Top Higher Education News for Tuesday
Lumina

Lumina Foundation is committed to increasing the proportion of Americans with high-quality degrees, certificates and other credentials to 60 percent by 2025.

January 14, 2025

Subscribe to this email

TOP STORIES

istockphoto-1299197834-612x612

Colleges Where Pell Students Thrive— and Struggle

Brian O’Leary, The Chronicle of Higher Education

SHARE:  Facebook • LinkedIn

Students who receive Pell Grants make up a sizable share of the nation’s undergraduates: nearly four out of every 10 students. They also tend to graduate at lower rates than their peers. According to the Biden administration, two-thirds of Pell recipients are from households with incomes below $30,000, and 93 percent are from households with incomes below $60,000.

 

Recent research from the U.S. Department of Education on 2023 enrollment and six-year graduation rates sheds insight on where Pell students tend to go to college and what their graduation rates are—where they’re close to that of their peers and where they lag.

istockphoto-1185682049-612x612

How More Hispanic Teachers Could Change the Face of California Education

Diana Lambert, EdSource

SHARE:  Facebook • LinkedIn

California has faced a racial imbalance between its teacher workforce and its student population for years, with a majority Hispanic student population being taught by teachers who are mostly white.

 

That could be changing, as more people of Hispanic heritage enroll in college teacher preparation programs in the state.

download - 2025-01-13T073918.842

How Colleges Across the Nation Are Honoring the Life and Legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Angela Dennis, Diverse Issues in Higher Education

SHARE:  Facebook • LinkedIn

Colleges and universities across the country are preparing to celebrate the legacy of a civil rights icon who championed integration and transformed America’s racial landscape.

 

Every third Monday in January, millions of Americans pay homage to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and this year is no different. Some college leaders say that with the continued attack on diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, now is the time more than ever to remember King’s contributions.

download - 2025-01-13T070936.484

There's an App for Everything, Including Tracking Student Success at RMU

Maddie Aiken, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

SHARE:  Facebook • LinkedIn

In today’s technology-driven world, there’s an app to track almost everything: movies watched, steps taken, books read, and calories consumed.

 

At Robert Morris University, students can now track their career prep progress thanks to a new initiative called RMU Ready. The personalized career and academic pathway allows students to log their successes and participation inside and outside of the classroom.

download - 2025-01-13T072031.389

The Skinny on Digital Portfolios

Ed Finkel, Community College Daily

SHARE:  Facebook • LinkedIn

Community colleges that offer the ability to upload learning and employment records into a dashboard—often called a “digital wallet”—provide students the opportunity to present their credentials to any potential employer, anywhere, at any time. Yet, adoption of these apps hasn’t gone as quickly or seamlessly as some in the sector have hoped.

 

That may be changing with the help of the American Association of Community Colleges and the LER Accelerator project.

images (74) copy 8

Education Secretary Miguel Cardona Reflects on FAFSA Rollout, Debt Forgiveness

Megan Lim, Juana Summers, and Sarah Handel, WAER

SHARE:  Facebook • LinkedIn

The last four years have been rocky at times for the U.S. Department of Education, from the troubled rollout of the new Free Application for Federal Student Aid to fallout from the termination of race-conscious admissions policies.

 

Still, there are successes. More than five million Americans saw their student loans forgiven. And this year, FAFSA applicants are having a much smoother experience. Miguel Cardona reflects on his time as secretary of education under President Joe Biden in this interview.

HUMAN WORK AND LEARNING

Perspective: Ignoring Climate Change Education Risks Students’ Future

Andres Hernandez, Jr., The Education Trust

Universities Must Compel Students to Detail How They Use AI in Assignments

Joseph Moxley, Times Higher Education

Blog: What Is Your Why?

John Warner, Just Visiting

STUDENT SUPPORT

Promising Results for Tennessee Adult College Advising Program

Sara Weissman, Inside Higher Ed

How Campuses Can Prepare to Support Undocumented Students and Safeguard Their Data in Higher Education

Presidents' Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration

Meeting the Needs of the 'COVID Cohort'

eCampus News

Weber State University Expanding Initiative to Give Students Free Textbooks

Clayre Scott, KSL

COLLEGE ENROLLMENTS

No, Colleges Haven’t Rushed Back to Requiring Standardized Tests

Jacquelyn Elias, The Chronicle of Higher Education

West Virginia Four-Year Institutions See Slight Increase in Enrollment

Noah Jeffries, WV News

Number of Freshmen Enrolling in Undergraduate Programs Sees Notable Decline

K.C. Compton, The 74

STATE POLICY

‘Everything Is on the Table’ for Higher Ed in Iowa This Session

Vanessa Miller, The Gazette

What Utah Business Wants From the Legislature This Year

Brigham Tomco, Deseret News

Hazing, Financial Aid, In-State Tuition: Missouri Higher Education Bills to Watch in 2025

Maria Benevento, Columbia Missourian

Bill Would Prevent Public Universities From Offering Race-Based Scholarships

Ethan Sandweiss, WFYI (Indiana)

UC, CSU Face Cuts Under Newsom’s Proposed Budget

Michael Burke and Amy DiPierro, EdSource

Opinion: Private Colleges, Public Purpose: Securing Virginia’s Economic Future Through Nonprofit Higher Education

Chris Peace, Cardinal News

FEDERAL POLICY

How Trump Could Devastate Our Top Colleges’ Finances

Phillip Levine, The Chronicle Review

What Does the Education Secretary Do?

Dustin Hornbeck, PBS NewsHour

Laken Riley Act Could Have Implications for Higher Ed

Jessica Blake, Inside Higher Ed

Online College Programs Face Stricter Reporting Requirements

Meg Little Reilly, Forbes

luminafoundation.org
Daily Lumina News is edited by Patricia Brennan.

Facebook
Instagram
LinkedIn