LearnmoreMN Blog

Recruitment isn’t enough

By Sunny Kase, January guest blogger

One of the points I made in my last post was that students who come from low-income or first-generation families or who are students of color, are taking charge of their own educational experience on their own terms. Two decades ago, when I was starting my career, I was struck by how much importance was put on “recruiting” students from diverse backgrounds, compared to how much effort was spent retaining and graduating them. Students would come in and basically either sink or swim. It was still a situation where the student was expected to assimilate and conform to their new environment.

At the time I remember hearing a faculty person tell me that “these” students needed to learn how the real world worked and they shouldn’t be coddled or judged by any different standards than the traditional college student. I had helped create an afterschool program on campus where college students received academic credit for tutoring school-aged students. The tutors we hired were the absolute best. Their life experiences mirrored those of the students we were asking them to tutor. The college students could see mini versions of themselves in their students — who could see role models in their tutors.

As a sassy young 20-something just out of college, I remember backtracking to the same faculty person’s office who had given me the original lecture. While I was waiting patiently for him to sign off on the academic credits that our students had earned, I asked him if he thought our afterschool program tutors could be held up as an example of “those” students he was referring to — those needing real life experiences to help them succeed in college. He gave me another very long lecture on measurable results and not having a large enough of a pool to base this on. He also said he would be interested in knowing if any or all of our eight tutors even graduated. “You see we can get these students in our doors, but what they do here isn’t something we can control.” Hmm…I clearly remember walking out of his office wondering how long it would be before he retired.

Fast forward 20 years and I can see that the climate on many campuses has changed. Overall, the focus is less on recruiting students and more on actually retaining them and supporting them to graduation. There are many great programs like TRiO, College Possible, AVID and Achieve that help bring college-ready students to our campuses. The challenge still lies in how to get them from admission to graduation. My afterschool tutoring program is just one example of students finding places to volunteer where they can work with kids whose backgrounds mirror their own. There are many other amazing efforts — study abroad experiences that are culturally relevant, internship programs that allow students to work with and for other first-generation and people of color, and post undergrad prep programs that identify students early on to go to grad school and beyond.

Where I have witnessed the most innovation and change on campuses is when students, staff, faculty, alumni and community members have worked to cross-germinate and find interesting solutions on how to recruit, retain and graduate ALL students. Oh and for the record — ALL eight of my original afterschool tutors did graduate from their four-year institutions. Four of them went on to become licensed educators, one is a journalist, one is a physician, one has his MBA and works for a large Minnesota company and one works as an admission officer at his alma mater.

Focusing on college readiness is only half the story

By Chris Stewart, July guest blogger

Recently Myron Orfield of the University of Minnesota stunned participants in a community meeting by stating the difference he discovered in two Minnesota high schools. One suburban high school Orfield studied received visits from over 200 colleges in the past year. In contrast, at an urban high school North Minneapolis there were just two visits from colleges.

Orfield’s point was to illustrate spatial mismatch of opportunity that is caused by re-segregating public schools. However, my takeaway was a little different. While nearly every school district it the country has some form of commitment to preparing “college-ready” students, few communities have done all they can to demystify college for non-traditional students and their families. Even with excellent programs that offer graduation coaches and additional support to get students into college, there is often not enough support to get them through college.

College completion, after all, is the real goal and it’s no secret that we’re not getting there with our disadvantaged student populations.

The numbers are telling. Though the percentage of students of color enrolled in degree-granting institutions doubled from 15% in 1976 to over 34% in 2009, few come out the other end with their intended degree. For instance, in public four-year universities, less than 40% of African Americans graduate within six years. We may be doing a better job of getting disadvantaged students (women, low-income, and students of color) to the college doors, but too few of them are graduating. Experience is teaching us that we can get more students into college without truly impacting the college graduation gap.

Thankfully, Minnesota education officials plan to address the completion gap with solid construction of a K-14 pipeline. Commissioner Brenda Cassellius, Director Larry Pogemiller, and Chancellor Steven Rosenstone, respectively, are aligning the Department of Education, Office of Higher Education, and Minnesota State Colleges and Universities to close the gap between secondary and college. By offering high school students more access to college level coursework, leaders hope to increase college readiness and completion for Minnesota students, while also reducing remediation once students reach college.

