Douglas Gagnon on Equity, Schools, and The American Dream

Just got this: at Holy Cross tomorrow afternoon!

Join us for a free, public lecture by
Douglas Gagnon
Tuesday, February 9, 2016 | 4:30 PM | Rehm Library

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America has long been seen as a place where the luck of birth should not dictate one’s chances of success in life, and broad support for the American Dream remains unequivocal — as does the belief that public schooling must play an important part in promoting social mobility. Yet evidence suggests that life beginnings may be more powerful than ever in predicting life outcomes. 

In this presentation, Douglas Gagnon, a research associate at the University of New Hampshire’s Carsey School of Public Policy, will review what we know about social mobility in the U.S. and ask how schools contribute to, or slow the process of, growing inequities in our country. Presenting analyses of his and the work of others, he will examine the state of equal opportunity in our nation’s schools, describing what we might expect from equity-oriented education policy in the near future.

Gagnon, who holds a Ph.D. in Education Policy from the University of New Hampshire, recently spent a year with the Delaware Department of Education as a Data Fellow through Harvard's Strategic Data Project, and has also worked on research projects with the Center for Assessment in Dover, N.H.  

His talk at Holy Cross is co-sponsored by the Education Department and the McFarland Center.

edit: and hey, this one looks interesting...
Wednesday, March 2, 2016
Equity, Schools, and Testing: What National Achievement Scores Do and Don't Tell Us — Educational historian Ethan Hutt, assistant professor in the Department of Teaching and Learning, Policy and Leadership at the University of Maryland, will explore the origins and implications of talking about educational achievement — and educational equity — in national terms, and by relying on standardized test scores. Co-sponsored with the Education Department.
4:30 p.m., Rehm Library