Phil Levine

Economics professor at Wellesley College, affiliated with NBER and Brookings Institution, and huge Red Sox fan.

[Phil Levine @phil_wellesley]

@paulnovosad Can’t even begin to start a list of the problems with those statistics!

[Phil Levine @phil_wellesley]

@StatisticUrban Two thoughts: 1) no way we’re ever doing all that; 2) that’s what it takes to get them to 1.8 TFR?

[Phil Levine @phil_wellesley]

@elonmusk He’s write on this one, but such an asshole on everything else it’s hard to take him seriously

[Phil Levine @phil_wellesley]

@James_S_Murphy Any of them. Colleges facing a standard endowment tax will have less money available for financial aid and will have an incentive to charge lower income students more or enroll fewer of them.

[Phil Levine @phil_wellesley]

Highly endowed colleges and universities have been making progress lately in terms of enrolling lower-income students. Still more work to be done, but an endowment tax will certainly make it harder for that trend to continue. https://t.co/mHXkOLtt0t

[Phil Levine @phil_wellesley]

As the season approaches when colleges announce their sticker prices for 2025-26, it is important to remember that most students pay less than that. We need to do a better job telling them!https://t.co/fg3O1osExx

[Phil Levine @phil_wellesley]

A large endowment tax on elite colleges and universities is a terrible idea, but it's on the table. Perhaps it's most harmful impact is that it will reduce access for lower-income students. https://t.co/mLf8nABFEW

[Phil Levine @phil_wellesley]

If college costs are rising, somehow families need to pay the higher bill. How do they do it? See my latest Brookings report for answers. https://t.co/RjkmV32FzR

[Phil Levine @phil_wellesley]

@Scullion42 @BrookingsInst That too, but for those who overcome the uneven playing field in the current world, they deserve our support.

[Phil Levine @phil_wellesley]

A handful of colleges have massive endowments. How should they be spent? How are they spent? Should they be taxed? The trade-off between excellence and access is a critical issue. See my analysis here: https://t.co/6puHSUwaDa

[Phil Levine @phil_wellesley]

@AmySchwartzNY @kearney_melissa No kidding. And in case you missed it: https://t.co/lccJHYA2wZ

[Phil Levine @phil_wellesley]

At M.I.T., Black and Latino Enrollment Drops Sharply After Affirmative Action Ban https://t.co/ceQL7ixIWq

[Phil Levine @phil_wellesley]

@dynarski @turnersarahe @econjeffsmith I’m on board with this for the $0 EFC/SAI kids. But when you go up higher, that’s when the inequities kick in.

[Phil Levine @phil_wellesley]

@turnersarahe @dynarski @econjeffsmith I don’t know if there is a perfect solution, but what you describe would be an improvement. And schools need to be involved. If you want to charge lower prices to lower-income people, tell them!

[Phil Levine @phil_wellesley]

@turnersarahe @dynarski @econjeffsmith The beauty of Hail is the marketing. Can we get Don Draper in on this one? Simplicity is a virtue but so is equity.

[Phil Levine @phil_wellesley]

@kimnauer It sure would be nice if they could just tell us the actual cost rather than setting a meaningless sticker price and an inflated discount. Not knowing the actual cost is a real problem for students/families!

[Phil Levine @phil_wellesley]

I couldn’t agree more with the message from this editorial. And there is a nice callout to MyinTuition!

The price of college shouldn’t be a guessing game
https://t.co/qubbhXaI0y

For more great content like this subscribe to the The Boston Globe app here:

[Phil Levine @phil_wellesley]

More of my work on college costs in ⁦@EconoFactOrg⁩. It costs less than you think, but more than it should. The increasing cost especially for lower- and middle-income families is disturbing. https://t.co/HQgKNClbEm