The Postsecondary Equity & Economics Research (PEER) Project is a joint initiative on accountability between academics at George Washington University and attorneys at the National Student Legal Defense Network. The project fosters collaboration between higher education economists, policy experts, and regulatory attorneys in developing research to guide federal and state policymaking on higher education issues promoting racial equity and ensuring positive outcomes for college students throughout the country.
The PEER Project supports research by higher education economists and policy scholars to inform policy debates and identify topics in need of additional research. It provides an avenue for academics and experts to consult with regulatory attorneys in order to produce rules that balance equity and accountability to ensure student success. This project will serve as a model for incubating high-quality economic analysis—often on a tight timeline—to support higher education rulemaking and policy creation. The project has four primary goals:
- to establish a community of scholars and attorneys that together can identify policy questions and evidence needs,
- support high-quality policy-relevant research by a diverse group of academics,
- disseminate and communicate research to attorneys and policymakers to ultimately build an evidence base for policies that are both effective and equitable, and
- build legal policy research on underused authorities in higher education and civil rights law that may be utilized to promote equity and accountability.