The Conversation

Trump order boosts school choice, but there’s little evidence vouchers lead to smarter students or better educational outcomes

Written by Charles J. Russo, Joseph Panzer Chair in Education and Research Professor of Law, University of Dayton

Surveys suggest growing support for school choice, such as in Ohio, even as voters reject such policies in referendums.AP Photo/Samantha Hendrickson

The school choice movement received a major boost on Jan. 29, 2025, when President Donald Trump issued an executive order supporting families who want to use public money to send their children to...

The leadership hack that drives success: Being trustworthy

Written by Yufei Ren, Associate Professor of Economics, Labovitz School of Business and Economics, University of Minnesota Duluth

Trustworthy managers get better performance reviews, recent research shows.Andrey Popov/Getty Images

National Leadership Day, which takes place every Feb. 20, offers a chance to reflect on what truly defines leadership – not just strategy or decision-making, but the ability to build trust. In an era of rapid change, when teams look to leaders...

CDC layoffs strike deeply at its ability to respond to the current flu, norovirus and measles outbreaks and other public health emergencies

Written by Jordan Miller, Teaching Professor of Public Health, Arizona State University

The CDC played an instrumental, if imperfect, role in the response to COVID-19.JHDT Stock Images LLC/iStock via Getty Images

In just a few short weeks, the Trump administration has brought drastic changes to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and public health. Beginning with the removal of websites and key public health datasets in...

In pushing for Ukraine elections, Trump is falling into Putin-laid trap to delegitimize Zelenskyy

Written by Lena Surzhko Harned, Associate Teaching Professor of Political Science, Penn State

President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy meet on Sept. 25, 2019, on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly.Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was shut out of the discussions concerning the future of his country, which took place in Saudi Arabia on Feb. 18, 2025. In fact,...

DEI programs are designed to help white people too – here’s how

Written by Liza Bondurant, Associate Professor of Secondary Math Education, Mississippi State University

Many DEI programs support students with a disability, about a fifth of whom are white. simonkr/E+ via Getty Images

While diversity, equity and inclusion may on the surface seem focused on certain groups, in fact DEI programs benefit people from all walks of life – including white people.

President Donald Trump and other conservatives have...

Greenland’s rapidly melting ice and landslide-prone fjords make the oil and minerals Trump covets dangerous to extract

Written by Paul Bierman, Fellow of the Gund Institute for Environment, Professor of Natural Resources and Environmental Science, University of Vermont

Greenland has large deposits of rare earth minerals along its coasts, but these are also geologically hazardous regions.Alex Hibbert/The Image Bank via Getty Images

Since Donald Trump regained the presidency, he has coveted Greenland. Trump has insisted that the U.S. will control the island, currently an autonomous territory of Denmark, and if his...

Deportation fears create ripple effects for immigrants and their communities

Written by Kristina Fullerton Rico, Research Fellow, Center for Racial Justice, Ford School of Public Policy, University of Michigan

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials detain a person on Jan. 27, 2025, in Silver Spring, Md. AP Photo/Alex Brandon

The Trump administration’s plan to deport millions of immigrants living in the country without permission is falling far short of its initial goals in its first few weeks.

But there has been an increase in immigratio...

How medical treatments devised for war can quickly be implemented in US hospitals to save lives

Written by Vikhyat Bebarta, Professor of Emergency Medicine and Medical Toxicology, Pharmacology, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

Military medicine moves faster than traditional research. Tech. Sgt. Darius Sostre-Miroir/920th Rescue Wing

For decades, military doctors faced a critical challenge: What’s the best way to safely and effectively deliver oxygen to patients in remote combat zones, rural hospitals or disaster-stricken areas?

Oxygen tanks are heavy, costly and...

Traumatic brain injuries have toxic effects that last weeks after initial impact − an antioxidant material reduces this damage in mice

Written by Aaron Priester, Postdoctoral Fellow in Materials Science and Engineering, Missouri University of Science and Technology

Brain damage can release harmful chemicals such as free radicals that cause further damage.fatido/E+ via Getty Images

Traumatic brain injury is a leading cause of death and disability in the world. Blunt force trauma to the brain, often from a bad fall or traffic accident, accounts for the deaths of over 61,000 Americans each year. Over 80,000 will...

The dangers of ‘Jekyll and Hyde leadership’: Why making amends after workplace abuse can hurt more than it helps

Written by John Sumanth, James Farr Fellow & Associate Professor of Management, Wake Forest University

Not the picture of leadership.LMPC via Getty Images

A glance at the day’s headlines reveals a universal truth: Leadership matters.

Whether uplifting and ethical or toxic and abusive, leaders profoundly shape our lives. And this is especially true on the job. Research consistently shows that leadership influences employees’ attitudes,...