It is hugely important for students to complete rigorous course work earlier, and for expectations in high schools to be more aligned with colleges. Programs like the University of Minnesota’s College In the Schools (CIS) meet that objective by preparing high school teachers to deliver college courses on site, providing students an opportunity to earn high school and college credit for free. Advanced placement and International Baccalaureate programming also lift students closer to college level. Indeed, there are a number of great site-based options for high schools to better prepare students, but there is one problem with most of them: they do a poor job of truly demystifying college for students that need more demonstrative examples of post-secondary life.

To their credit, legislators expanded Post-Secondary Enrollment Options (PSEO) last year. That program allows high school students to attend college classes and earn college credits for free. This allows students to experience college academically and physically. Actually placing students into college earlier is a great way to expose them to the realities they will face later. Unfortunately, many within the education establishment have been slow to market and support PSEO to the students that could really use the opportunity.

Given the daunting average college graduation rates it is clear why we might succumb to the perceived inevitability of graduation inequity. However, looking at how the college persistence gap (the extent to which students stay in college) differs in different colleges and universities helps us see a more productive picture. Some schools are addressing academic and social factors to keep students in college, and in some cases the efforts are so successful that African American graduation rates are similar or better than white students. These schools start with a universal commitment to seeing minority student performance as a core part of their mission. Departments are asked to create comprehensive plans and establish stretch goals for graduation rates. Staff members engage at all levels to play a role in an “early alert” system to intervene with “intrusive” supports for struggling students. Some schools offer early summer starts so students have more time to acclimate to college. Some have peer-mentoring systems that improve academics and promote a healthy, inclusive school culture. The bottom line is that schools with better than average graduation rates for non-traditional students take proactive, structural, and cultural actions to achieve results.

While we in Minnesota labor over renewed calls for K-12 racial integration, or work for better alignment between K-12 and post-secondary; we should also expect changes in our colleges that make them relevant to the emerging class of students that have succeeded more in entering college than exiting one with a degree.

Educators and administrators can positively impact low-income and first-generation college student experiences

By Victoria Svoboda, June guest blogger
 
‘“First-generation” college student’ can be a confusing term. Some researchers use it to define college students whose parents have not obtained a four-year degree. Others suggest it only applies to students whose parents have never attempted any postsecondary education. Regardless of how it is defined, being “first-gen” brings significant implications. Things that seem normal or obvious to some students, things that everyone should know, are simply not known to first-generation students. This lack of cultural capital impacts the students’ experiences, as it did my own over 20 years ago.
 
As you start paying attention to low-income and first-generation stories, you may find the media and research representations are downright depressing. While hosting the Minnesota premiere of the documentary First Generation at the University of St. Thomas, I was delighted to see many colleagues from local colleges/universities and representatives from nonprofit programs designed to increase the college attendance and success rates of low-income and first-generation students. I think few were surprised, but many dismayed, to view the statistics about how few students will actually “make it.”

I also was concerned about the stereotypes presented about first-generation students. For example, not all low-income students are from single parent homes. And parents of first-generation students should not be blamed for students’ difficulties in college. (See Paul Gorski’s work on deficit ideology to explore this topic further.)
 
You cannot escape the gravity of the situation. In the New York Times, you can read about the Reproduction of Privilege, or how the college opportunity gap between the highest and lowest income brackets is worse today than ever before. On MPR’s Bright Ideas, you can hear Jim McCorkell, CEO of College Possible, articulate the complexity of challenges facing first-generation low-income students, and the inequitable outcomes that follow (e.g., 80% of students from upper income backgrounds earn four-year degrees, while only 8% of students from low-income backgrounds earn four-year degrees.)
 
Certainly, there is cause for alarm. However if we only are exposed to bleak statistics, it can leave us feeling overwhelmed, hopeless, or perhaps even worse, indifferent to the inequitable outcomes. We may not know where to begin assuming responsibility for making things different than they are today. But every change starts somewhere and every one of us has the power to influence the environments around us.
 
For example, a professor I know uses classroom time for all assigned group work, because she knows many first-generation students live and work off-campus, so they have a harder time connecting with peers outside the classroom. A front-desk staff person I know helped re-write his office’s materials to translate academic terminology because he knows that not everyone understands a credit, a term, etc. An administrator I know helped develop an academic leadership minor, because she knows first-generation students are less likely to have the time or encouragement to assume volunteer leadership positions in campus clubs or organizations. A college admissions counselor I know makes a point of sharing his own story, saying he never thought he could attend a private college because of the sticker price, but he learned that there is significant aid available, so the students he meets shouldn’t rule out a private school. 
 
Each change, though small, is significant for those students who benefit from the action. In my next post, I will share more examples of what one person can do to make a difference, and would love to hear from you about what additional actions you are taking, in your homes, at your workplace, in your community, to disrupt the reproduction of privilege and open doors for a larger part of our community.

