Daily Lumina News 021420

For the majority of young adults who enroll in college, the expected outcome is a solid career that will earn them a good living. But how do students know if they are picking the right classes for a career in an in-demand field?
Bridget Burns, executive director of the University Innovation Alliance (UIA), says it's time to reimagine how higher education approaches the college-to-career pathway. In this podcast, she describes how UIA is leading the charge to better meet the needs of current and future students.

Scott Pearson started working construction right out of high school. He never considered going to college. In fact, he never really focused on his future at all—he only wanted to have a good time.
Now Pearson, 32, is looking for something more.
But going back to school wasn’t an option for Pearson. With a family and full-time job, he had no time to attend classes. That changed last fall when the College of Southern Idaho introduced its Weekend College Plus program. For the first time, the school is offering classes on nights, weekends, and online to meet the scheduling needs of working students.

In mid-January, a college applicant in the suburbs of Chicago received an enticing offer. It came from an admissions counselor at Illinois Wesleyan University, who left him a voicemail message and followed up with a text. "You have been selected," the text said, "to receive an extra $2,000 per year in scholarship money!"
There was one stipulation. Because funds were limited, the university would hold the offer for just two weeks.
That snapshot from the heartland shows how the admissions realm is changing. It increasingly resembles the rest of the commercial world, in which come-ons relentlessly pelt consumers’ skulls, incentives drive decisions, and everyone expects to bargain.

Over the years, major companies ranging from AT&T to IBM have poured billions of dollars into training programs that encourage workers to level up their technology skills and fill a widening pool of unfilled tech jobs.
In January, the state of Ohio joined the ranks of organizations working to solve this talent shortage. Gov. Mike DeWine announced a $17.5 million annual commitment to businesses that will pay for employees to upgrade their technology skills.