Lumina Foundation is committed to increasing the proportion of Americans with high-quality degrees, certificates and other credentials to 60 percent by 2025.
Forty-nine University of Texas at Austin employees lost their jobs in early April via a Zoom call. The former staffers oversaw programs that helped low-income students study abroad, undocumented students find scholarships, and Black women thrive on a campus that once banned their admission.
The news at UT-Austin promptly set off alarm bells in diversity, equity, and inclusion offices around the country over fears they, too, could face similar cuts because of state laws banning DEI-related programs and practices on college campuses.
Mileena Moss spent $15,000 for an esthetician program at a for-profit college that she says promised intensive instruction from experts. Instead, Moss mostly had one instructor and a thick workbook to fill out. She graduated this February and had no job lined up in her new field.
In 2022, more than 10,000 students like Moss—mostly women of color—were enrolled in Illinois cosmetology, esthetician, barber, and nail tech programs, drawn in by guarantees of a flexible and lucrative beauty career. That didn't happen.
Small, independent colleges have been closing at an accelerated pace, and many of those teetering on the edge are restructuring and slashing budgets left and right.
This semester has been particularly rough for program cuts at these institutions, with the challenging rollout of the new Free Application for Federal Student Aid proving too much for some.
The competing demands of work, family, and student loan debt can pose a significant challenge for aspiring students. Joe balanced these responsibilities while exploring various college programs before finding the optimal fit at Rutgers University-Newark.
Watch Joe's story and learn how he achieved his academic aspirations in this film series on re-engaging students with some college credit but no awarded degree.
Even when California high school seniors set a record last year in applying for college financial aid, more than a quarter didn’t bother, leaving significant amounts of money on the table.
Now, the state agency overseeing student grants and scholarships is about to embark on a new campaign to persuade more students and their parents to apply for financial aid. The strategy is buttressed by novel market research that produced counterintuitive conclusions about what compels people to seek cash for college.
Apprenticeships play an essential role in building a strong talent pipeline, yet they are less common in the United States than in other countries such as Germany and the U.K. That may be changing.
In this interview, Lumina Foundation's Jamie Merisotis discusses the value of the apprenticeship model and its role in today's education and training ecosystem.
