Edward Conroy

Metro

Contributor at Forbes

EdD, Snr Policy Manager @NewAmericaEd, formerly @hope4college and @UCLA “There’s some good in this world... and it’s worth fighting for”

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Articles

Want Affordable, High-Quality Childcare? Look to the Military

1 month ago | newamerica.org | Edward Conroy |Abby Kinch

This blog is being cross published with Student Veterans of America, one of the leading service, research, programs, and advocacy for veterans in higher education. Abby Kinch, PhD is Vice President of Research at Student Veterans of America, the personal elements in this blog are her experiences navigating college as a veteran and single parenting student herself. Edward Conroy, EdD is Senior Policy Manager, Higher Education Policy at New America.
Letter of Support for Maryland Senate Hearing - Data Collection on Parenting Students

2 months ago | newamerica.org | Edward Conroy |Ewaoluwa Obatuase |Stephanie Baker |Richard Davis Jr.

In March 2025, the New America Higher Education Policy Team submitted a letter of support for Maryland's House Bill 0298 for Maryland's senate hearing on the bill on April 2, 2025. The bill would require the Maryland Higher Education Commission to collect data regarding the parental status of students from each public institution of higher education in the state.
Department Of Education To Lay Off 50% Of Staff. Polling Shows Voters Oppose Eliminating The Agency

2 months ago | forbes.com | Edward Conroy

Today the Trump administration administration is expected to issue a notice that it intends to fire approximately half the staff at the United States Department of Education. The Reduction in Force notice (a legal requirement when the federal government is planning large scale layoffs), is expected this evening, after all staff at the department were told to leave their office buildings by 6pm, and not to come to work on Wednesday, March 12.
Holding onto Hope in 2025: Why Long-Term Policy Solutions Still Matter

Mar 4, 2025 | newamerica.org | Edward Conroy

The past few weeks have felt awful for public policy and its important role in American life. Every day brings news of another agency gutted, experts laid off, lifesaving research canceled, and more people vilified for spending their careers in public service, doing their best to make America better in ways large and small.
What Improves Retention For College Students With Kids By 20% Points?

Feb 28, 2025 | forbes.com | Edward Conroy

The answer is probably: give them more money. Austin Community College has been running a support program for parenting students since the Fall of 2021, and last week Trellis Strategies, a national research firm focused on postsecondary education, released an evaluation of the effort. The results are impressive. Trellis found that 95% of students in the program remained enrolled the next semester, compared to 75% for their peers who did not participate.
Public Comments on The Post Secondary Commission's Revised Accreditation Standards

Feb 28, 2025 | newamerica.org | Antoinette Flores |Edward Conroy

The New America Higher Education Policy Team submitted comments on the Postsecondary Commission's (PSC) (an aspiring accreditor) most recent revision of its standards. The comments raise concerns that PSC is moving its central value added metric, which it has claimed will make it a very rigorous accrediting agency, out of its standards, and into policy documents that can be edited at any time.
FAFSA and Student Loan Help Is no Place for AI

Feb 20, 2025 | newamerica.org | Edward Conroy

The most frequent response you are likely to get from a financial aid professional when asking “how much help will I get to pay for college”? Is, it depends. That answer might annoy a student, but it’s one driven by the reality that financial aid is really complicated. Part of the U.S. Department of Education’s job is to help students navigate that complexity.
2024 Letter of Support for Data Collection on Parenting College Students in Maryland

Feb 20, 2025 | newamerica.org | Edward Conroy |Da'Shon Carr |Tia Caldwell

In February 2024, the New America Higher Education Policy Team submitted a letter of support for Maryland's House Bill 0463. The bill would require the Maryland Higher Education Commission to collect data regarding the parental status of students from each public institution of higher education in the state.
How Will The $2.7 Billion Pell Grant Funding Gap Impact Students?

Feb 14, 2025 | forbes.com | Edward Conroy

In January, the Congressional Budget Office released projections showing that the Pell Grant program is expecting to face a $2.7 billion shortfall in funding for the 2025 fiscal year. The program will need additional funding and will need an increase in funding, or students will face cuts to eligibility criteria or grant amounts.
Republican Proposal Would Make College Scholarships Taxable Income

Jan 24, 2025 | forbes.com | Edward Conroy

Most American agree that obtaining a college education is important for economic success, and that it should be less expensive. Republican lawmakers are considering a change to tax policy would make college more expensive for students receiving grants and scholarships to help pay their tuition bill.