Illinois Board of Higher Education ($750,000)

Direct admissions for community college transfer students

IBHE will partner with the Illinois Community College Board (ICCB) to implement a direct admissions program for community college students transferring to public universities and high school seniors by expanding and connecting two enacted programs: the Public University Uniform Admission Pilot Program and the state’s participation in the Common App. This project represents the first time direct admissions will be implemented statewide for transfer students.

California State University System ($750,000)

Automated admissions and verified transcript submission to the CSU system through CaliforniaColleges.edu

The California State University (CSU) is expanding their partnership with the California College Guidance Initative (CCGI) to expand outreach and support to students in high school through a series of communications and opportunities through the CaliforniaColleges.edu platform. For 9th through 11th grade students, communications will be sent to students and their families who are on track to meet CSU admission requirements and those who are not on track to provide them with support and guidance. Seniors will be offered automatic admission to most Cal State Universities and the opportunity to apply to more competitive universities. The partnership will also include the electronic delivery of high school transcripts to ease the burden on students and families to order and ensure delivery of final paper transcripts from their high school. The CSU will also be expanding its Cal State Apply online application for admission to provide automatic admissions to most CSU campuses for high-school seniors who have completed their application or are in progress of completing an application.

Northern Arizona University ($750,000)

Universal Admissions- Removing Barriers to Upward Economic Mobility and Social Impact

Universal Admissions provides an affordable and inclusive pathway for students to attain a bachelor’s degree by promoting access to higher education through partnership with Arizona community colleges. Every applicant to NAU either receives direct admission or, instead of denial, an opportunity to start their education at a community college of their choice before continuing at NAU. Through statewide data-sharing, the admissions process is automatic and seamless from NAU to the community college, and once academic preparedness is achieved at the community college, the student is guaranteed admission to NAU without re-applying.

Louisiana Board of Regents ($300,000)

Connecting State Resources for Simpler College Admissions Success

Louisiana’s Master Plan for Higher Education, Louisiana Prospers, serves as the map to reach the state’s postsecondary attainment goal. Increasing college-going is one of the plan’s key components. The Board of Regents, the statewide coordinating board for higher education, aims to better serve both high school seniors and transfer students through Lumina’s “Great Admissions Redesign” project. The focus is to directly improve college admissions for high school students who are college-eligible and not college-going while building credential attainment for college transfer students. To achieve this, Regents is engaging with public colleges and universities and their systems, along with college-access-promoting organizations from around the state to build momentum around direct student engagement and support. Project partners will aid in the development of a system that leverages student-level statewide data to proactively inform college seniors when they meet postsecondary admission requirements at Louisiana’s public institutions, inform transfer students when they have completed one of the state’s new Universal Transfer Pathways, and connect that information directly to college admissions officers. Building relationships, improving actionable consumer information, and reducing administrative barriers will increase college-going, support student success, and help lead Louisiana and its people to greater prosperity.

Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board ($250,000)

Texas Direct Admissions Pathway

“The Direct Admissions Pathway will be housed within My Texas Future (MTF), a one-stop advising tool for college and career planning needs for all Texans.

The Direct Admissions Pathway will allow students as early as the end of their junior year of high school to see within My Texas Future where they have been admitted among participating institutions. Students won’t have to complete or submit an application to see this information, however, once a student knows what institutions have offered direct admissions, they can complete an application in ApplyTexas, allowing institutions to determine scholarship and program eligibility.”

Washington Student Achievement Council ($150,000)

Guaranteed financial aid messaging for SNAP-eligible high school students in Washington

Reducing the uncertainty of affordability and admissions helps students and families feel more prepared to make decisions about education after high school. While the Washington College Grant (WA Grant) is one of the most generous and inclusive need-based financial aid programs in the country, many students who might qualify for the WA Grant do not complete financial aid applications. Given that most students who qualify for public assistance programs like SNAP also qualify for the WA Grant, WSAC intends to support regional partnerships in designing place-based pilots to leverage SNAP eligibility as an entry point for WA Grant access. This project will engage students, families, school districts, and higher education institutions in an innovative process of design thinking to produce effective messaging strategies. This messaging will highlight financial aid eligibility opportunities for families and their students early on in high school.

Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education ($150,000)

Design thinking and the Great Admissions Redesign

The Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education (CPE) will facilitate a collaborative, design-thinking approach to address long-standing barriers and untapped potential in admission and financial aid processes, including the consideration of using AI to alleviate capacity issues in admissions offices. The Lumina grant is an opportunity to accelerate progress on Kentucky’s statewide priority to streamline pathways to bachelor’s degrees for all students.

Lumina will accept applications from:

1. State agencies and quasi-public organizations.
2. State systems of higher education that include public, nonprofit bachelor’s-granting universities or colleges.
3. A group of three (3) or more public or private, nonprofit institutions of higher learning that includes at least one public or private, nonprofit bachelor’s-granting institution(s)

Only one proposal submission per state/higher education system/institutional cluster will be accepted. Lumina encourages collaboration among agencies, organizations, and colleges and universities when developing responses. If multiple responses are received, Lumina will alert the parties and invite them to make a joint submission.

