Daily Lumina News 060322

A survey of almost 5,000 students who graduated high school in 2021 shows that test-optional admissions policies are a significant factor in motivating them to apply to college.
But test-optional policies are particularly influential for underrepresented students, the report says, with 24 percent of Black students and 21 percent of Hispanic students stating they had applied to a school for that reason.

For years, California, Florida, Oregon, Washington, and other states have relied on incarcerated men and women to fight wildfires. They are trained to perform grueling work while earning sometimes as little as $2 a day.
Now, a nonprofit group—with help from foundations and others—is helping incarcerated people who have been trained as firefighters secure careers in the profession once they leave prison.

Where students decide to go to college is a subject of never-ending intrigue in higher ed, with entire campus offices devoted to influencing those decisions. College choices are also complicated, with a range of factors moving the needle in different directions for individual students.
A new study by a professor and an undergraduate student at Worcester Polytechnic Institute provides insight on college-migration patterns.

Colorado ranks among the bottom 10 of states in the percentage of students completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. That means an estimated $30 million in financial aid is left on the table every year.
A new Colorado law may change that, helping more students fill out financial aid forms and creating a directory of resources for educators to share.

Diving into a magnified human cell. Studying stars from the surface of the moon. Tossing a Frisbee on the quad with a classmate who lives 700 miles away.
These scenarios are far-fetched for most college students. Yet, a new virtual reality experiment involving 10 higher education institutions across the country aims to make them possible.

This episode of The Key takes a closer look at how individual colleges and universities are rethinking the role of digital learning. Guests include Dhanfu E. Elston of Complete College America, who discusses an effort involving six historically Black colleges and universities.
Administrators from several universities join the conversation to describe the work they’re doing to evolve their strategies for using digital tools and approaches in instruction.