Tag Archive for: Obama

Previewing the 2012 Presidential Race


After today’s elections wrap up, the presidential race will officially take the spotlight, with the Iowa caucuses Jan. 3, the New Hampshire primaries Jan. 10 and the general election Nov. 6. Here, we profile the important candidates.

Student debt plan underwhelming


Last week, I got an email from James Kvaal, President Barack Obama’s campaign policy director. “President Obama just took two serious steps to make life a lot easier for folks with student loans,” the email said. “These changes will make a real difference in helping millions of Americans get by month to month.” But is […]

Blue Shield of California returns profits to customers


Health insurance provider Blue Shield of California will return $295 million in profits to its customers, fulfilling a pledge it made in June to cap all its profits at 2 percent of revenue. Policyholders will receive the money mostly in credits on future insurance bills. Blue Shield executives say the move is an effort to […]

Letter to the editor


Reforms to NCLB are autocratic Elena Kadvany’s Oct. 3 letter (“Reforms to No Child Left Behind are positive”) contained a reasonable critique of the failed No Child Left Behind policy. Calling standardized test scores “antiquated” and “very harmful,” however, was too radical, given the continuing success of AP courses and the undeniable value of objective […]

Reforms to No Child Left Behind are positive


President Barack Obama visited the students of Benjamin Banneker Academic High School in Washington D.C. last Wednesday to deliver his annual back-to-school speech, with one definitive message: Keep going to school. Don’t just finish high school; go to college. And once you’re there, graduate and get a college degree. This speech closely paralleled the goal […]

Obama eliminates No Child Left Behind


The Obama administration this week announced its plan to relieve states from the difficult plans outlined in the Bush-era “No Child Left Behind” law. Calling it an admirable but flawed system, Obama’s plan to eliminate NCLB will nonetheless keep its basic features in effect. NCLB is designed to assess the success and quality of school […]