Daily Lumina News 081220

As the new academic year gets under way at colleges and universities, students, parents, administrators, and faculty, and residents of college towns are all asking the same questions: Will it be safe? Should students return to campus?
This episode of "Rethinking College" reports on those concerns, and then looks at the larger questions around affordability and cost that are getting new attention during the pandemic.

Now more than ever, the United States faces an urgent and growing need for talent. To meet that need, more people must earn college degrees, workforce certificates, industry certifications, and other high-quality credentials.

But with more than 738,000 credentials in existence today, consumers are often confused about which credential to choose. A new video from Workcred breaks down three of the most common types of credentials—certifications, certificates, and licenses—with insight on how they differ and appropriate uses for each.

The iconic summer job for high school and college students has been on the wane for nearly 20 years. But the pandemic is squeezing even more young people out of the workforce.
Some are borrowing more money. Others have turned to jobs like Instacart, only to compete with older job seekers who are similarly sidelined.

With just days to go before the fall semester begins at Howard University, Brittany Goddard is worried about how she’ll pay the remaining balance of her tuition and fees—roughly $9,000. She has since created a GoFundMe page to raise money.
Millions of students are in the same position, facing financial strains and health fears as they decide whether to return to colleges and universities this fall. It comes at an unpredictable time for faculty and parents as policymakers in Washington grapple with further coronavirus outbreaks, leaving schools rushing to implement plans for the new academic year.