Daily Lumina News 122022

There’s an entire culture around the classic car, and at the center of that world is McPherson College and its one-of-a-kind program in automotive engineering.
Niche programs are helping some colleges stand out in a crowded field of competitors—and boost enrollment. This is how a bachelor’s degree in automotive restoration is putting a tiny Kansas school on the map.

The rise of food insecurity among college students has led Colorado’s Department of Higher Education to introduce the Hunger Free Campus Checklist, a list of goals that state universities are encouraged to meet to reduce food insecurity on campus.
The goals include opening a free campus food pantry, providing food stamp program enrollment assistance, raising awareness, and collecting data on the scope of food insecurity. So far, about a dozen Colorado universities have completed the state’s list.

More than two-thirds of mothers attending community college devote 30 or more hours per week to caregiving. Many also face financial hardship, a lack of child care, and limited support both on and off campus. All of this makes it difficult for them to sustain their educational pursuits.
Community colleges and four-year universities alike must recognize this often-overlooked equity challenge, writes InsideTrack’s president in this essay—and do more to ensure women are not only enrolling in community college but also being set on a clear path toward transferring and earning a four-year degree.

Community colleges are still struggling to recover from the “Great Resignation” that hit higher ed during the pandemic—with persistent staffing shortages directly affecting students’ experiences.
The troubled state of community colleges’ workforces could compound enrollment challenges that are already wreaking havoc on institutional bottom lines, experts say.