Projections of Education Statistics to 2025

"This publication provides projections for key education statistics. It includes statistics on enrollment, graduates, teachers, and expenditures in elementary and secondary schools, and enrollment and earned degrees conferred expenditures of degree-granting institutions. For the Nation, the tables, figures, and text contain data on enrollment, teachers, graduates, and expenditures for the past 14 years and projections to the year 2025. For the 50 States and the District of Columbia, the tables, figures, and text contain data on projections of public elementary and secondary enrollment and public high school graduates to the year 2025. In addition, the report includes a methodology section describing models and assumptions used to develop national and state-level projections.

Online Availability:Download, view and print the report as a pdf file.  (1.5MB)..."

Education statistics

Drowsy Driving: Asleep at the Wheel

"Drive alert and stay unhurt. Learn the risks of drowsy driving and how to protect yourself. Drive alert! Learn the risks of drowsy driving and how to protect yourself in an effort to reduce the number of sleep-related crashes and save lives.

The Drowsy Driving Problem

Drowsy driving is a major problem in the United States. The risk, danger, and often tragic results of drowsy driving are alarming. Drowsy driving is the dangerous combination of driving and sleepiness or fatigue. This usually happens when a driver has not slept enough, but it can also happen due to untreated sleep disorders, medications, drinking alcohol, or shift work.

No one knows the exact moment when sleep comes over their body. Falling asleep at the wheel is clearly dangerous, but being sleepy affects your ability to drive safely even if you don’t fall asleep. Drowsiness—

• Makes drivers less able to pay attention to the road.¹
• Slows reaction time if you have to brake or steer suddenly.¹
• Affects a driver’s ability to make good decisions..."
  Drowsy driving

Lung Cancer Awareness

"Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death and the second most common cancer among both men and women in the United States.

The most important thing you can do to lower your lung cancer risk is to quit smoking and avoid secondhand smoke. For help quitting, visit smokefree.gov, call 1 (800) QUIT-NOW (784-8669), or text “QUIT” to 47848 from your cell phone.

What You Can Do to Lower Your Risk

You can help lower your risk of lung cancer in the following ways—

• Don’t smoke. The most important thing you can do to prevent lung cancer is to not start smoking, or to quit if you smoke.
• Avoid secondhand smoke. Smoke from other people’s cigarettes, pipes, or cigars is called secondhand smoke. Make your home and car smoke-free.
• Get your home tested for radon. The second leading cause of lung cancer is radon, a naturally occurring gas that comes from rocks and dirt and can get trapped in houses and buildings..."
  Lung Cancer

Child Abuse Prevention

"November 19th is the International Day for the Prevention of Child Abuse. Learn more about how CDC is protecting the futures of children all around the world with the Violence Against Children Surveys.

The Violence Against Children Surveys (VACS) are nationally representative household surveys of children and young adults ages 13 to 24 years.

The surveys are designed to measure the prevalence (number and percentage) and circumstances surrounding emotional, physical, and sexual violence against males and females in childhood (before age 18) and young adulthood. The surveys also identify risk and protective factors and consequences of violence.

CDC’s Division of Violence Prevention works to prevent violence and its adverse health consequences. Findings from VACS provide reliable evidence to allow countries to make better decisions about allocating limited resources to develop, launch, and evaluate violence prevention programs and child protection systems. As part of the VACS process, CDC, along with Together for Girls partners, links VACS findings to the INSPIRE technical package..."
Childhood abuse

Epilepsy in Veterans

"November is National Epilepsy Awareness Month and November 11 is Veterans Day. Veterans are at higher risk of developing epilepsy. Learn more about resources to help veterans and families.

What is Epilepsy?

Epilepsy is a broad term used for a brain disorder that causes reoccurring seizures. A seizure involves sudden, abnormal electrical activity in the brain that causes brief changes in how a person behaves, thinks, or feels.

How many veterans have epilepsy?

