News and views in higher education attainment from Lumina Foundation

Featured Story

Adult Learners

Community colleges in six states join national effort to support adult students of color

Education and training after high school, long known to be a vehicle for economic mobility, will play a pivotal role in our recovery, but only if that promise is just as true for communities of color. Systematically, however, that has not been the case for Black, Hispanic, Latino, and Native American adult students. Some renewed…

Wayne TaliaferroSept. 22, 2021

African-American woman working in a factory.

Adult Learners

We have to fix the skilled-labor shortage to overhaul the country’s infrastructure. Our approach must work for everyone.

We cannot fill the jobs that are open now, so to launch a massive infrastructure program we need to make training workers part of the plan.

Jamie Merisotis Sept. 16, 2021

Walmart branded truck.

Tuition Reimbursement

Lumina’s Walmart study shows company-sponsored tuition programs pay off for everyone

When companies invest in employees, workers gain skills and opportunities for career advancement, and employers build more qualified workforces while boosting their bottom lines.

Haley Glover Sept. 15, 2021

Featured Podcast

Student Supports

Helping student-parents stay in college comes down to the basics - like food and shelter

Dakota PawlickiSept. 14, 2021

Courtney Brown

FILTERED BY AUTHOR:

Courtney Brown

Courtney Brown, Ph.D, is vice president of impact and planning for Lumina Foundation, an independent, private foundation in Indianapolis that is committed to making opportunities for learning beyond high school available to all. As the chief data and research officer, Brown oversees the foundation’s efforts in the areas of strategic planning, learning, impact, and effectiveness. She also leads Lumina’s international engagement.

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Research and Evaluation

Six states lead the way in higher-ed completion—with the help of these students

Lumina Foundation’s refreshed Stronger Nation online tool shows progress–and continuing gaps–across the country when it comes to the post-high school education needed for success today. This is one of series of dives into the material by Lumina’s vice president of impact and planning.

Courtney BrownSept. 7, 2021

Research and Evaluation

Stronger Nation: Progress toward a more talented, equitable nation

Our searchable data tool just got a “facelift.” It now offers fresh insights on where we’re making the most progress with post-high school education and training – and where we’re falling short.

Courtney BrownAug. 18, 2021

Research and Evaluation

Stop ‘brain waste’ by putting college-educated immigrants to work

When a foreign-trained physician is forced to drive a cab to make ends meet, it’s called “brain waste.” A new report by the Migration Policy Institute found high numbers of underemployed college-educated immigrants in the U.S. – with devastating costs to those workers and our nation.

Courtney BrownJune 9, 2021

Research and Evaluation

Education: The key to real opportunity—during the pandemic and beyond

The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed any number of inequities in American life, but probably none more glaring than the widening gap between the haves and the have-nots. A key determination between the two is education beyond high school.

Courtney BrownApril 7, 2021

Impact and Planning

Higher-ed’s pandemic roadblock stops growth in college degrees

A new report from the National Student Clearinghouse shows an alarming trend: COVID-19 has slowed the growth of college degree and certificate earners to a standstill. The numbers are the lowest in eight years – and come at the worst possible time, as unemployment soars and millions of Americans are suffering.

Courtney BrownFeb. 2, 2021

Racial Justice and Equity

Will they stay or will they go? A new poll reveals college students’ concerns amid the pandemic

A new Gallup poll of U.S. college students offers an insightful – and sobering – glimpse into how the pandemic is disrupting students’ plans to stay in college, learn online, and earn their degrees.

Courtney BrownDec. 15, 2020

Federal Policy

Higher education’s $50 billion problem

At a time when society needs it more than ever, higher education in the United States is in crisis. Costs to students and their families continue to rise, states are questioning their level of investment, quality is eroding, racial attainment gaps are increasing, operating deficits at the institution level are accelerating, schools are closing,…

Brad Kelsheimer, Courtney BrownDec. 9, 2020

Research and Evaluation

States are building better connections between education and work—here’s how

Even before COVID-19 hit, higher education was falling short of providing the skills needed for good jobs, a recent study shows. Now, amid the global pandemic and economic crisis, those skills gaps are growing wider.

Courtney BrownNov. 5, 2020

Research and Evaluation

Stronger Nation Overview—July 2020 update

Twelve takeaways from the July 2020 data update. The nation’s educational attainment rate after high school is 51.3%.

Courtney BrownJune 30, 2020

Research and Evaluation

Adults can thrive amid the pandemic—and flourish when economic recovery comes—by earning short-term credentials

A global health crisis hurts even those who don’t fall ill, especially people with no formal education beyond high school who are caught in the economic riptide of soaring unemployment.

Courtney BrownJune 29, 2020

Human Work and Learning

Education is critical for jobseekers during a downturn – and industry certifications will get the job done

The jolting economic downturn delivered by this health crisis has cost millions their jobs and once more highlighted the critical importance of post-high school education.

Courtney BrownApril 30, 2020

Research and Evaluation

Behavioral science and ‘nudging’ research can help students succeed in classes suddenly moved online

The nation's colleges and universities, disrupted with the rest of society by the fast-spreading coronavirus, have remade the instructional experience almost overnight with the move of millions of students and faculty online. And one of the most promising innovations getting an emergency trial by fire is the concept of "nudging" to help students succeed in…

Courtney BrownApril 20, 2020

Human Work and Learning

Readying for the Future: COVID-19, Higher Ed, and Fairness

As country after country decrees partial or total lockdowns from the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of universities and colleges closing and switching to e-learning has soared. However, few of these institutions are well prepared for this sudden, disruptive move. A lot of scrambling and improvisation are occurring as administrators, instructors, and students struggle to implement…

Courtney BrownApril 9, 2020

Research and Evaluation

Census fight isn’t over. Nonprofits need to help everyone stand up and be counted.

With border camps drawing scrutiny, the threat of federal immigration raids in major U.S. cities, and a recent focus on the 2020 census, it’s likely those who feel most threatened will be afraid to respond to the once-a-decade collection of individual data.

Courtney BrownJuly 16, 2019