Postsecondary participation, graduation and degree attainment: asking the right questions

By Lesley Lydell, January guest blogger

Are too many people going to college? This was the provocative topic of a recent live debate between entrepreneurs, pundits and academic leaders. While ultimately valuing the breadth of educational options available to students, the debate highlighted the decision to pursue a postsecondary degree amid rising costs and uncertain employment prospects for graduates.

At the same time, many employers, academic organizations and political leaders have issued calls for increased numbers of individuals who have earned a postsecondary degree. Increasing educational attainment nationally was a prominent part of President Obama’s American Graduation Initiative, which set a national goal of 60% of adults age 25-64 having an associate degree or higher by 2020, as well as a key goal for the Lumina Foundation, a major supporter of educational initiatives, and Complete College America, a national initiative started in 2009. A common aspect of these initiatives has been to encourage college participation for recent high school graduates but also to encourage adults and those already in the workforce to pursue and complete a postsecondary credential.

Data in the revised edition of Minnesota Measures: 2011 Report on Higher Education Performance illustrate an overall increase in students’ participation in postsecondary education and graduation rates, as well as broader postsecondary attainment rates in the overall population.

Increasing participation of high school graduates and older students

• For all Minnesota high school graduates, the number who go on to college increased in 2010 to 71% enrolling in college within a year of their high school graduation. Of the 71% of high school graduates who go directly on to college, nearly three-quarters chose a postsecondary institution in Minnesota.
• Most Minnesota undergraduates in fall 2010 were age 24 and younger and attended full-time at a four-year institution, although the largest increase in undergraduate enrollment during the past decade has been at Minnesota two-year institutions among students age 20 and older.
• At both two-year and four-year institutions, students between 25 and 34 had the greatest increases in enrollment over the past decade: a 117% enrollment increase at two-year institutions in the state and a 19% increase at four-year institutions.

High population attainment and increasing graduation rates
Minnesota ranks highly among states in educational attainment rates, which measure in broad terms through U.S. Census data the education level of the population, whether or not they graduated from a Minnesota institution. Attainment rates do not include postsecondary credentials below an associate degree, and Minnesota postsecondary institutions award nearly as many certificates as associate degrees. Some key findings:

• Postsecondary attainment has increased substantially over the past 40 years, with the percentage of bachelor’s degree recipients nearly tripling since 1970 in Minnesota.
• For the traditional working-age population of 18-64 year olds, 41% of Minnesotans have an associate degree or higher, ranking sixth-highest in attainment nationwide.
• Among younger age groups, 49% of Minnesotans age 25-34 and 35-44 have an associate degree or higher, ranking third- and second-highest, respectively, nationwide.
• Sizeable gaps exist, however, in postsecondary attainment between racial and ethnic population groups over age 25, with only Asian (50%) and white Minnesotans (42%) exceeding the state average (41%) and the national average (38%).

Although Minnesota attracts many graduates from other states to live and work, increases in graduation rates at Minnesota institutions have also contributed to the increase in postsecondary attainment rates:

• In 2010, 40% of undergraduates earned their degree within four years and 61% graduated within six years, representing five and three percent increases, respectively, since 2005.
• The number of academic awards earned across all levels annually by Minnesota postsecondary students has been increasing over the past decade, ranging from a 146% increase in master’s degrees awarded to a 15% increase in certificates.

Minnesota overall has high rates of postsecondary participation, graduation, degree attainment, and granting of academic awards from doctorates to certificates. Exploring how we can ensure that all students are prepared and have the opportunity to succeed in postsecondary education may yield the most productive discussions. What are the important questions we should be asking about postsecondary attainment at the local level, in Minnesota, and nationally?

This way or the highway

By Lindsey Alexander, July guest blogger

Last week, the New York Times published an article on the challenges facing vocational education in the U.S. today. They profiled a young man, Matt Kelly, who was disinterested in school and failing several high school classes. His mother feared he wouldn’t graduate. But a counselor encouraged him to take some classes at a nearby vocational academy in his junior year. There he found himself interested and motivated by the coursework. He started getting A’s and B’s and earned a scholarship to a community college.

Mr. Kelly’s experience mirrors that of thousands and thousands of students across the country. They have a hard time taking interest or finding motivation in the current educational system and upon graduation from high school (if they make it that far) — they are essentially set adrift in the labor market.

