News and views in higher education attainment from Lumina Foundation

Featured Story

Work and Learning

Graduates: “Build your empathy, ethics - your ’human skills‘”

I had the chance this week to congratulate family members of the Lumina staff in an online graduation speech for our colleagues as they worked from home. About a dozen graduates could be seen with family and friends in our virtual “crowd,” some of whom wore the traditional academic robes and caps normally seen at…

Jamie MerisotisMay 22, 2020

Work and Learning

The gap year fantasy

The uncertainty and anxiety that COVID-19 has wrought on college students and higher education institutions has generated a flurry of articles and conversations about students taking “gap years” as a way to bridge the learning challenge that the virus presents.

Jamie MerisotisMay 21, 2020

Student Supports

It’s time to reflect on what college should be

The sudden forced shift to online instruction, leaving classrooms and labs vacant, will reshape what it means to go to college. And the urgency of the pandemic shouldn’t distract us from seizing an opportunity for reinvention that centers on meeting the needs of today’s students.

Jamie MerisotisMay 19, 2020

Featured Podcast

Student Supports

Looking past the pandemic: Educators from Michigan, Texas, and Illinois ponder the changes wrought by COVID

Dakota PawlickiMay 11, 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

Research and Evaluation

College credit where credit is due – the move toward ‘recognition for prior learning’

With a little help, nearly 36 million Americans who spent some time at college but never finished could be encouraged to resume their studies and get their degrees.

Frank Swanzy Essien, Jr.Dec. 11, 2019

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

Research and Evaluation

Now is the time to unleash the talent in Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico has plenty of talent – but too few opportunities to unleash it. I saw this first-hand on a recent visit to the island for a conference aimed at increasing education beyond high school for all Puerto Ricans.

Courtney BrownMay 20, 2019

Research and Evaluation

Adults hold the key to increasing national attainment numbers

As a kid, I loved numbers. I loved the certainty they provided when counting items and comparing groups. Even today, my love for numbers – and data, more broadly – has not wavered.

May 15, 2019

Research and Evaluation

It’s what you know and how you apply it that matter … not whether you sat through the class

Competency-based education programs are growing in popularity and are seen by schools as an important way to reach adult learners and emphasize job readiness among graduates, a new study shows.

Frank Swanzy Essien, Jr.May 13, 2019

Research and Evaluation

Goal-exploration tool highlights paths to educational progress

For 10 years Lumina Foundation has been documenting America’s growth in educational attainment through its signature report, “A Stronger Nation.” Now we’re adding a powerful new section to the report that I think you’ll find informative and helpful.

Courtney BrownApril 24, 2019

Research and Evaluation

Stronger Nation data visualization can aid the effort to boost education levels

INDIANAPOLIS – A Stronger Nation, Lumina Foundation’s signature online report tracking the share of adults 25 to 64 with education and training after high school, has added a new goal-exploration tool to its national and state data that can be used by policy officials and journalists.

April 4, 2019

Research and Evaluation

Lumina’s ‘Stronger Nation’ data tool unlocks wealth of information

The latest edition of A Stronger Nation, Lumina Foundation’s signature report on educational attainment, now offers an interactive tool that states and stakeholders can use to help tailor their efforts to boost education attainment.

Courtney BrownApril 3, 2019

Research and Evaluation

Everyone has an opinion about the value of college. Tony Carnevale has the facts.

For a decade now, a small squadron of researchers at Carnevale’s Center on Education and the Workforce has explored the relationship between what students are learning and what skills employers need.

Jamie MerisotisNov. 30, 2018

Research and Evaluation

Post-high school attainment update shows progress, but many are still left behind

Stronger Nation, the signature report from Lumina Foundation used by policymakers and media organizations across the country, has some good news and not-so-good news this week.

Courtney BrownFeb. 9, 2018

Research and Evaluation

Stronger Nation report now features easy search, data browsing

There’s good news in Lumina Foundation’s latest Stronger Nation report on educational attainment, but the data show some challenges, too. Lumina’s Courtney Brown looks at the report – and a powerful new data visualization tool that puts the numbers in context.

Courtney BrownJune 9, 2017

Research and Evaluation

New data released on student attainment rates by race and ethnicity

Supplement to National Student Clearinghouse's Signature 12 report provides six-year completion rates, including degree and certificate completion, disaggregated by race and ethnicity for students who began postsecondary education in fall 2010.

Courtney BrownApril 26, 2017