Daily Lumina News 082523

The University of South Carolina has eliminated “diversity, equity, and inclusion” from the title of its top diversity official on the flagship Columbia campus.
For years, Julian R. Williams served as the school's vice president for diversity, equity, and inclusion. Now he's vice president for access, civil rights, and community engagement. Experts say the change goes much deeper than the name.

California State University embraced an ambitious set of goals a few years back, including goals to boost graduation rates and close racial equity gaps. But the CSU system is seeing mixed success in reaching those goals by the intended 2025 deadline.
A recent report from the Campaign for College Opportunity shows a big increase in some graduation rates, but slower progress in meeting the equity goals. The group’s Vikash Reddy explains the numbers and the issues in this interview.

After the U.S. Supreme Court ended race-conscious college admissions policies in June, focus quickly turned to a search for alternatives. Everything from employing class-based preferences to doing away with legacy admissions to switching to lottery systems to replace admission regimes has reportedly been proposed.
But can these race-neutral means allow colleges and universities to maintain their current levels of diversity?

Earlier this year, California governor Gavin Newsom urged the University of California, Los Angeles, to create a guaranteed pathway for community college students to transfer to the highly selective institution.
The plea—or perhaps threat, given $20 million of state funding is on the line—comes amid a broader push in California and elsewhere to create more seamless pathways between two-year colleges and four-year universities.

Health care experts have been sounding the alarm about staffing shortages for decades. In addition to a predicted deficit of up to 3.2 million healthcare workers by 2026, 60 percent of all healthcare support workers expect to leave their job in the next five years.
On this podcast, Dr. Jill Buban of EdAssist offers insight on addressing this shortage by providing clear and supported career pathways to adults already in the workforce. Two workforce experts join the conversation to review the important steps healthcare employers need to take to attract, develop, and retain talent in critical areas.

Since 2001, the Bard Prison Initiative has created groundbreaking opportunities for college within America’s prison systems.
In this interview, BPI alumnus Elías Beltrán and BPI dean Megan Callaghan discuss the necessity of reframing college-in-prison and the power and impact of creating educational opportunities for those who struggle to be recognized as students.