Laura Brose’s Post

This year, Question 2 on the MA ballot gives voters the opportunity to decide whether to keep or remove the requirement that 10th graders in MA pass the MCAS to graduate (with 5 chances to do so) - or demonstrate college and career readiness through one of two alternative pathways. Voting yes will remove this requirement - and also prevent the replacement of MCAS with any state-wide requirement for graduation going forward. In this scenario, over 300 districts will decide minimum graduation requirements, creating varying and unequal standards throughout the Commonwealth. Please join me, Governor Healy, Secretary of Education Tutwiler and many others in voting no to maintain equitable graduation standards for all of MA's kids. A no vote will ensure that we maintain the excellence of our educational system so all students are ready for college or career, regardless of zipcode; that we continue to identify and address achievement gaps which disparately impact students of color; and that we help individuals, families and communities thrive through the preparation to access the significant educational and job opportunities throughout the Commonwealth. Thanks to Brooke M. Thomson, JD Chesloff and Jim Rooney for an excellent summary of this issue. https://lnkd.in/e2hWkSJC

📚 👀 Last week, the State Board of Education approved a new rule to implement the Graduation Alternative to Traditional Education (GATE) Program. This bill provides an alternative educational pathway for individuals ages 16 to 21, who have dropped out of high school and do not have a diploma or additional education. 👉Learn more here: https://lnkd.in/e2BbCd-C #collegeaccess #EducationPolicy #studentsuccess

The Connecticut Board of Regents for Higher Education (BOR) unanimously approved the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities (CSCU) General Education Transfer Credit Alignment Policy. The new policy will eliminate the barriers of transferring general education credits between the two- and four-year CSCU institutions and provides transparency on how courses will be applied to CSCU four-year institutions’ degrees. The new policy applies to all Connecticut State Community College (CT State) students and eliminates the risk of CT State’s general education courses and credits not transferring to CSCU’s four-year institutions that include Central, Eastern, Southern, and Western Connecticut State Universities, and Charter Oak State College (COSC). The goal of the policy is to guide more CT State students into transferring to the regional universities and COSC. Click here to learn more: https://ow.ly/W8Rc50SEAWf

Kristin Bien and Cicily Porter, WSBT 22 Reporters Wed, December 11, 2024 INDIANAPOLIS (WSBT) — The High School experience for is about to change for Indiana high school students. The Indiana State Board of Higher Education has unanimously approved new high school diploma requirements. Hoosier students will have new requirements to allow them to graduate. The Indiana State Board of Higher Education has approved new high school diploma requirements. Indiana’s Education Secretary Katie Jenner presented the proposed High School Diploma Rule to the board Wednesday morning, then the vote was made. Many state universities and education associations have shared their support on the changes. And some say Wednesday’s decision is more than just about a diploma. “This is more than a high school diploma. It is truly a redesign of high school,” said Steve Baker, Principal of Bluffton High School, Indiana Association of School Principals, DOE Liaison. The changes to the diploma are geared toward work-based learning and preparing students for after-high school plans. There is one base diploma or minimum requirement for all students. It’s similar to the current Core 40 diploma but allows for more flexibility. Students can earn one or more "readiness seals" in two tiers that align with their interests. Students can earn an Honors Seal or an Honors Plus Seal in the Enrollment, Employment, and Enlistment & Service categories. “Thinking of this high school redesign, and as a board, our goal is not to push students to one path or another to funnel them all to one place. Our goal is to do the best we can to set our students off for success based on their unique goals and aspirations,” said Jenner. The changes came after state officials looked to tackle several challenges on key issues. Issues such as fewer Indiana students enrolling in higher education, students graduating without the skills needed to secure a rewarding career or enrolling in the military and chronic absenteeism. The IDOE has been working to redesign high school graduation requirements for the past year. Rolling out its first draft proposal in the spring and a second draft in late summer. For the rest of the story, please click this link ... https://lnkd.in/gGUvCzHy

Pennsylvania has an education problem that makes it less competitive with other states and a global economy. As a former community college administrator I sat in meeting after meeting with legislators and education department officials who had no clue what a community college is, or have potential to be. In PA, the statewide community college budget and administration was buried within the K-12 Education Department, trying to compete with other higher ed institutions who either had a separate revenue stream dedicated to them, or direct to the Assembly and the Governor's Office. Penn State proudly has a lobbying office across the street from the Capitol Building. 15 independent community colleges have a loose representative organization that must meet the lowest common denominator of what presidents and trustees allow them to address. 15 community colleges operate with 'gentlemen's agreements' and boundary expectations based upon the counties that fund them and those that invite them without any expected revenue sharing. The state supported university system, PASSHE, has created an ecosystem of competition with little coordination. They have little coordination of articulation among academic programs, and coordinating the community college articulation so that students can transfer successfully is fleeting, labor intensive, and mercurial. No wonder articulation agreements between institutions are press worthy events in this Commonwealth because they are rare and took so much effort to create. However, one articulation agreement between two institutions with a limited few academic programs is hardly effective to solving a much larger problem that falls on students. Other states with effective systems look at PAs system with humor and pity. Something must be done to fix this quagmire and I support the efforts being taken by all those in the current government.

