Higher ed finance, workforce development, labor markets, and econ policy. Senior Director at Jobs for the Future. Alum of Aspen, Pew, EPI, and OMB. Views mine.

Washington, DC
Joined May 2008
Through income share agreements (ISA), students pay for their education as a percentage of their post-grad income rather than a flat up-front charge or a conventional loan where they are on the hook for a fixed monthly payment regardless of what they’re earning. I sat down with @KJMumford of @LifeAtPurdue and @ethanpollack of @jfftweets to learn more about what they’ve learned from studying Purdue’s “Back a Boiler” ISA program—and what those lessons might mean for making ISAs a bigger part of the way students pay for college.
1
2
236
Ethan Pollack retweeted
Large scale job displacements due to AI are likely to occur more slowly than a lot of people talking about AI and work might suspect. Translators were paid more and in more demand a year after GPT-4 than they were the year it launched.
The BLS just released new OEWS data, so we can actually update this (it's an annual survey every May -- so this is 18 months of data post-ChatGPT, instead of 6 months) From 2023 -> 2024: (1) Translator real wages +0.8% (2) Translator employment/employment share slightly up ⬆️
31
43
6
442
88,803
Ethan Pollack retweeted
How can you get ahead without a degree? There are 73 “launchpad” jobs where workers tend to earn more over time and have more job security than the median college grad, according to great research by ⁦⁦@TheBGInstitute⁩ nytimes.com/2024/11/21/busin…
2
3
1
6
11,673
It’s hard to overstate how much people hate inflation—and the lasting scars this recent surge caused. People across the board, even Democrats, mainly blamed the government (see the figure👇). Check the summary 🧵for "Why do we dislike inflation?" here: xitter.cf/S_Stantcheva/status/17…
15
118
9
389
98,516
Ethan Pollack retweeted
This is the way
220
2,504
221
22,017
968,770
It's been another crazy week in what may be the craziest year for borrowers -- here's where things stand with student loan forgiveness under the SAVE plan, other IDR plans, PSLF, and a new plan that could arrive in just weeks. forbes.com/sites/adamminsky/…
4
6
4
31
3,478
Ethan Pollack retweeted
The response to the Great Recession was such an insane policy failure
74
258
45
1,785
273,782
Hey higher ed leaders, have you seen the latest research from The Burning Glass Institute and Strada Education Foundation? It is a must-read for anyone in higher ed. Get the report - burningglassinstitute.org/re… #HigherEdInsights #ResearchUpdate #EducationLeadership
1
1
175
Really interesting paper - I especially found this chart interesting. In the last 8 years there's been big shifts in what skills people *think* people are going to need. "Uncertainty is our only certainty when it comes to AI and the future of work."
This Post is from an account that no longer exists. Learn more
21
40
29
273
193,346
Ethan Pollack retweeted
This is such a provocative chart. 1st middle-aged reaction: yeah, culture's gone to shit 2nd reflection: transition to fast/short/exciting culture isnt purely bad. democratization of culture is good. pop replaced symphonies; the beatles are good! 3rd: nope, definitely bad
52
222
75
1,366
380,284
Ethan Pollack retweeted
The unique opportunity that AI offers the labor market is to extend the relevance, reach, and value of human expertise, from @davidautor nber.org/papers/w32140
2
70
13
218
66,481
Potential Breakthrough on Federal Student Data System After long opposing bipartisan efforts to track student outcomes, Republican @VirginiaFoxx has proposed a version of one. But some data advocates say her bill comes up short. #HigherEd bit.ly/3OHAcb3
4
2
2,494
Ethan Pollack retweeted
States bet big on career education, but struggle to show it works because adult employment outcomes are disconnected from K-12 data sets, reports @patrick_wall @NOLAnews & @theadvocatebr in @hechingerreport. hechingerreport.org/states-b…
3
3
672
Today, the Joint Committee on Higher Education in Massachusetts voted to advance legislation that would ban legacy preferences in public and private colleges. It is the first legislature to advance a broad ban on legacy.
1
8
17
2,861
#ICYMI | In a lengthy hearing Wednesday, Democrats argued the Republicans’ College Cost Reduction Act wouldn’t actually lower costs. #HigherEd bit.ly/3SHQcfz
3
1
1
5,329