Concerns about the rising cost of college and growing student loan debt have intensified in recent years, with 85% of non-enrolled adults citing affordability as a key barrier (Gallup & Lumina Foundation, 2024) and a third of currently enrolled college students agreeing that their "institution charges too much for an undergraduate…

The resources that federal financial aid, state financial aid, and federal public benefits programs provide, when they operate effectively, are critical to older students and students with children. This report seeks to shed light on how these programs are functioning by analyzing data and policies across four states--Colorado, Missouri, North…

The Rural Early College Network (RECN) aimed to help rural Indiana schools more quickly implement the Early College (EC) model with fidelity and increase the number and quality of Early College programs throughout rural parts of the state. The initiative was led by the Center of Excellence in Leadership of Learning (CELL) at the University of…

Public universities are intent on increasing degree completion for many reasons. A stronger policy focus on completion and interest in removing students' financial hurdles has led to a rapid proliferation of completion grant programs. This paper reports on a mixed-method implementation study of completion grant programs at seven broad- and…

Data on enrollment in healthcare occupational training in programs such as the Health Profession Opportunity Grants (HPOG) Program are available at both the local program level and nationally. Summarizing "which" trainings participants choose is straightforward, but why they make those choices is not well understood. This second brief in…

This brief examines the challenges youth face in the current job market and proposes recommendations for a national subsidized employment program that prioritizes equity and amplifies youth voices. The insights provided in this brief are informed by several listening sessions with members of the Communities Collaborating to Reconnect Youth Network…

Purpose: Public universities are intent on increasing degree completion for many reasons. A stronger policy focus on completion and interest in removing students' financial hurdles has led to a rapid proliferation of completion grant programs. This paper reports on a mixed method implementation study of completion grant programs at seven broad-…

Claremont Graduate University (Claremont), a nonprofit, private institution in southern California, offers a flexible Teacher Education Program that is a 12- to 18-month, 100% online residency program. Claremont's residency model was launched as a pilot in 2020 with 5 residents and grew to include 34 fulltime residents in the 2022-23 academic…

This toolkit contains practical resources to introduce charter support organizations (CSOs) to the benefits and advantages that leading federal Charter Schools Program (CSP) activities can bring to their state. With a practical set of tools to assist CSOs with CSP engagement, this toolkit focuses on the CSP grants to state entities, which enables…

This document contains the survey data and tables for the report "An Evaluation of Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act Funding for Postsecondary Institutions." In January and February 2021, National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA) collaborated with Student Affairs Administrators in Higher…

Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) have a history of "doing more with less" and this is often reflected in their effectiveness in securing financial resources from private donors. The purpose of this study is to probe and explore how the Kresge Foundation's HBCU Initiative strengthened HBCU fundraising capacity from…

For more than a decade teacher residencies have prepared classroom-ready teachers for hard-to-staff subjects and high-need schools. Across the country, mounting evidence shows that residencies produce effective teachers who stay in the profession longer and produce greater student achievement than traditionally-trained teachers. No residency,…

DE programming in higher education should be designed to increase student success, and well-designed corequisite models have shown great potential as an accelerated option for completion of the first college-level course in math. With the support of a Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board grant, Tarleton State University, a member institution…

Research increasingly highlights the significant benefits of multilingual instructional programs for English Learners. Yet, these programs remain relatively rare across California. Regional and local practitioners play an essential role in driving meaningful change by implementing strategies that enhance these programs--ultimately improving the…

The Head Start Act mandates that each Head Start recipient receive a monitoring review at least once every 3 years; each newly designated recipient be reviewed after the completion of its first year (and then at least once every 3 years thereafter); and all recipients that "fail to meet the standards" receive Follow-up reviews. Reviewers…