Education Policy Commons^™

Average Earnings Of Undergraduate Certificate Graduates In The Mountain West, 2024, Devin Streuter, Kahlen Coss, Kevin Yang, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Higher Education

This fact sheet presents data on the average earnings of undergraduate certificate program graduates in 2024 dollars compared to the average earnings of high school (HS) graduates in five Mountain West states: Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. The fact sheet reports information on the number of undergraduate certificate programs, number of graduates, the most popular certificate programs, and earnings premiums for each state. Published by Open Campus in collaboration with The Higher Education Analytics (HEA) Group, the fact sheet reports data originally published through the “Certificate Earnings Explorer."

Degrees And Certificates Awarded To Native American Students In Nevada, 2010-2022, Devin Streuter, Kevin Yang, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Higher Education

This fact sheet presents data on certificates and degrees awarded to Native Americans from the Nevada System of Higher Education’s (NSHE) teaching institutions —College of Southern Nevada (CSN), Great Basin College (GBC), Nevada State University (NSU), Truckee Meadows Community College (TMCC), University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV), University of Nevada, Reno (UNR), and Western Nevada College (WNC)— from 2010 to 2022. Additionally, the fact sheet reports data on degree type, gender, and the most common majors pursued by Native American certificate and degree earners in Nevada. The data are derived from the Nevada P-20 Workforce Research (NPWR) Data System.

Innovation Hubs In Mountain West Cities, 2025, Cason Noll, Sean Curry, Olivia K. Cheche, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Economic Development & Workforce

This fact sheet presents data on 20 innovation-dense Mountain West cities across Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. The CommercialCafe report, “Santa Clara, Berkeley & Tempe Lead Among Western Innovation Hubs,”  uses 15 indicators to rank 63 western cities for innovation hub activity across three categories: employment and talent, education, and business activity.

Public Education Rankings In The Mountain West, 2025, Anthony Arroyo, Yiselle Olivas Ruiz, Olivia K. Cheche, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

K-12 Education

This fact sheet reports 2025 public education rankings for the Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. The Consumer Affairs report, “Best States for Public Education 2025,” ranks all 50 U.S. states across four categories: K-12 performance, school funding and resources, higher education quality, and school safety. This fact sheet also highlights the change in each Mountain West state’s overall ranking between 2024 and 2025.

The Return On Investment (Roi) For Higher Education In Nevada, 2021-2022, Sean Curry, Cason Noll, Olivia K. Cheche, William E. Brown Jr.

Higher Education

This fact sheet presents 2021-2022 data on the return on investment (ROI) of six public higher education institutions in Nevada. The data are sourced from the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce’s “Ranking 4,600 Colleges by ROI” data tool, which provides standardized ROI estimates across institutions and degree levels nationwide. This fact sheet includes data for the following six public higher education institutions in Nevada that predominantly grant bachelor’s and associate’s degrees: University of Nevada, Reno; University of Nevada, Las Vegas; Nevada State College; Truckee Meadows Community College; Western Nevada College; and College of Southern Nevada.

Public K-12 School Start Times In The Mountain West, 2020-2021, Olivia K. Cheche, William E. Brown Jr.

K-12 Education

This fact sheet presents data on public K-12 school start times in the Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah as of the 2020-2021 school year. The data are derived from the “School start time: Average public K–12 school start time and percentage distribution of public school start time, by state: 2020–21” report originally published by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). This fact sheet highlights the average public K-12 school start times and distribution of public K-12 school start times for each Mountain West state.

Bachelor's Degrees And Earnings In The Mountain West, 2022, Anthony Arroyo, Sydney Mitchell, Lara Karaalp, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Higher Education

This fact sheet presents 2022 data on the median annual earnings of bachelor's degree holders for specific fields of degrees (FODs) across the five Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. This fact sheet also examines the share and earnings of individuals with less than a bachelor’s degree compared to bachelor’s degree holders in the three Mountain West metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) appearing among the 30 largest MSAs in the United States: Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ; Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO; and Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV. The “Field of Bachelor's Degree in the United States: 2022” report from the U.S. Census Bureau …

Free Speech At Colleges And Universities In The Mountain West, 2025, Olivia K. Cheche, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Higher Education

This fact sheet presents data on free speech at 16 colleges and universities across the Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. The data are sourced from “The 2026 College Free Speech Rankings,” as originally published by The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), and reflect 2025 data. The FIRE report presents free speech ranks, scores, grades, and data on speech controversies for 257 colleges and universities across 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. This fact sheet highlights the average free speech scores for each Mountain West state, as well as the free …

Homelessness Among School-Aged Children In The Mountain West, 2022-2023, Mohit Pande, Sean Curry, Olivia K. Cheche, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

K-12 Education

This fact sheet presents data on homelessness among school-aged children in the Mountain West during the 2022-2023 school year. The data are sourced from the “Child and Youth Homelessness in the United States: Data Profiles” dashboard produced by SchoolHouse Connection and Poverty Solutions at the University of Michigan. State-level data profiles include information about child and youth homelessness at the national, state, county, school district, and congressional district levels. This fact sheet focuses on homelessness among school-aged children within the Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah.

