Show-me Institute Podcast

In Missouri, once a union becomes the “exclusive representative” for a group of public employees, that union remains in power indefinitely. Some have suggested fixing this system by allowing unionized public employees the ability to vote to maintain or replace their union every few years.

A high-school diploma is widely considered to be the most fundamental requirement for admission to college or a chance at a good job. And so it should be—but what’s behind that diploma matters, too. Statistics from ACT show that only 30 percent of the class of 2015 scored "college ready" in all four tested subjects. Much of the problem appears to be a gap between the coursework these students complete to earn their high-school diplomas and the work required for their college classes. Here Missouri faces a problem that doesn’t afflict more densely populated states: we have many small, rural school districts that don’t have the means to offer advanced math and science courses for college-bound students—or cutting-edge career or technical education classes for students who want to enter the workforce immediately after graduating—especially if relatively few students are interested in taking them. We can’t do a lot about our state’s geography, but neither can we accept limitations on the educational options avai

Education Policy Research Assistant Brittany Wagner interviews Neil Campbell, Policy Director for Personalized and Blended Learning at the Foundation for Excellence in Education. They discuss course access, a new school choice policy that allows students to access courses online for a few hours during the traditional school day. Learn more at: http://www.showmeinstitute.org

Former Oklahoma state senator Jabar Shumate visited the Show-Me Institute at the end of July. As a legislator Shumate helped reform Oklahoma's public education system by expanding school choice options. In this interview conducted by Show-Me Institute Education Policy Researcher Brittany Wagner, Shumate explains how school choice can transform communities. Learn more at: http://www.showmeinstitute.org

Show-Me Institute Policy Analyst Joseph Miller talks with St. Louis entrepreneur Ed Domain about Ed's 2013 accident in a Harris cab and the response of the Metropolitan Taxicab Commission (MTC). Read the show notes at: http://showmeinstitute.org/taxi-trouble Learn more at: http://www.showmeinstitute.org