Policy Currents | The newsletter for policy people
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** April 15, 2025
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U.S. Military Recruitment Rebounded. What's Next?
The U.S. military faces persistent challenges in attracting qualified recruits. But according to RAND's Beth Asch, the recruiting crisis that has dogged most service branches in recent years appears to be easing.
In fiscal year 2024, there were gains in military recruiting across the services, with most branches meeting their recruitment goals for the first time in years. While this shift has not yet been the subject of rigorous statistical study, Asch notes that many recent steps by the Pentagon and Congress are consistent with what past research shows to be effective.
For instance, the services have increased the number of recruiters and enhanced the selection and management processes for these roles. They've also launched new marketing and advertising campaigns and expanded the use of waivers. What's more, Congress increased military pay by 4.5 percent in January, with junior enlisted members receiving an additional 10 percent pay raise this month.
The turnaround in military recruiting is a positive development. But Asch emphasizes the importance of sustaining success by identifying the most effective initiatives and focusing on recruit quality. Such measures are crucial to ensuring a robust and capable military force for the future.
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Educator Turnover Is Declining
RAND researchers have been tracking national turnover rates for public school teachers and principals since before the COVID-19 pandemic. The latest survey results are encouraging: Teacher turnover is down from its peak of 10 percent during the 2021-2022 school year to 7 percent in the 2023-2024 school year. The national principal turnover rate also declined over that same period, dropping from a high of 16 percent to 8 percent. Although these rates remain higher than their prepandemic levels, educator turnover appears to be trending in a positive direction.
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Hospital Addiction Services for People with Opioid Use Disorder
A new project led by researchers at RAND and Cedars-Sinai conducted a randomized clinical trial of a hospital-based service for people with opioid use disorder. The results show that patients who received treatment from a specialized addiction consultation service while in the hospital--even if they were admitted for other medical problems--were about twice as likely to begin medication treatment for addiction as those who received the normal course of care. This demonstrates the value in having specialized hospital staff to aid patients showing signs of an opioid use disorder.
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** Events
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Innovations in Veteran Suicide Prevention
Thursday, April 17, 2025 (Online)
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Policy Lab: Mapping the Use of High-Quality Instructional Materials
Wednesday, April 30, 2025 (Online)
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