Here are some new resources and news for the field of higher education.

Scaling for Impact  Have you heard about Illinois’ 60 by 25 goal? It’s the state’s goal to increase the proportion of adults in Illinois with high-quality degrees and credentials to 60 percent by the year 2025.  Many communities and organizations have joined the effort to reach the 60 by 25 goal, but there is still more work to be done! What can you do? Join Illinois’ 60 by 25 Network at their fifth annual conference on February 6-7, 2018 in Bloomington, Illinois. They will be diving into strategies to advance equity within Illinois communities and achieve the 60 by 25 goal. You can expect to hear about challenges and success stories, exchange best-practices, and find opportunities to collaborate. Guest speakers include State Superintendent of Schools, Tony Smith, and other school officials, business leaders, and national partners. You won’t want to miss it!

Illinois to Offer More Ways to Gain High School Equivalency  The Illinois Community College Board says it plans to roll out several alternative credentialing methods by the fall of 2018 that the agency hopes will get more people into the workforce pipeline. (Journal Star)

Higher Education’s Low Moment  Colleges are crucial to American greatness but found themselves on the defensive in 2017. The end of year is a fitting moment to examine what happened and how to fix it. (New York Times)

Why Free College Tuition Is Spreading From Cities to States  The state rush to offer free tuition began with Tennessee in 2015, but other states quickly followed. Arkansas, Hawaii, Indiana, Kentucky, Minnesota, New York, Oregon and Rhode Island have started programs, and Nevada plans to launch one this year. (Pew Charitable Trusts)

Illinois College Enrollment Continues To Drop  For the past several years, Illinois has been losing more college students than any state except New Jersey. Last year, as higher education was starved by the state budget impasse, that trend continued. (NPR Illinois’ Education Desk)