Set Students Up for Fiscal Success this Financial Literacy Month

Research shows that a high-quality financial literacy education positively impacts students’ future financial habits, making them more likely to budget and avoid predatory loans as adults. These findings are intuitive: financial literacy gives young people the tools to manage money effectively, paving the way for brighter futures. To support educational programs that provide students with … Read more

Deconstructing Mr. Darcy: Just How Rich Was He?

| By Jennifer Albers-Smith |

I took this awesome class in college at the University of Michigan that—10 years later—still resonates with me. It focused exclusively on Jane Austen and her contemporaries. We read all of Austen’s novels as well as Radcliffe, Burney, and Wollstonecraft, and it was easily the best four months of my academic career. The professor was really innovative and brought in one of her colleagues, Kathryn Dominguez, from the Economics department to do a lecture on what things cost in Jane Austen’s time.  She put together this great PowerPoint deck that I still have to this day because I thought it was so intriguing.

Numbers pop up all the time in Austen’s novels, but the reader really has no sense of how rich Bingley and Darcy are or how “poor” the Bennets are by comparison.

Read moreDeconstructing Mr. Darcy: Just How Rich Was He?

Asserting Equality: Black Political Activism During Reconstruction

During Black History Month, we honor African Americans who profoundly impacted the course of American history. During Reconstruction—an era that lasted from about 1865 to 1877—African Americans gained new political and legal rights that were implemented with the support of the federal government. A number of activists redefined how blacks participated in American politics, society, … Read more

Celebrate Black History with Gale In Context: Biography

| By Carol Brennan | For Black History Month this February, we have another round of outstanding Americans from past and present to highlight in honor of Black achievement. All are featured in Gale In Context: Biography. One of the more fascinating milestones recently added to Gale In Context: Biography was the achievement of John … Read more

Prepare Your Students for the New ACT

| By Gale Staff | In 2024, roughly 1.4 million high school seniors took the ACT.1 As one of the top two college readiness exams in the United States, the ACT is essential for evaluating proficiency in core high school subjects to assess eligibility for college admissions and scholarships. After considering feedback from students, educators, … Read more

Exploring the Causes and Effects of Inflation

| By Gale Staff | Inflation has dominated national conversations since 2021, when the US inflation rate tripled from the pre-pandemic rate of 2.3% to 7%. Beneath these numbers lies a complex web of cause and consequence. A disruption in oil production can send energy prices soaring, while supply chain bottlenecks can drive up the … Read more