Organizing US Foreign Aid or Does Money Matter

Organizing U.S. Foreign Aid: Confronting the Challenges of the 21st Century

Author: Carol Lancaster

U.S. foreign aid has reached a crisis point. While the amount of aid has increased in recent years, the way it is organized and delivered by the U.S. government has become increasingly fragmented and chaotic. The proliferation of federal agencies engaged in foreign aid has created serious disconnects and inefficiencies in the use of this important tool of U.S. foreign policy. It is time for a change. Here, two well-known experts who have worked extensively in the international development field provide some keen observations on the current disorganization of federal assistance and offer advice on how to make U.S. aid more effective. Several models for streamlining the organization of foreign aid are detailed and recommendations proffered. The authors argue that dramatic change in the way U.S. aid is organized and provided is urgently needed.

Table of Contents:

Foreword by Lael Brainard
A New Urgency: International Development and

New interesting book: Blackwater or The Assault on Reason

Does Money Matter?: The Effect of School Resources on Student Achievement and Adult Success

Author: Gary T Burtless

This book addresses a simple question: Would larger school budgets actually boost student performance? Past research on this question suggests a striking paradox. Analysts typically find that extra spending plays only a negligible role in improving student achievement as measured on standardized tests. At the same time, other researchers find a clear and consistent pattern linking greater school spending with greater job market success among students who have benefited from higher spending. This book brings together leading scholars with a diversity of views on this important issue. Half the essays examine the relationship between educational resources and student achievement in school; the others evaluate evidence on the link between school resources and students' success after they enter the job market.