One of the nation’s leading authorities on the economics of education, and on the performance of students in public schools, will address promises from the Obama administration when Julian Betts, professor of economics at UC San Diego, speaks to the UCSD Economics Roundtable, April 29.

Among major initiatives proposed thus far by the new administration are:

• More funding but more accountability for charter schools
• Making sure that every high school student has the preparation and the financial means to attend college
• Expanding teacher merit pay as a way of inducing the best teachers to stay in the profession
• Fixing “No Child Left Behind” to create better measures of student learning, and school accountability.

“In my presentation I will be asking, ‘What do these promises signal about the future role of the federal government in U.S. education,” said Betts.

Much of Betts' research is focused on the economic analysis of education. He writes extensively on the link between student outcomes and measures of public school spending including class size, teachers' salaries, and teachers' levels of education. Most recently, he has examined the role that standards and expectations play in student achievement.

Betts, who is chair of the UCSD Department of Economics, obtained his bachelor's degree in chemistry from McGill University and his Ph.D. in economics from Queens University in Ontario, Canada.

The April 29 Economics Roundtable begins with continental breakfast at 7:30 a.m. at the UCSD Faculty Club. The public is invited, with the $50 fee covering parking, breakfast and the presentation. For additional information and registration please call: Edie Munk (858) 822-0510, email: emunk@ucsd.edu or visit: http://www.econ.ucsd.edu/roundtable