There was a recognized high rate of students enrolled in technology programs who did not graduate college. Scholars who had studied predictors of college completion surmised there were several behavioral traits associated with a student achieving their college objectives through graduation; one of those factors was persistence. Persistence, the…

Mentoring is widely recognized as an effective approach to addressing educational needs in U.S. schools, emphasizing the importance of strong, long-term mentor-mentee relationships (Karaferye, 2018; Wood & Mayo-Wilson, 2012). These relationships can provide crucial support for youth facing social, emotional, and financial challenges (Kuperminc…

The COVID-19 pandemic brought unprecedented challenges to the education sector, and its ramifications have extended far beyond the extended closure of many American schools. Among other things, they include a substantial enrollment decline in a non-trivial number of public schools across the United States, some of which were already experiencing…

The State University of Iowa held inaugural commencement practices in 1857--a mere eleven years after Iowa became a state. The flagship, now named the University of Iowa (UI), has a long and storied commencement history. Commencements have been cancelled. They have been postponed. They have been displaced. But they have never been virtual…until…

Established in 2009, Complete College America (CCA) has emerged as one of the leading single-issue intermediary organizations advocating policy solutions to improve college completion in the USA. Although other entities that influenced the policy conversation at that time have ceased operation, CCA has maintained and, in fact, expanded its role in…

This chapter describes the role microcredentials can play within the context of guided pathways and degree completion, illustrated through three case studies of community colleges and systems.

Designing balanced and optimized degree plans is a fundamental challenge in higher education, directly impacting student success, graduation rates, and institutional efficiency. This paper presents an innovative framework that addresses this challenge through a two-stage optimization approach. The first stage focuses on selecting a set of courses…

There is tremendous interest among policymakers and advocates in diversifying the teacher labor market. This interest is driven at least in part by a growing body of research that points to the benefits of diverse teachers, particularly for students of color. While the diversity of the teacher workforce in the United States has increased in recent…

During the 2016 session, the General Assembly and Governor established the New Economy Workforce Grant Program (WCG). This grant program, the first of its kind in the nation, provides a pay-for-performance model for funding noncredit workforce training that leads to a credential in a high-demand field. The program also includes requirements for…

M-DCPS had 20,833 graduates in the 2021-2022 academic year as of June 2022. Most students, 89%, achieved a standard diploma (24 credits). Some students chose an alternative curriculum where 857 (4%) achieved an Advanced International Certificate of Education (AICE) diploma and 454 (2%) achieved an International Baccalaureate (IB) diploma. An…

An increasing percentage of students entering postsecondary institutions are working at least part-time and balancing multiple identities, responsibilities, and demands on their time and resources. As student demographics change, postsecondary institutions must rise to meet these students where they are. Two effective ways to do that include…

Recent high dropout and low graduation rates in the South African higher education institutions as well as government funding cuts and the economic uncertainty due to COVID-19 pandemic have heightened the urgency for the higher education sector to improve its productivity. However, empirical evidence on the productivity growth of the sector…

To be competitive, universities across the world are embedding an international perspective into every layer of an institution's operational structure. For higher education (HE) providers that offer sandwich degrees (4-year undergraduate courses with a compulsory placement after the second year), this allows students to choose a range of options.…

This study is a follow-up to one on the pass rates of basic writers in a large, urban Midwestern university. Students who came for eight or more mandatory writing center tutorials for their basic writing course passed at a rate of 90% or higher each semester from 2013-2016. The current study examined their graduation rates. These students…

Successful completion of a college degree is a growing necessity in the United States of America. Concerns about workforce readiness and the cost of postsecondary education make completion of a college degree a burdensome necessity for individuals and society. Important implications from higher education research have been integral in establishing…