From some of the coverage of the release of the new University of Texas report on the productivity of its faculty, you might get the sense that this Friday’s Cato/​Center for College Affordability and Productivity conference will be the national coming out party for the faculty productivity debate. As the The Daily Texan writes, echoing an earlier Texas Tribune article:

with elected officials like Florida Gov. Rick Scott praising Texas’ controversy as good for higher education reform and with the Cato Institute hosting a conference called “Squeezing the Tower: Are We Getting All We Can from Higher Education?” this Friday in Washington D.C., this is very much a national debate.

This is—and must be—a national debate, because huge amounts of taxpayer dollars from all levels are at stake, not to mention oodles of bucks from students and parents. But don’t expect the sides to be well settled. Speakers on Friday are likely to offer a variety of opinions on how to hold schools and their faculties accountable, and there will be no simple left/​right breakdown. I telegraph a bit of what I’ll be saying in this new Education News interview.

Cato and CCAP certainly want to take this crucial discussion national, and I hope you’ll join us on Friday. Register here!