In 2015, about 3 million U.S. adults age 18 and older had active epilepsy (which means the person was diagnosed with epilepsy by a doctor and they were under treatment or had recent seizures).¹ Experts aren’t sure exactly how many veterans have epilepsy. The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) estimated that the prevalence of veterans with epilepsy under treatment at VA facilities was 13.8 per 1000 in 2015.² Think of that number this way: if 100,000 veterans were in attendance at an event, almost 1,400 of them would be in treatment for epilepsy in VA facilities. The VHA data show that about 13% of veterans with seizures were less than 45 years old, 39% were between 45-65 years old, and about 8% were female..."
Epilepsy and veterans

Family Health History and Diabetes

"If you have a mother, father, sister, or brother with diabetes, you are more likely to get diabetes yourself. You are also more likely to have prediabetes. Talk to your doctor about your family health history of diabetes. Your doctor can help you take steps to prevent or delay diabetes, and reverse prediabetes if you have it.

Over 30 million people have diabetes. People with diabetes have levels of blood sugar that are too high. The different types of diabetes include type 1 diabetes, type 2 diabetes, and gestational diabetes. Diabetes can cause serious health problems, including heart disease, kidney problems, stroke, blindness, and the need for lower leg amputations.

People with prediabetes have levels of blood sugar that are higher than normal, but not high enough for them to be diagnosed with diabetes. People with prediabetes are more likely to get type 2 diabetes. About 84 million people in the United States have prediabetes, but most of them don’t know they have it. If you have prediabetes, you can take steps to reverse it and prevent or delay diabetes—but not if you don’t know that you have it. Could you have prediabetes? Take this test to find out..."
Diabetes and families

Celebrate Native American Heritage Month!

"The first American Indian Day was celebrated in May 1916 in New York. Red Fox James, a Blackfeet Indian, rode horseback from state to state, getting endorsements from 24 state governments, to have a day to honor American Indians. In 1990, President George H.W. Bush signed a joint congressional resolution designating November 1990 as “National American Indian Heritage Month.” American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/AN) from hundreds of tribes have shaped our national life. During Native American Heritage Month, we honor their vibrant cultures. Learn more about some of the health issues that affect this population and some efforts to address these health issues.

Strategies for Reducing Health Disparities

As we celebrate Native American Heritage Month this year, CDC highlights Strategies for Reducing Health Disparities — Selected CDC-Sponsored Interventions, United States, 2014 and 2016 reports, which offer real-world examples of how public health programs can address differences in health outcomes and their causes among groups of people.

• The 2014 report includes how four AI/AN tribal communities implemented road safety interventions to lower motor vehicle–related injuries and death.
• The 2016  report discusses the Traditional Foods Project (2008-2014), in which participating tribal communities worked to restore access to local, traditional foods and encouraged physical activity to promote health. AI/AN communities across the country are reclaiming traditional foods as part of the global Indigenous food sovereignty movement that embraces identity, history, and traditional ways and practices to address health, highlighted in the Traditional Foods Stories..."

Native American Heritage

Celebrate This Veteran's Day Tobacco Free

"This Veteran’s Day, CDC is supporting veterans by sharing free resources available to help them quit tobacco use. Cigarette smoking and other tobacco use are harmful to the health of any user, but for active-duty military personnel tobacco use can be especially problematic. As with all users, cigarette smoking increases risk for diseases among veterans and active-duty members, including lung cancer, heart disease, chronic bronchitis, and many others. Additionally, their strength and performance can be impaired by smoking, either through exposure to nicotine and other poisons in cigarettes, or through nicotine withdrawal. Tobacco use can also result in soldiers being absent from duty or being unable to perform necessary tasks. Further, service members who use tobacco are more likely to drop out of basic training and to experience accidents and injuries, which negatively impact troop readiness.