Public School Funding In The Mountain West, 2020-2021, Sean Curry, Mohit Pande, Olivia K. Cheche, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

K-12 Education

This fact sheet examines the state of public school funding across the five Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. The data are sourced from the Education Law Center’s 2023 Making the Grade report, which provides data for all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. The original report provides grades for school funding, enrollment data, and funding data based on the 2020-2021 school year.

College Degree Attainment In The Mountain West, 2010-2020, Isabelle G. Graham, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Higher Education

This fact sheet presents data on the gaps in college degree attainment in the Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. The data appear in “Learning and Earning by Degrees: Gains in College Degree Attainment Have Enriched the Nation and Every State, but Racial and Gender Inequality Persists,” report published by the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce (CEW), a research and policy institute within Georgetown University that focuses on the connections between education, career qualifications, and workforce demands.

Scaling Promising Education Initiatives Locally & Around The World, Brad Olsen

Brookings Scholar Lecture Series

As part of the Brookings Scholar Lecture Series, Brookings Mountain West presents a lecture titled, "Scaling Promising Education Initiatives Locally & Around the World" by Brookings senior fellow in global economy and development, Brad Olsen.

What does it mean to scale a promising education innovation or initiative throughout a location? Why is “scaling” a useful approach for education improvement? What is the current state of scaling in education—and how can it be leveraged to better support schools, teachers, learners, communities, and the transformation of whole education systems in the U.S. and around the world? Brad Olsen, senior fellow at the …

Chronic Student Absenteeism In The Mountain West, 2018-2023, Anirudh Polagani, Yashesvi Sharma, Zachary Billot, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

K-12 Education

This fact sheet examines data on chronic student absenteeism rates across five Mountain West states: Arizona, Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, and Nevada. The “Tracking State Trends in Chronic Absenteeism” report by FutureEd, an education policy think tank at Georgetown University, provides data for 42 states and the District of Columbia for the school years of 2018-2019, 2021-2022, and 2022-2023.

Debt And Earnings From Graduate Degrees At Unlv And Unr, Miguel Soriano Ralston, Kristian Thymianos, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Higher Education

This fact sheet examines debt and earnings data for graduate degrees awarded by the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) and the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR). The original report from the HEA Group – a research and consulting firm focused on college access, value and economic mobility – includes data on debt-to-earnings ratio for various graduate degree programs at universities across the United States.

‘Brain Drain’: Net Gains And Losses Of College- Educated Residents In The Mountain West, 2023, Dre Boyd-Weatherly, Annie Vong, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Higher Education

This fact sheet examines the number of college-educated individuals who moved to Mountain West states (Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah) and to selected metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) in the Mountain West in 2023. The “2024 Study: ‘Brain Drain’? The States With the Largest Net Gains and Losses of College-Educated Americans” report contains data from the Annual Social and Economic Supplement (ASEC) of the Current Population Survey conducted by the United States Census Bureau. The study includes data on where college-educated residents move and which areas experienced ‘brain drain,’ where college-educated residents move to other places.

First Year Earnings And Debt In The Mountain West, Mohit Pande, Ivan Sun, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Higher Education

This fact sheet examines data from the Georgetown University report, “Buyer Beware: First-Year Earnings and Debt for 37,000 College Majors at 4,400 Institutions,” comparing and ranking the earnings, debt, and earnings net of debt based on post-secondary educational level. This fact sheet focuses on state-level data on first year earning and debt for five Mountain West states: Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah.

U.S. News & World Report 2024 Graduate Program Rankings, Unlv & Unr, Madison Dwyer, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Higher Education

This fact sheet presents 2024 graduate program rankings for the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) and for the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR) based on the data published in spring 2024 by U.S. News and World Report. The graduate program categories reported include business, education, engineering, fine arts, law, medicine and health care, sciences and mathematics, and social sciences and humanities.

How And Why Foster Care Impacts Maltreated Youths' School Performance, Mallory Constantine

Lincy Institute Events

Youth mistreated within the foster care system are more likely to miss school as compared to non-maltreated peers. A single report of child maltreatment has a rapid and negative effect on school attendance and causes serious, long-term effects on school performance. A report of maltreatment substantiated by the department of family and child services removes a youth from a foster home and places the child in an alternative setting. These disruptions in foster care often result in additional problems with school behavior, achievement, and attendance. This lecture will explore how disruptions in foster care affect school behavior and performance and …

Educational Attainment In The Mountain West, 2021, Isabelle G. Graham, Jesse M. Fager-Larsen, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Higher Education

This fact sheet examines data on educational attainment rates for five states in the Mountain West: Arizona, Colorado,Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. The original report from the Lumina Foundation explores education attainment data for those aged 25 to 64 years in all U.S. states.

