on admissions is to change the financial incentives for colleges. Reward Pell Grant and middle income student enrollment. @jfallows.bsky.social @bobshireman.bsky.social www.nytimes.com/2025/12/10/o...
nytimes.com
Opinion | The Early Decision Option Is a Racket. Shut It Down.
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 30/11/2025
Most stories on the percentage of adults who think college is not worth it fail to note most also overestimate the cost, underestimate how much financial aid they’re entitled to receive, & don’t have a firm grasp of the earnings premium associated w/ degree attainment. www.strada.org/reports/cost...
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Reposted by Michael Dannenberg
Paul Bruno @paul-bruno.com · 29/11/2025
Making FAFSA mandatory: an evaluation of Louisiana's financial aid submission policy on college enrollment and pell grant awards www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.... "I find positive, significant impacts on the enrollment rate for Black students at large, public four-year universities"
tandfonline.com
Making FAFSA mandatory: an evaluation of Louisiana's financial aid submission policy on college enrollment and pell grant awards
Aiming to reduce inequalities between low- and high-income students enrolling in college, Louisiana enacted legislation requiring high school students to file a FAFSA application, or opt-out, prior...
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 20/11/2025
In addition to the cost side of the affordability issue, there’s the ability to pay side and individuals have a lot more control over that @ezrakleinbot.bsky.social Latest rpt backing “the more you learn, the more you earn” is out of MA. $20K-$30K value-add for degree holders www.mass.edu/earnings
mass.edu
Latest Fall Enrollment & Student Success Report / Data Center / Massachusetts Department of Higher Education
Official website of the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 19/11/2025
Hungary’s right-wing leader, Victor Orban, slashed university funding for independent research, cut support for content areas he doesn't like, and installed allies in key college roles. JD Vance called him a "model." Higher ed: You're in a war. It won't end with a handshake. @democracyforward.org
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 16/11/2025
BGlobe op-ed proposes colleges agree to cap and reduce early decision admissions. To really make that proposal work, the federal gov’t would have to suspend antitrust law enforcement for that purpose. It can and should. @jfallows.bsky.social @booker.senate.gov www.bostonglobe.com/2025/11/15/o...
bostonglobe.com
Why top colleges should cut back on early decision admissions - The Boston Globe
Colleges have increasingly relied upon early decision to secure ever-larger portions of their entering classes. But the early decision edge goes largely to students who already have a big leg up on th...
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 31/10/2025
My vision. Every college degree program comes embedded with a work-based learning experience (a paid internship for those with need), & every student graduates with a skill-based certification upon degree completion. Work matters. Skills matter. @ginaraimondo.bsky.social @petebuttigieg.bsky.social
e.ga
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 19/10/2025
A 2028 hopeful should go big on work study, strengthen it, & better tie it to academic programs. The Trump admin has proposed an 82% cut to work study even though students who complete a paid internship are half as likely to be underemployed post-graduation. Help them & show Ds value work. #Clinton
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 15/10/2025
Seems to me any college has good grounds to sue and seek an injunction stopping implementation of the Trump administration’s “compact” with higher ed. It runs directly counter to 20 USC 1232’s prohibition on direct or indirect federal control of academic programming. The law still matters, right?!
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 14/10/2025
Education “reform advocates should always want…bipartisan support…[I]t makes for a stronger & more durable coalition,” says @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social True, but sometimes that’s not enough (see NCLB). You need the upper middle class as well. schooledbymikepetrilli.substack.com?utm_campaign...
schooledbymikepetrilli.substack.com
SCHOOLED | Michael J. Petrilli | Substack
SCHOOLED is Michael J. Petrilli’s twice-weekly newsletter restarting the ed reform conversation. Expect sharp analysis, curated commentary, and lively debates—including from YOU. This is one newslette...
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Reposted by Michael Dannenberg
Kevin Carey @kevincarey1.bsky.social · 11/10/2025
It's clearer by the day that Columbia making a deal with Trump in July was a catastrophe for higher education as a whole. It gave terrible people a bottomless appetite for extortion. The other eight universities must follow MIT's lead. www.nytimes.com/2025/10/10/u...
nytimes.com
M.I.T. Rejects a White House Offer for Special Funding Treatment
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 09/10/2025
There’s a new campaign asking alumni to urge their alma maters to reject the Trump administration’s latest shakedown of higher ed. They should start a PAC as well. Use participatory democracy to defeat those who would destroy it. @bluehaveninit.bsky.social alumni.controlshift.app/petitions/tr...
alumni.controlshift.app
STAND WITH YOUR SCHOOL: Trump attacks 9 universities. Sign the alumni petition now.
Are you an alum from one of the 9 schools the federal government just attacked? Sign this alumni petition now to support your school, defend democracy, and build a grassroots movement for campus freed...