But the good news is that quitting significantly reduces your risk for heart attack, stroke, and some cancers. In addition to the health benefits, quitting smoking can also result in significant cost savings. The U.S. Department of Defense spends over $1.6 billion each year on tobacco-related medical care, increased hospitalization, and lost days of work..."
Veterans and tobacco

Abraham Lincoln Papers at the Library of Congress

"The papers of Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865), lawyer, representative from Illinois, and sixteenth president of the United States, contain approximately 40,550 documents dating from 1774 to 1948, although most of the collection spans from the 1850s through Lincoln’s presidency (1861-1865).  Roughly half of the collection, more than 20,000 documents, comprising 62,000 images, as well as transcriptions of approximately 10,000 documents, is online. Included on this website in their entirety are Series 1-3 of the Lincoln Papers and the original materials in Series 4. Excluded from this online presentation is a sizeable portion of Series 4, which consists of printed material and reproductions of government and military documents made from originals in the holdings of the National Archives and Records Administration...


The Index to the Abraham Lincoln Papers (PDF and page view) created by the Manuscript Division in 1960 after the bulk of the collection was microfilmed, provides a full list of the correspondents and notes the series number, dates, and mounting-sheet numbers for items in Series 1-3 of the Abraham Lincoln Papers. This information, in addition to the keyword search capability in the online presentation, is helpful in finding individual letters or documents in the online version. Additional letters received by the Library after 1960 are not listed in this index.

A current finding aid (PDF and HTML) to the Abraham Lincoln Papers is also available online..."
Abraham Lincoln papers

U.S. Census Bureau Releases Key Statistics on Our Nation’s Veterans

"Veterans Day originated as “Armistice Day” on Nov. 11, 1919, the first anniversary marking the end of World War I. Congress passed a resolution in 1926 for an annual observance, and November 11th became a national holiday beginning in 1938. President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed legislation in 1954 to change the name to Veterans Day, as a way to honor those who served in all American wars. Veterans Day honors military veterans with parades and speeches across the nation and a remembrance ceremony takes place at the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Va.

 

The following are key economic and demographic statistics compiled by the U.S. Census Bureau on our nation’s veterans.

18.5 million

The number of military veterans in the United States in 2016.

9.2 million

The number of veterans age 65 and older in 2016. At the other end of the age spectrum, 1.6 million were younger than age 35.

6.7 million

The number of Vietnam Era veterans in 2016. Moreover, there were 7.1 million who served during the Gulf War (representing service from August 1990 to present); 768,263 who served in World War II; 1.6 million who served in the Korean War; and 2.4 million who served in peacetime only.

14.4 million

The number of veterans who voted in the 2016 presidential election. In that election, 69.6 percent of veterans cast a ballot, compared with 60.6 percent of nonveterans. These rates reflect the citizen voting-age population.

398,453

The number of all U.S. employer firms that are majority owned by veterans. Veteran-owned firms comprised 7.2 percent of the nation's 5.5 million employer businesses..."
Veterans Data

Climate Science Special Report(4th)

"The climate of the United States is strongly connected to the changing global climate. The statements below highlight past, current, and projected climate changes for the United States and the globe.

Global annually averaged surface air temperature has increased by about 1.8°F (1.0°C) over the last 115 years (1901–2016). This period is now the warmest in the history of modern civilization. The last few years have also seen record-breaking, climate-related weather extremes, and the last three years have been the warmest years on record for the globe. These trends are expected to continue over climate timescales.

This assessment concludes, based on extensive evidence, that it is extremely likely that human activities, especially emissions of greenhouse gases, are the dominant cause of the observed warming since the mid-20th century. For the warming over the last century, there is no convincing alternative explanation supported by the extent of the observational evidence..".
Climate Science Report

Alexander Hamilton Papers

"The papers of Alexander Hamilton (ca. 1757-1804), first treasury secretary of the United States, consist of his personal and public correspondence, drafts of his writings (although not his Federalist essays), and correspondence among members of the Hamilton and Schuyler families. The collection, consisting of approximately 12,000 items dating from 1708 to 1917, documents Hamilton's impoverished Caribbean boyhood (scantily); events in the lives of his family and that of his wife, Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton; his experience as a Revolutionary War officer and aide-de-camp to General George Washington; his terms as a New York delegate to the Continental Congress (1782-1783) and the Constitutional Convention (1787); and his careers as a New York state legislator, United States treasury secretary (1789-1795), political writer, and lawyer in private practice. Most of the papers date from 1777 until Hamilton's death in 1804. Additional details may be found in the collection's finding aid (HTML and PDF versions).