In his 2009 State of the Union speech, President Obama spoke of a plan to increase U.S. post-secondary attainment. In his speech, he asked every American to commit to one year or more of education beyond high school adding, “this can be community college, a four-year school, vocational training or an apprenticeship.” The range of post-secondary options presented by President Obama is important. For the past few decades, the four-year degree has been touted as the ticket to the middle class. While this emphasis on the bachelor’s degree has worked well for many students, there is a significant portion of the population that it does not work for. It is critical that we find a way to train and educate all young people if we expect to meet the future needs of individuals and our economy.

According to Pathways to Prosperity, a report released earlier this year by the Harvard Graduate School of Education, 70% of high school graduates go to college within two years of graduating, but only 40% of them obtain a degree by their mid-20s. Furthermore, the U.S. has the highest college dropout rate in the industrialized world. In addressing why these problems may be occuring, the report says:

Certainly a major reason is that too many [students] can’t see a clear, transparent connection between their program of study and tangible opportunities in the labor market. We fail these young people not because we are indifferent, but because we have focused too exclusively on a few narrow pathways to success. It is time to widen our lens and to build a more finely articulated pathways system — one that is richly diversified to align with the needs and interests of today’s young people and better designed to meet the needs of the 21st century economy.

This focus on “a few narrow pathways to success” might explain a lot of the problems plaguing higher education: non-completion, skyrocketing costs, students arriving and/or graduating unprepared, unsatisfied employers, increases in student loans, barriers to access, etc.

Creating multiple pathways to careers might help young people find a connection to a future, stay interested in school and explore post-secondary options that make sense for them.

The Department of Education reports that 75% of students who start public high school graduate within five years, but this figure increases to more than 90% when students concentrate in “career-oriented courses.” As the guidance counselor of the young man in the New York Times article said, “Matt came in with zero motivation — let’s face it. [Technical courses were] a route to get him to see his future.”

As part of the Citizens League’s higher education project we’ve asked people to re-imagine our system of higher education — the institutions themselves, but also K-12, students, employers, families and society. If clearly defined career pathways are indeed what is needed, what do they look like? How might we create them? What role would the various players (employers, students, K-12, etc.) have in these pathways?

Why Minnesota needs a specific goal and a deadline for higher education completion

By Dane Smith, April guest blogger

Parents say it, business leaders and sports team coaches pound on it, and we all know this truism is true: We all perform better with goals and deadlines.

I think baseball legend and malaprop master Yogi Berra said it best: "If you don't know where you are going, you'll end up someplace else." Or as David Metzen, former director of the Minnesota Office of Higher Education under Gov. Tim Pawlenty told us last year, "You run faster if you have a goal and a stopwatch than you do if you have neither."

At Growth & Justice, a policy research organization focused on broadening prosperity in Minnesota, the goal and the stopwatch for higher education attainment is our top public policy priority. We are leading an effort to convince state leaders to establish an official goal for a 75% post-high-school completion rate for Minnesota by the end of this decade. This means that by 2020, 75% of our young adults (by the age of 25) will have acquired some form of post-secondary educational diploma or certificate.

Right now, only about half our workforce at that age has reached this goal. It's important to note that we are not necessarily talking about bachelor's degrees or even two-year associate degrees. An accredited certificate as Home Care Health Aide or in Child Development, for instance, would count as attainment under our goal-setting metrics.

And although it may seem obvious to most of us that striving for and reaching this goal is a good thing, and that knowledge improves our inherent human worth, here's the hard-headed business sense on why this is important. While Minnesota is fortunate to be home to a "smarter" and more productive economy than most states, our distinctive prosperity and quality-of-life won't continue unless we reinforce our proud culture of maximizing educational achievement and attainment. A mountain of evidence shows a strong and direct and growing correlation between education and personal income, education and productivity, education and health, education and civic engagement, and education and broad socio-economic vitality.

In a competitive global economy that is demanding smarter workers and ever greater technological skill, we have no choice. And although that 75% goal may look a little arbitrary, we know it's in the ballpark of what we need. A recent study by the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce found that Minnesota will need 70% of its workforce to have post-secondary training by the year 2018. Here's a direct quote from the report: "The District of Columbia, Massachusetts, Colorado, Minnesota and Washington state will lead the nation in job openings requiring postsecondary education."

Many groups and leaders are rallying around this goal-setting, nationally and in Minnesota. President Obama, noting that the United States has lost its historic and traditional place as the most educated nation in the world, has set a goal of making us #1 again in average attainment. And making Minnesota the most educated state in the world's most educated nation is about as good as it gets for goal-setting.