Lumina will consider two types of funding requests:

Planning proposals should come from applicants in the early stages of developing a vision for redesigned admissions, enrollment, and financial aid processes. Lumina anticipates the planning period will end with a strong implementation plan that has sufficient support to be ready to be implemented at the end of the grant period.

Lumina will select up to five (5) entities to submit planning proposals for grants up to $100,000 for a 12-month grant period during the 2024 calendar year. Awards will vary based on the quality of the proposal and the proposed project budget. Lumina will support these grantees as a cohort to encourage peer learning and may provide technical assistance in the planning process.

Implementation proposals should come from applicants with existing work or piloted efforts with redesigned admissions, enrollment, and financial aid processes. Lumina’s resources can be used to enhance, improve, expand, or speed implementation. Lumina anticipates the implementation period will end with tangible policy and practice changes and evidence of effectiveness that can serve as a model or case study for others to follow or learn from.

Lumina will choose up to three (3) entities to submit full grant proposals for funding of $500,000 to $750,000 for a grant period commencing in January 2024 and ending November 2025. Grant awards will vary based on the quality of the proposal and the proposed project budget.

Use of Funds

Lumina funds cannot be spent on scholarships, creating scholarship funds, stipends, or any other form of direct financial support to students. They also cannot be used for lobbying, election, or related activities at the local, state, or federal level or to the general public. Lumina’s funds should be spent on strategic investments that fundamentally alter admissions and enrollment processes within a state, higher education system, or among a group of colleges and universities.

Fund uses may include but are not limited to:

• Building data infrastructure and capacity to transfer data between systems.
• Supporting staffing to build new systems and processes.
• Convening project teams or other stakeholders.
• Commissioning research or hiring consultants.
• Developing new marketing and other collateral materials.

Lumina will select applicants to submit grant proposals based on their ability to address the following criteria in the challenge application:

• Opportunity: Demonstrated commitment and a clear articulation of how the proposed project will increase educational opportunity for students of color, students from low-income families and first-generation college students.
• Simplicity: Clear articulation of how the project will reduce complexity in admissions and enrollment processes when it comes to automation, proactivity, and transparency.
• Innovation: Clear outline of a fundamentally new or reimagined way of admitting and enrolling students in higher education.
• Readiness: Prior evidence of executing innovative policies and practices and a well-thought-out implementation plan with support of needed stakeholders.
• Admissions and Enrollment Process Map – Current State and Desired Future State. In the application, groups and organizations should submit process maps of their admissions and enrollment steps and a map or maps of the desired future. This will help determine the level of innovation, readiness to undertake the project, and existing areas of friction.

Lumina will select the entities to submit full proposals.

Evaluation

Lumina will conduct an independent, third-party evaluation of the supported projects, including, but not limited to, site visits. Grantees are expected to engage with these outside evaluators on requested data, documents, and/or meetings.

Other Benefits

Applicants and grantees may be invited to join upcoming meetings, events, and other conversations hosted by Lumina and its partners. Organizations chosen to submit grant proposals may be asked to work with Lumina’s communications team to tell stories about their work.

The online application will open after the informational webinar on September 12. Here is a preview of the questions you’ll find on the application.

(if planning proposal)

1. Describe the problem, barrier, and/or place of friction in your current admissions, enrollment, and/or financial aid process this planning proposal would address.
2. Explain how the proposed project will increase educational opportunity for students of color, students from low-income families and first-generation college students.
3. How will the proposed project reduce complexity in admissions and enrollment processes, specifically regarding automation, proactivity, and transparency?
4. Explain how this is a fundamentally new or reimagined way of admitting and enrolling students in higher education.
5. Describe your entity’s capacity to execute innovative policies and practices. How do you plan to develop your implementation plan and build the support of needed stakeholders?
6. How would you strategically use the grant funds to plan for an admissions innovation? Why?
7. What does success look like at the end of the grant period?

(if implementation proposal)

1. Describe your admissions innovation. Has it been piloted? If so, what were the preliminary impacts on postsecondary participation rates?
2. Explain how the proposed project will increase educational opportunity for students of color, students from low-income families and first-generation college students.
3. How will the proposed project reduce complexity in admissions and enrollment processes, specifically regarding automation, proactivity, and transparency?
4. Explain how this is a fundamentally new or reimagined way of admitting and enrolling students in higher education.
5. What history of success has your entity shown in executing innovative policies and practices that include a well-thought-out implementation plan and the support of needed stakeholders?
6. How would you strategically use the grant funds to implement/expand your admissions innovation? Why?
7. What does success look like at the end of the grant period?

Required attachment

Admissions and Enrollment Process Map – Current State and Desired Future State. Please attach process maps of your admissions and enrollment steps and a map/maps of the desired future state. This will help determine the level of innovation, readiness to undertake the project, and existing areas of friction.