Among the many correspondents in the papers are John Adams, Angelica Schuyler Church, Henry Clay, Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton, John Jay, Thomas Jefferson, Rufus King, the Marquis de Lafayette, Pierre Charles L'Enfant, James McHenry, James Monroe, Robert Morris, Timothy Pickering, Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, Philip Schuyler, Baron von Steuben, Robert Troup, George Washington, James Wilkinson, and Oliver Wolcott, Jr..."
Alexander Hamilton

Approaches for Managing the Costs of U.S. Nuclear Forces, 2017 to 2046

"To continue to field a nuclear force roughly the same size as it is today, the United States plans to modernize virtually every element of that force over the coming decades. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that the most recent detailed plans for nuclear forces, which were incorporated in the Obama Administration’s 2017 budget request, would cost $1.2 trillion in 2017 dollars over the 2017–2046 period: more than $800 billion to operate and sustain (that is, incrementally upgrade) nuclear forces and about $400 billion to modernize them.

That planned nuclear modernization would boost the total costs of nuclear forces over 30 years by roughly 50 percent over what they would be to only operate and sustain fielded forces, CBO estimates. During the peak years of modernization, annual costs of nuclear forces would be roughly double the current amount. That increase would occur at a time when total defense spending may be constrained by long-term fiscal pressures, and nuclear forces would have to compete with other defense priorities for funding..."
U.S. Nuclear forces cost

The North Korean Nuclear Challenge: Military Options and Issues for Congress

"North Korea’s apparently successful July 2017 tests of its intercontinental ballistic missile capabilities, along with the possibility that North Korea (DPRK) may have successfully miniaturized a nuclear warhead, have led analysts and policymakers to conclude that the window for preventing the DPRK from acquiring a nuclear missile capable of reaching the United States is closing. These events appear to have fundamentally altered U.S. perceptions of the threat the Kim Jong-un regime poses to the continental United States and the international community, and escalated the standoff on the Korean Peninsula to levels that have arguably not been seen since 1994.

A key issue is whether or not the United States could manage and deter a nuclear-armed North Korea if it were to become capable of attacking targets in the U.S. homeland, and whether taking decisive military action to prevent the emergence of such a DPRK capability might be necessary. Either choice would bring with it considerable risk for the United States, its allies, regional stability, and global order. Trump Administration officials have stated that “all options are on the table,” to include the use of military force to “denuclearize,”—generally interpreted to mean eliminating nuclear weapons and related capabilities—from that area..."
North Korea and nuclear challenge

The Vacancies Act: A Legal Overview

"The Federal Vacancies Reform Act of 1998 (Vacancies Act) generally provides the exclusive means by which a government employee may temporarily perform the nondelegable functions and duties of a vacant advice and consent position in an executive agency. Unless an acting officer is serving in compliance with the requirements of the Vacancies Act, any attempt to perform the functions and duties of that office will have no force or effect.

The Vacancies Act limits a government employee’s ability to serve as an acting officer in two primary ways. First, the Vacancies Act provides that only three classes of people may serve temporarily in an advice and consent position. As a default rule, the first assistant to a position automatically becomes the acting officer. Alternatively, the President may direct either a senior official of that agency or a person serving in any other advice and consent position to serve as the acting officer. Second, the Vacancies Act limits the length of time a person may serve as acting officer: a person may serve either (1) for a limited time period running from the date that the vacancy occurred or (2) during the pendency of a nomination to that office. The Vacancies Act is primarily enforced when a person who has been injured by an agency’s action challenges the action based on the theory that it was taken in contravention of the Act..."
Vacancies Act