ACCESS: INFORMATION & ENCOURAGEMENT
College Goal Sunday expands to 25 states
As College Goal Sunday enters its 18th year, experts in 25 states will offer students and parents advice for completing the federal student aid form. This year, efforts are aimed at students and parents who most need assistance. More. View the College Goal Sunday map to find out if this program is offered in your state.
ACCESS: FINANCIAL AID
State support rebounds for higher education
State spending on higher education increased by 6 percent for 2006, the fastest rate of growth in five years, according to The Center for the Study of Education Policy at Illinois State
University. See the annual state appropriations for higher education data and state tables for 2006.
SUCCESS: STATE POLICY
College completion rates examined in new state survey
When it comes to improving the outcomes of their public higher education systems, do states know where they are trying to go? Do they have a plan for how and when they will get there? A 50-state survey examines which states have set numerical targets for college enrollment and completion. Read By
the Numbers: State Goals for Increasing Postsecondary Attainment, published by Jobs for the Future.
ACCESS & SUCCESS: INSTITUTIONAL SUPPORT
Performance vs. resources: A framework for policy-makers
The abilities of students and states to pay for higher education have been a focus for policy-makers in an environment of constrained resources. A new report from the National Center for Higher Education Management Systems and funded by the Pew Charitable Trusts examines how higher education institutions improve performance levels with existing resources. Read A New Look at the Institutional Component of Higher Education Finance.
ACCESS: PREPARATION
High impact high schools
An effective K-12 system gives students the skills to succeed in college. Two recent Education Trust reports examine the practices of high schools that are improving student achievement, especially for low-income and minority children traditionally underserved by the American high school. Read Gaining Traction, Gaining Ground and The Power to Change.
SUCCESS: INSTITUTIONAL SUPPORT
Group learning promotes student success, study shows
Campus-based learning communities bring together small groups of students who take linked courses together. Early evidence shows that learning communities contribute to student success. Learning Communities and Student Success in Postsecondary Education, published by MDRC, describes various models, summarizes research and proposes a multicollege demonstration project.
ACCESS: INFORMATION & ENCOURAGEMENT
School to prison: Forcing youth off the track to college
Public education, juvenile justice and child welfare systems can force youth off the track to educational opportunities, according to a briefing paper, Redirecting Youth from the School-to-Prison Pipeline Addressing Cross-Cutting Issues in Youth
Services, released by the Youth Transition Funders Group.
ACCESS: INFORMATION & ENCOURAGEMENT
Barriers to college access for foster youth
College-qualified foster youth attend postsecondary education at a rate of 20 percent, substantially below the 60 percent rate at which their peers attend. Higher Education Opportunities for Foster Youth, released by the Institute for Higher Education Policy, examines how and why foster youth slip through the cracks of the American system of postsecondary education opportunity.
ACCESS & SUCCESS: INSTITUTIONAL SUPPPORT
Online education enters higher education mainstream
Many college students want quality, convenience and flexibility. Technology makes it possible for many to pursue an education online without leaving their homes. Nearly two-thirds of all schools that offer face-to-face courses also offer online courses, and online education is now part of the mainstream of education, according to a Sloan Foundation report, Growing by Degrees: Online Education in the United States, 2005. | 
