DEFEATING RUMPELSTILTSKIN: WHY THE TEMPORARY PROVISION THAT EXCLUDES STUDENT LOAN FORGIVENESS FROM GROSS INCOME SHOULD BE MADE PERMANENT

Despite the advances in higher education that have been made in the United States over the years, there is still a crisis in this country concerning student debt and its fallout. One aspect of the student debt crisis that has the potential to loom over many individuals is the taxation of student debt forgiveness. Up until March 11, 2021, when all or part of one’s student debt was discharged, the amount was taxed as ordinary income for the year in which it was forgiven. Fortunately, on that date, the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 was passed which included a provision that temporarily excludes forgiven student debt from gross income. This development may seem trivial given the myriad of important problems to be addressed in the United States. Remarkably, the story of Rumpelstiltskin provides a fitting context for why the tax-free forgiveness of student debt should be at the forefront of our consideration

The effect of teacher leader interactions with teachers on student achievement: a predictive study.

Research literature acknowledges the importance of teacher leadership in school reform initiatives. The literature is replete with qualitative studies describing the experience of teacher leadership in its variety of enactments. The meager amount of existing quantitative data suggests that teacher leadership may have no impact on student learning. This non-experimental, quantitative study examined the relationship between specific teacher leader interactions with teachers and student achievement. Using an online survey, participants responded to online survey questions about their interactions with teachers around five leadership constructs identified by Lambert (1998) and adapted by the researcher with permission from Dr. Lambert and the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD). The constructs included (a) broad-based and skillful participation in the work of leadership; (b) inquiry-based use of information to inform shared decisions and practice; (c) roles and responsibilities that reflect broad involvement and collaboration; (d) reflective practice/innovation as the norm; and, (e) high student achievement. Student achievement was measured using the 2008 School Academic Index of the Kentucky Core Content Test (KCCT). Participants in the study were teachers from Kentucky public elementary schools in the Green River Regional Educational Cooperative (GRREC). The following research question guided the study: What is the relationship between interactions between (a) teacher leaders and teachers, and (b) test scores for schools on the Kentucky Core Content Test (KCCT) after controlling for demographic factors known to negatively impact test scores? Multiple regression analysis was used to answer the research question. Because the variable correlations using data from all respondents (N = 567) were not strong enough to support a regression analysis, sub-groups of the surveyed participants were tested. Stronger correlations were found between all variables when responses from intermediate (Gr. 4-6) teachers (N = 202) were tested. The regression analysis was run using only intermediate teacher data. Identification of a teacher leader in the building negatively correlated with student achievement. Interactions related to the student achievement construct was noted as a significant predictor of student achievement as measured by the School Academic Index of the KCCT

Hot Hydrogen Testing of Refractory Metals and Ceramics

The objective of this investigation is to develop a technique with which refractory metal carbide samples can be exposed to hydrogen containing gases at high temperatures, and to use various microstructural and analytical techniques to determine the chemical and rate processes involved in hydrogen degradation in these materials. Five types of carbides were examined including WC, NbC, HfC, ZrC, and TaC. The ceramics were purchased and were all monolithic in nature. The temperature range investigated was from 850 to 1600 C with a hydrogen pressure of one atmosphere. Control experiments, in vacuum, were also conducted for comparison so that the net effects due to hydrogen could be isolated. The samples were analyzed prior to and after exposure. Gas samples were collected in selected experiments and analyzed using gas chromography. Characterization of the resulting microstructure after exposure to hydrogen was conducted using optical microscopy, x-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and weight change. The ceramics were purchased and were all monolithic in nature. It was found that all samples lost weight after exposure, both in hydrogen and vacuum. Results from the microstructure analyses show that the degradation processes are different among the five types of ceramics involved. In addition, the apparent activation energy for the degradation process is a function of temperature even within the same material. This indicates that there are more than one mechanism involved in each material, and that the mechanisms are temperature dependent

Examining pharmacy workforce issues in the United States and the United kingdom

The objective of this item it to examine available data and actions surrounding current pharmacy workforce issues in the United States and United Kingdom.  Published pharmacy workforce data from the United States and United Kingdom were gathered from various sources, including PUBMED, Internet search engines, and pharmacy organization websites. Data was collated from additional sources including scientific literature, internal documents, news releases, and policy positions.  The number of colleges and schools of pharmacy has expanded by approximately 50% in both the United States and United Kingdom over the previous decade. In the United States, continued demand for the pharmacy workforce has been forecasted, but this need is based on outdated supply figures and assumptions for economic recovery. In the United Kingdom, workforce modeling has predicted a significant future oversupply of pharmacists, and action within the profession has attempted to address the situation through educational planning and regulation.  Workforce planning is an essential task for sustaining a healthy profession. Recent workforce planning mechanisms in the United Kingdom may provide guidance for renewed efforts within the profession in the United States

Effects of Interstitial Boron and Alloy Stoichiometry on Environmental Effects in FeAl

Room-temperature tensile tests were conducted on B-doped (300 wppm) and B-free polycrystalline FeAl alloys containing 37, 40, 45, and 48 at. % aluminum in pure hydrogen gas at pressures in the range of 10 sup minus 8 to 10 sup 3 Pa. The ductilities of both B-free and B-doped FeAl decreased with increasing Al content. However, at a given Al level, the ductility of B-doped FeAl was higher than that of its B-free counterpart. Fracture mode was independent of environment and dependent mainly on stoichiometry. Ductility was found to be very sensitive to environment, particularly in the lower Al alloys. Alloys that exhibited >10% ductility in UHV showed a decrease in elongation to fracture with increasing hydrogen pressure. Tests conducted in dry hydrogen gas result in greater ductilities than those conducted in air, indicating that water vapor is more detrimental than H sub 2 to the ductility of FeAl alloys

Grain growth behavior and high-temperature high-strain-rate tensile ductility of iridium alloy DOP-26

This report summarizes results of studies conducted to date under the Iridium Alloy Characterization and Development subtask of the Radioisotope Power System Materials Production and Technology Program to characterize the properties of the new-process iridium-based DOP-26 alloy used for the Cassini space mission. This alloy was developed at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) in the early 1980`s and is currently used by NASA for cladding and post-impact containment of the radioactive fuel in radioisotope thermoelectric generator (RTG) heat sources which provide electric power for interplanetary spacecraft. Included within this report are data generated on grain growth in vacuum or low-pressure oxygen environments; a comparison of grain growth in vacuum of the clad vent set cup material with sheet material; effect of grain size, test temperature, and oxygen exposure on high-temperature high-strain-rate tensile ductility; and grain growth in vacuum and high-temperature high-strain-rate tensile ductility of welded DOP-26. The data for the new-process material is compared to available old-process data

DEFEATING RUMPELSTILTSKIN: WHY THE TEMPORARY PROVISION THAT EXCLUDES STUDENT LOAN FORGIVENESS FROM GROSS INCOME SHOULD BE MADE PERMANENT

Despite the advances in higher education that have been made in the United States over the years, there is still a crisis in this country concerning student debt and its fallout. One aspect of the student debt crisis that has the potential to loom over many individuals is the taxation of student debt forgiveness. Up until March 11, 2021, when all or part of one’s student debt was discharged, the amount was taxed as ordinary income for the year in which it was forgiven. Fortunately, on that date, the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 was passed which included a provision that temporarily excludes forgiven student debt from gross income. This development may seem trivial given the myriad of important problems to be addressed in the United States. Remarkably, the story of Rumpelstiltskin provides a fitting context for why the tax-free forgiveness of student debt should be at the forefront of our consideration