July 07, 2015(Salt Lake Tribune) - So how about just one little tweak to put a lot more kids in preschool and full-day kindergarten? The researchers at the Utah Foundation have found that Colorado’s embrace of early education is paying off in higher test scores. Where Utah once topped Colorado in National Assessment o Educational Progress tests, it’s now Colorado above Utah. The two states are more similar than their politics indicate. Colorado spends about $2,000 more per student, but both … Continued
July 07, 2015(KSL-TV) - SALT LAKE CITY — A new study comparing education performance in Utah with that of Colorado surprised even child advocates. “It’s a striking finding,” said Bill Jaeger of the Colorado Children’s Campaign. What he’s referring to is Utah Foundation’s new study that shows Colorado outscores Utah by a long shot on math and reading among all demographics. Fifteen years ago, Utah was a top 15 state with Colorado close behind. Now, Colorado is in the … Continued
July 06, 2015(UtahPolicy.com) - A new study from the non-partisan Utah Foundation shows students in Colorado are doing better on some broad measures of educational achievement than their counterparts in Utah. The report Lessons from Our Neighbor: Learning from Colorado’s Educational Success also draws a strong contrast between Utah and Colorado in the commitment to preschool, full-day kindergarten, and early literacy programs. In this report, Utah Foundation Research Director Shawn Teigen and Research Analyst Melissa Proctor compare Utah’s student … Continued
July 07, 2015(Salt Lake Tribune) - Utah could learn a lesson or two from Colorado’s public school system, according to a new report. Researchers with the Utah Foundation looked at performance and program differences between schools in the Beehive and Centennial states. Their analysis, released Monday, found that Colorado’s prioritization of early-childhood education through public preschool, full-day kindergarten and literacy initiatives for at-risk students pays dividends years later. Colorado’s math and reading scores rank it at or near the top 10 … Continued
July 06, 2015(Fox 13 News) - Utah schools used to outperform schools in Colorado, but that has been changing dramatically. “Back in the 90s Utah was ahead of Colorado on the four main national tests. Both states slipped over the next decade and Colorado has rebounded on all four of those tests,” said Shawn Teigen, research director at the Utah Foundation. Teigen and Research Analyst Melissa Proctor described the Utah Foundation’s latest research report, Lessons from Our Neighbor: Learning from Colorado’s … Continued
June 25, 2015(Fox 13 News) - Utah is the youngest state in the country. No surprise there. Utahns have more children and thus a lower median age. But the Census Bureau broke the numbers down between counties and found numbers that show parts of Utah are really young. The median age of Americans in 2014 was 37.7 years old, meaning half of Americans are younger and half are older than that mark. The median age of Utahns is 29.2, or at … Continued
June 17, 2015(Salt Lake Tribune) - Here’s good news for homebuilders and sellers: One way that Utah’s “millennial generation” — those ages 18 to 34 — differs from the same age group nationally is they are more likely to buy a home. “Utah has the second highest percentage of homeownership among millennial households — in part due to more of them being married with children,” says a new study by the Utah Foundation. About 41 percent of Utah millennial households own … Continued
June 17, 2015(Deseret News) - Whether it’s for equity, space for a family or other reasons, Utah’s millennials are becoming homeowners more frequently than young adults outside the state. In fact, Utah has the second-highest percentage of homeownership in the nation among 18- to 34-year-olds, according to a Utah Foundation report released Tuesday. About 41 percent of Utah millennials own a home, a rate 11 percent ahead of the national average and just behind that of Minnesota. But Utah’s rate … Continued
June 17, 2015(Deseret News) - We were pleased to see the Deseret News provide helpful insight on teacher retention in its recent editorial (“Teacher retention — a major concern for Utah,” June 13). There was much in that editorial that should be considered by policymakers. The Utah Priorities surveys we conduct during election years show Utah voters consistently ranking public education among their top concerns, and the problem of teacher attrition in public schools affects Utah as it does most … Continued
June 15, 2015(Deseret News) - “Local communities have been telling us for years of their dire needs, and this addresses the needs,” said Abby Albrecht, director of the Utah Transportation Coalition. The group, which comprises business and civic leaders, the Utah League of Cities and Towns and the Utah Association of Counties, estimates that local governments have only one-third to one-half the transportation funds they need. A Utah Foundation survey in January showed 82 percent of cities and 95 percent … Continued
June 12, 2015(Deseret News) - Gov. Gary Herbert’s office reported in November 2014 that, in anticipation of major population growth by 2050, the state needs to make short- and long-term plans to get education on track toward serious improvement. More people in the state means a growing need for quality educators. Now is a good time to focus on what it takes to reduce teacher attrition in Utah. Some suggestions from the Utah Foundation are to increase salaries, link salaries … Continued
June 04, 2015(UtahPolicy.com) - Members of Utah’s Millennial generation are concerned about finding jobs that provide enough income to pay off their student debts. That is one key difference between the Millennials (born from 1981 through the early 2000’s) and earlier generations, including GenX (1965-1980), Baby Boomers (1945-1964), and the Silent Generation (1928-1945) reflected in the second part of a report issued today by the Utah Foundation, Millennials and Boomers: How Utah’s Generations Compare to Each Other and the … Continued
