Daily Lumina News 051223

It is probably safe to say that when most people think of Goodwill, they think of the more than 3,300 donation centers and thrift stores spread across the United States and Canada. But the nonprofit is doing much more to transform lives.
Thanks to a training program partnership put together by Goodwill, Google, and Coursera, people like Shaheera Alnatshia, Chelsea Rucker, and Kara Gooch are defying the odds and finding success in the tech industry.

Higher education experts gathered in the nation’s capital this week to take stock of the pandemic's impact on college enrollments across the country.
Some panelists charted a path forward, while others saw only dark clouds ahead. Looming large over the discussions was fear of a second enrollment cliff somewhere on the horizon, caused by a demographic drop-off that has been predicted for years but remains largely unaddressed.

Declining enrollment and poor completion rates raise concerns that underserved students and communities could be left behind. Gregory Haile, the president of Broward College, says he sees a way forward.
In this interview, Haile outlines some of the steps he is taking to make it “impossible” for his community to be unaware of what his college has to offer.

For generations, the path for teenagers has been seemingly clear: graduate high school with good grades, go to college to train for a well-paying job, then use your degree to get hired. But how probable is this path now that economic, social, and educational climates have shifted significantly in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic?
High school senior Yanni Jiminez is weighing this very question as he decides on his next endeavor.

It's commencement season for the Class of 2023. That means high school and college graduates will be weighing options for the next leg of their education or career journey.
Two issues that are likely to shape their decisions have also been a constant source of news lately: One is the future of the U.S. News & World Report college rankings, and the other is the value of the bachelor's degree. This episode of Future U takes a deep dive into both topics.

Students are told that enrolling in a community college is a smart, affordable on-ramp to a bachelor’s degree—two years at community college, two years at a university and then a degree.
But the reality is often something different, with far too many students getting off track because of broken systems. A new scan of public data on transfer student outcomes reveals major gaps in the information state and system-level leaders need to create change.