Public, Private, And For-Profit Higher Education Institutions In The Mountain West, Annie Vong, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Higher Education

This fact sheet examines data from a New America report by Olivia Cheche which explores higher education data for each congressional district in the United States. Data include the number of colleges/universities, total expenditures, total amount of Pell grant money awarded, and number of Pell grant recipients for each congressional district. This fact sheet presents the percentage of public, for-profit, and private colleges and universities in each congressional district in the Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, and Utah.

2024 Graduate Program Rankings, Unlv & Unr, Emily J. Daclan, Isabelle G. Graham, Annie Vong, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Higher Education

This fact sheet presents the 2024 graduate program rankings for the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) and for the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR) based on the data published in the U.S. News and World Report. The graduate program categories reported in U.S. News and World Report include business, medicine, engineering, nursing, law, public affairs, education, fine arts, health, science, social sciences, and humanities.

Teacher Salaries In The Mountain West, 2019 - 2021, Corryn Richardson, Joshua Padilla, Hira Ahmed, Zachary Billot, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

K-12 Education

This fact sheet examines state-level data of teacher salary benchmarks from the National Education Association, a labor union representing public school teachers and other education faculty in the U.S. Data are presented on average teacher salaries, average teacher starting salaries, and teacher pay penalties in the Mountain West (Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah).

Public Charter And District Public Schools In The Mountain West, 2019-2021, Zachary Billot, Kristian Thymianos, Vanessa Booth, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

K-12 Education

This fact sheet explores data from the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools (NAPCS) report, “Voting With Their Feet: A State-Level Analysis of Public Charter School and District Public School Trends.” Specifically, we examine enrollment trends for district public schools and public charter schools in the Mountain West (Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah) for the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 school years.

Changes In State Fiscal Support For Higher Education In The Mountain West, 2016-2021, Vanessa Booth, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Higher Education

This fact sheet explores higher education budget appropriation changes from fiscal year 2016 (FY16) to fiscal year 2021 (FY21) in the Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. This fact sheet reports data original presented in the 2021 Inside Higher Ed report, “States Maintain Higher Ed Funding,” by Emma Whitford.

Student And Faculty Diversity: University Of Nevada, Las Vegas (Unlv) And University Of Nevada, Reno (Unr), 2012-2020, Olivia K. Cheche, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Higher Education

This fact sheet highlights data on the racial and ethnic diversity of students, tenured faculty, tenure-track faculty, and non-tenured/tenure-track faculty at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) and University of Nevada, Reno (UNR). Data are presented for each year from 2012 to 2020. The UNLV Office of Decision Support and representatives at UNR assisted in the compilation of this data.

2014-2019 National Science Foundation (Nsf) Rankings By Total R&D Expenditures, Katie M. Gilbertson, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Higher Education

This fact sheet presents National Science Foundation (NSF) funding data for 10 individual research universities in addition to the combined funding received by the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) and the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR) for the years 2014 to 2019.

Student And Teacher Diversity In The Mountain West, Marie A. Falcone, Guadalupe De La Rosa, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

K-12 Education

This fact sheet highlights public K-12 teacher and student diversity in the Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. We explore data from Michael Hansen and Diana Quintero’s “Mountain West states face growing teacher diversity gaps” a 2018 Brookings Institution report. Specifically, we explore the teacher and student population in Mountain West states by race, revealing a disproportionate gap between students of color and teachers of color.

The Child Population In The Mountain West, Marie A. Falcone, Eshaan Vakil, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Demography

This fact sheet focuses on the demographics of the child population (under 18 years old) in the five Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah from 2010 to 2019. Most Mountain West states demonstrate a substantial decline in their child populations during this time period; causing considerable impacts on the future workforce. The child populations in these states are dominated by children of color, most of whom are living in high levels of poverty.

K-12 Discipline Disparities In The Six Largest U.S. School Districts, Marie A. Falcone, Saha Salahi, Olivia K. Cheche, Peter Grema, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

K-12 Education

This fact sheet highlights K-12 school discipline disparities by race in the six largest school districts in the United States. The districts include New York City Public Schools, NY; Los Angeles Unified, CA; Chicago Public Schools, IL; (Miami) Dade County, FL; Clark County School District (CCSD), NV; and Broward County, FL. Data are compiled from the Civil Rights Data Collection for the 2015-2016 academic year. Specifically, we examine the data for the discipline strategies of in-school suspensions, out-of-school suspensions, and expulsions.

2021 Salary Scores: University Of Nevada, Las Vegas And University Of Nevada, Reno, Olivia K. Cheche, Emmanuel A. Berrelleza, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Higher Education

This fact sheet provides a comparative analysis on salary earnings for graduates of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) and the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR). Data are gathered from the GradReports website, which offers salary scores ranging from 0 to 100 for UNLV and UNR degree programs.