Here are some new resources and news for the field of higher education.
Focus on Illinois Education Research Symposium: The Illinois Education Research Council 14th annual symposium has been set for September 29-30, 2016 in Bloomington, Illinois. Keynotes speakers will be Juan Salgado, president of Instituto del Progreso Latino and Professor of Public Policy, Education, and Economics Susan Dynarski of the University of Michigan. Salgado is a 2015 MacArthur Genius Fellow and Dynarski is a regular contributor to the New York Times on education issues. Watch for more information and request for proposals.
IBHE’s Administrative rules for Dual Credit have been developed and are now in effect. To assist independent, out-of-state, and public universities with the new process to follow in order to become compliant, IBHE has developed a dual credit compliance and authorization website. Questions can be referred to IBHE dual credit staff.
Fulfilling the Promise, Serving the Need: College is the best investment that Americans can make in their future. That’s why the federal government supports both greater access to higher education for low-income students, and their success once enrolled. This report outlines the significant work advanced by this administration and postsecondary institutions and leaders across the country to ensure that more students, especially low-income students, obtain an affordable, high-quality postsecondary education.
Government able to afford grants to needy college students: The Congressional Budget Office on March 24 projected a $7.7 billion surplus in funding for the federal Pell grant program this year, which means the government may have enough money to offer low-income students more financial aid. (source: Washington Post).
The Role of Navigators: In the Gulf Coast IT Consortium, “navigators” work with prospective students to help them better understand the process of college enrollment, academic program options, job markets and potential credit for prior experience.
Illinois Gov. Rauner pushes for increase in funding. While Gov. Bruce Rauner is calling for a 20 percent cut in guaranteed state support for public university operations, his budget proposal would spend an additional $50 million for performance-based funding. (NWI.com, March 12).
Lumina papers look at lessons of performance funding. Lumina Foundation released a second batch of white papers on performance-based funding in higher education, with a focus on lessons from states that have linked funding to metrics such as on-time graduation and the number of at-risk students who graduate. (Inside Higher Ed, March 11).
The College and Career Readiness of U.S. High School Graduates Achieve released The College and Career Readiness of US High School Graduates on along with a set of state performance profiles. This report looks at actual student performance against a focused set of college and career ready measures in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
Illinois, Pennsylvania budget stalemates could have lingering effect. Illinois and Pennsylvania are facing the longest budget stalemates in their history, and colleges are suffering losses that could harm them for years down the line. (Inside Higher Ed, March 8).
