College Leaders Question Data Exists For Obama Ratings Of Colleges

DO THE DATA EXIST TO MAKE A COLLEGE RATING SYSTEM WORK?
We support data analysis and we support transparency, but it is hard to imagine that you can develop a rating or a ranking of institutions on the basis of an extensive amount of data, and right now the data available [are] seriously limited,” says Molly Broad, president of the American Council on Education, which lobbies Congress on behalf of higher education. What higher education is more likely to support, Broad says, is the president’s push for more experimentation. Many institutions have just begun to adopt online learning as a cheaper way to deliver instruction. Three-year degree programs are rare. The administration wants to earmark at least $500 million for innovative programs and new approaches to instruction. The piece ran on NPR’s All Things Considered.