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 05/10/2025
Democrats should go in the opposite direction of Mamdani on gifted programs. There should be more, not fewer of them. And we should reward students who fast track through school. @rahmemanuel.bsky.social @joshshapiro.bsky.social @all4ed.org @crpe.bsky.social all4ed.org/wp-content/u...
all4ed.org
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 05/10/2025
My K-12 ed reform recipe list: 1) Time- Think summer learning 2) Teachers- Better trained, better paid 3) Rigor- High standards & acctly for all 4) Relevance- Curricula that resonates & matches the research; & 5) Student Motivation- Policies that facilitate success @mattyglesias.bsky.social
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 09/09/2025
Reading Skills Hit a New Low. The real question is why doesn't anyone care? Why doesn't the Democratic Party care? I submit it's because mainly it's the lowest achieving students who are declining. Political power rests with parents of middle & high achieving students www.nytimes.com/2025/09/09/u...
nytimes.com
Reading Skills of 12th Graders Hit a New Low
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 28/08/2025
So, which is it? Clamp down on international students and base policy on (anecdotal) stories of “forever students” OR recognize the contributions international students bring to American higher education and support our higher education trade _surplus_? apnews.com/article/chin...
apnews.com
Trump saying 600,000 Chinese students could come to the US draws MAGA backlash
President Donald Trump has sparked backlash from some members of his loyal base by saying his administration would allow 600,000 Chinese students into American universities.
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Reposted by Michael Dannenberg
Peter Ellis @freerangestats.info · 23/08/2025
The weight given to non-academic criteria ('character', etc) and the discretionary admissions process really are odd characteristics of the US university system. Biased, privilege-protecting results plus lots of resentment is precisely what one would predict this leads to.
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 23/08/2025
In education and beyond, Democrats need to offer real solutions to that which rightly fuels populist rage. As long as we’re just against Trump without offering compelling, lasting solutions to the ways in which the deck is stacked against working people, we will lose. @dynarski.bsky.social
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Arne Duncan @arneduncan.bsky.social · 01/08/2025
My take on the threat Trump poses to our system of higher education- America’s crown jewel. He is destroying the goose that has laid our golden egg, as he attempts to destroy democracy. We must resist- together! You can open a free account to read my open letter. www.chronicle.com/article/an-o...
chronicle.com
An Open Letter From Arne Duncan
The former secretary of education weighs in on Trump’s attacks.
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 31/07/2025
Still waiting on the Trump administration to declare the legacy preference an unlawful violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act. It carries just as much if not more of a disparate impact as the DEI policies the Trump administration continues to attack and declare unlawful.
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 24/07/2025
More and more folks are suggesting elite colleges embrace ⁦‪an‬⁩ “abundance agenda” to self-mitigate the effects of the endowment tax. 🤔 ⁦‪ ‪@ezraklein.bsky.social ‪@dkthomp.bsky.social ‪@mattyglesias.bsky.social ‪@glastris.bsky.social www.bostonglobe.com/2025/07/23/m...
bostonglobe.com
Universities are grappling with how to pay new endowment taxes. Some analysts say the answer is to admit more students. - The Boston Globe
More than a dozen schools across the nation are expected to fall under the top tax rate in the new Republican tax and spending law, including Harvard and MIT.
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 30/06/2025
The tragic fall of #UVa’s Jim Ryan is yet another indication that the Trump administration’s war on higher ed will not abate. Defensive lawsuits are good, but not enough. Time for higher ed to hit back and use participatory democracy to defeat those who would destroy it. #Harvard
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 29/06/2025
It’s politically negligent that the Association of American University Professors doesn’t have a PAC like other interest groups. Scores of #Harvard professors already have pledged 10%(!) of their salaries to help Harvard fight the Trump admin. Imagine that nationally. #UVA @dynarski.bsky.social
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 27/06/2025
Higher ed needs to start acting like a forceful special interest. Engage in polling, do msg development, mobilize students, make hard $ campaign contributions, finance soft $ campaigns…Call it the Campaign for Academic Freedom & hire a campaign professional. Do it now www.nytimes.com/2025/06/27/u...
nytimes.com
University of Virginia President Resigns Under Pressure From Trump Administration
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Reposted by Michael Dannenberg
Timothy Snyder @timothysnyder.bsky.social · 22/06/2025
Five things to remember about war:
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Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 20/06/2025
The House GOP “Big, [Not] Beautiful Bill” is replete with massive financial aid cuts - over $330 BILLION worth. And yet there’s barely a peep about it from elected Dems who rightly focus on even larger Medicaid cuts. Still, think about what the lack of attention to education says about where we are.
votervoice.net
Contact Congress NOW to Oppose Cuts to Student Aid Programs
Please contact your representatives and senators now to urge them to oppose FY 2025 funding cuts for federal student aid programs such as Pell Grants, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Gran...
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