June 04, 2015(KUER) - Student loans are on the minds of Utah Millennials, along with finding a job to pay off that debt. The latest Utah Foundation study comparing attitudes about work came out Thursday. That debt is setting the generation, born from 1981 through the early 2000’s, apart from all earlier generations. Christopher Collard is a research analyst with the Utah Foundation. He says this group is definitely worried about it. “For example Utah’s average debt level nearly … Continued
June 04, 2015(Deseret News) - Utahns have a positive outlook on their financial futures, particularly millennials, a new Utah Foundation report says. Moreover, Utahns are far more optimistic about their financial futures than their peers nationally, according to the report released Thursday. Noelia Imani, a 2014 graduate of Westminster College, works for Instructure, a startup software company. The findings of the report mirror her experiences in the Utah workforce, she said. “For me personally, I’m in a good place with … Continued
June 04, 2015(Salt Lake Tribune) - A new study says Utahns are far more optimistic about their financial future than most Americans, and the young “millennial” generation of 18 to 34 year olds is the most upbeat of all. The Utah Foundation report said Utahns likely are more confident because recovery from the recession was quicker and stronger here than in other states. And millennials may be the most confident because they are young and have extra time to improve their … Continued
June 03, 2015(Fox 13 News) - After three decades, Utah still ranks last in the nation for per-pupil spending. While a lot of it has to do with large class sizes, education advocates said the state’s recent income tax cuts could also be to blame. Utah currently spends roughly $6,555 per student, while the national average is $10,700 per student. “We’ve been dead last for a long, long time, in terms of per-pupil funding,” said Shawn Teigen with the Utah Foundation. … Continued
May 31, 2015(Salt Lake Tribune) - Other studies show Americans becoming politically unaffiliated as well, with the number of individuals who identify as independents climbing to a record 42 percent in 2014, according to Gallup. In Utah, though, Republicans continue to dominate state politics. Voters in November elected an entirely GOP federal delegation and the second largest Republican majority in the state’s House in the past 80 years. But a recent report by the Utah Foundation showed that religious affiliation is … Continued
June 22, 2015(KSL.com) - Millennials are expected to overtake Baby Boomers this year as the largest generational group in the nation, but a new report says that millennials are already the biggest group right here in Utah — and have been since the year 2000. The new report that compares Utah millennials to their national counterparts was released by the Utah Foundation, a non-profit public policy research group. “The idea for this series of reports grew out of previous … Continued
June 02, 2015(Deseret News) - Tuesday’s report also shows Utah’s funding effort toward education is low relative to other states. For every $1,000 in personal income, $40.47 went toward public education, compared with a national average of $42.88, earning Utah a rank of 35th in the country in 2013. This coincides with a Utah Foundation report released early this year, showing Utah’s tax burden in 2012 at a 20-year low. Currently, all funds from Utah’s income tax are devoted to … Continued
June 02, 2015(Salt Lake Tribune) - But Stephen Kroes, president of the Utah Foundation, said the last two decades have racked up corresponding drops in Utah’s education performance and the state’s funding “effort” — the proportion of personal income dedicated to public schools. In the mid-1990s, Kroes said, Utah ranked in the Top 10 for school funding efforts and the Top 15 for performance on the National Assessment of Educational Progress. But the state has dropped by both measures to the … Continued
May 01, 2015(Utah Planner) - What is the state of local roads in Utah? What would cities and counties like to see on their roads and what hurdles exist to achieving those goals? These are two of the questions that Utah Foundation decided to look at for our newest report, “The Roads Less Traveled: Survey Analysis and Research Regarding Local Roads in Utah.” This report features two pieces: a survey which was sent out to all Utah cities and counties, … Continued
May 21, 2015(Deseret News) - Millennials make up a proportion of Utah’s population that is second highest in the nation, and Utah is well ahead of the national curve of millennials becoming the largest living generation this year, according to a Utah Foundation report released Thursday. In other areas, Utah is mirroring national trends where millennials — ages 18 to 34 — are becoming increasingly diverse, having fewer children and identifying as religiously unaffiliated more frequently than previous generations, according … Continued
May 21, 2015(Utah Pulse) - Across the United States, the Millennial generation — those born from 1981 through the early years of the 21st Century — are just now surpassing the Baby Boom generation (born 1946-1964) as the largest population group. In Utah, Millennials have been the largest cohort since 1997. That’s not the only difference between generational groups in Utah and the rest of the nation. Utahns are more likely to be married, have children and to stay at … Continued
May 21, 2015(KUER) - Utah Millennials were 15 years ahead of the rest of the country in overtaking the number of baby boomers. That’s according to a Utah Foundation report released Thursday. Millennials are generally defined as being born in the early 1980’s to the early 2000’s. Nationally, they are expected to outnumber boomers this year. Mallory Bateman is a research analyst for the Utah Foundation. “I was personally surprised at how big our millennial population is and how … Continued
May 21, 2015(Salt Lake Tribune) - Planning was the buzzword at a state education committee meeting Wednesday. With a projected student population of 1 million looming 35 years from now, lawmakers were warned they had better start thinking about how to handle all of those kids. Former House Speaker Nolan Karras said Utah has failed to follow the example of business. A successful organization, said Karras, plans for the next five years and forecasts the next decade. But in Utah public … Continued
