Thomas B Fordham Institute is an American think tank that specializes in education reform. The institute was founded in 1993 by Chester E. Finn, Jr., a former United States Assistant Secretary of Education, and is named after Thomas Bradley Fordham, a former president of the University of Pennsylvania. The institute is headquartered in Washington, D.C., with offices in Ohio and Virginia.
The mission of the Thomas B Fordham Institute is to improve American education through research, analysis, and advocacy. The institute focuses on three main areas: K-12 education reform, higher education reform, and educational philanthropy. In each area, the institute strives to be a nonpartisan voice for rigorous academic standards and excellence in education.
The Thomas B Fordham Institute has been at the forefront of many important educational debates over the past two decades. In the area of K-12 education reform, the institute has been a leading advocate for rigorous academic standards and accountability measures such as high-stakes testing. The institute has also been an outspoken critic of so-called “whole language” approaches to reading instruction and has argued forcefully for a return to traditional methods of teaching reading based on phonics instruction.
In the area of higher education reform, the institute has been a leading proponent of increased transparency and accountability in higher education institutions. The institute’s work in this area includes producing annual ratings of colleges and universities based on their commitment to academic rigor and intellectual diversity. The Thomas B Fordham Institute is also one of the founders of accreditation watchdog group CHEA (the Council for Higher Education Accreditation).
Finally, in the area of educational philanthropy, the institute provides research and analysis on trends in giving to educational causes. In recent years, the institute has published groundbreaking studies on topics such as donor intent in charitable giving to universities and colleges