We invite you to join us on Thursday, May 9, from 11am-12pm PST, where we will share findings from our new report "Golden Opportunities" and discuss whether California colleges are truly delivering on their promise for learners from low- and moderate-income backgrounds. RSVP at https://bit.ly/43HnjnA. At College Futures Foundation, we believe that aligning postsecondary education for economic mobility is an important piece of the puzzle if we want a robust, inclusive economy in California. We also believe that when learners spend their time and money on a postsecondary education, they should see a return on investment (ROI). Yet, ROI measures have rarely been available as would-be students and their families weigh the cost and consider the value of a college degree. In our ongoing efforts to respond to the crisis of value in postsecondary education, College Futures commissioned the HEA Group to produce a report featuring a first-of-its-kind analysis of California higher education institutions’ ROI with a specific focus on low- and moderate-income learners in the state. Our upcoming report, "Golden Opportunities: Measuring ROI in CA Higher Education for Low- and Moderate-Income Learners," examines how long it takes learners and families in the low- to moderate-income category to recoup their educational costs after attending an institution of higher education in California. Lead author and researcher, Michael Itzkowitz of the HEA Group, applied a learner-centered approach to compare out-of-pocket costs for a degree with the earnings outcomes of low- and moderate-income undergraduate learners at postsecondary institutions across California that enroll nearly two million certificate- and degree-seeking learners.

This post is doing the rounds here on LinkedIn, and I have a few thoughts. First, rising tuition costs is not an example of university greed or misdirected on-campus investments. Rising tuition costs is the result of years of deliberate slashing of the public funding of universities. Instead of receiving adequate support from the public sector through the tax bill, universities are forced to turn to corporate sponsors or high-maintenance donors. Second, the staffing crisis in higher education that has a direct negative impact on student performance, retention, and outcome is the adjunctification of the professorate. As the fall semester of 2024 is nearing its start across the country, there will be more adjuncts on campuses teaching courses than full-time, tenured faculty. Adjuncts are hired on short-term contracts; they are underpaid and need to scramble to make a living wage by teaching more courses than is humanly healthy, often at several different institutions; they rarely have an office where they can do their work and meet with students who need extra support; they are rarely made part of the department collegiate, which leaves the adjunct without a support system and shuts them out from institutional information that would benefit them in their professions and the students in their college careers.

It’s not everyday I get an op-ed in my inbox that mentions the New York State Regents exams! As someone passionate about helping all students succeed on these tests, I read this with great interest. Here’s what I learned: Next week, Massachusetts has a measure on the ballot that could potentially eliminate their MCAS exam, which is currently required for high school graduation in MA. The article draws a parallel with our very own Regents exams, and how there is a similar push here in NY to make these tests optional. I believe strongly that any student of any background can be taught to pass any state exit exam with 3 things: 1) Quality instruction in a small group setting (< 5:1 student:teacher ratio with at least some 1:1 ) 🙋🏿♂️👩🏻🏫 2) Emotional support + encouragement 🤝 3) Time ⏱️ There is so much debate about whether or not to cancel the tests, but far less debate about how we can allocate more resources to building the kinds of supports that would help every student pass (which would render the testing question moot). I get why. It’s easier to cancel a test than to try to implement what I’m prescribing to all students, at scale, with high-quality tutors. But we’ve got to try. As author Jessica Grose writes, “Life is an endless stream of tests of different kinds, and we do our children a disservice by pretending that it is not. If tests are stressful, we should work on helping children with their anxiety and make sure they are prepared enough for a test so that they feel confident.” What do you think? Do we eliminate or make optional tests like the Regents, or do we provide interventions and supports for all students who need them? Is it necessarily an either/or? Would love to hear your thoughts in the comments! #nysregents #highschooldiploma #graduation #mcas #exitexams #tutoring

The Governor’s Office and the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office (CCCCO) today announced that they submitted an Ability to Benefit (ATB) State-Defined Plan for approval by the U.S. Department of Education. Career Ladders Project (CLP) and our partner World Ed/JSI informed development of the ATB proposal, which would remove barriers to college for students who do not possess a high school diploma or equivalency, helping them access federal financial aid. If the proposal is approved, an estimated four million Californians without a diploma or equivalency stand to benefit from increased opportunity and access to higher education, training, and jobs. This aligns with the state’s goal to better serve learners of all ages under the forthcoming Master Plan for Career Education, and it complements the adult dual enrollment efforts that were previously enabled through SB 554. By usingATB and dual enrollment in tandem, colleges and adult schools can support adult learners to work on attaining their high school diploma or equivalency while taking college courses.  https://lnkd.in/gRFEmeHM

This is moving in the right direction to remove barriers and increase college access. As a first generation college graduate, I know first-hand how access to higher education provided career opportunities beyond what I thought was possible. #HigherEducationForAll