News and views in higher education attainment from Lumina Foundation

Featured Story

Human Work and Learning

Is America’s Workforce Ready for a Tsunami of Skilled Jobs?

As America continues to emerge from the pandemic’s grip, several economists — including Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell — anticipate a wave of job creation in the second half of the year, and some expect the U.S. economy to achieve a level of growth we haven’t seen in 30 years.

Jamie MerisotisJuly 27, 2021

Competency-Based Learning

What I want for my kids – and yours: the education to lead and succeed

Proudly, I work at Lumina Foundation. This means that I believe in and support the value proposition that all learning counts. That includes short-term credentials.

Chris Mullin July 22, 2021

The six Mullin siblings hamming it up for the camera. Palm trees in the background.

Student Supports

Millions of students need help navigating college; my sister — a single mom battling cancer — was one of them

I don’t come from a college-educated family. My father started college at Butler University in Indianapolis only to stop, begin work, and never return. My mother started, too, but couldn’t get past college algebra. So, when it was our turn to go to college, they were determined to see their children do well and graduate.

Chris Mullin July 19, 2021

Featured Podcast

Student Supports

Changing the Narrative on Borrowers of Color

Dakota PawlickiJuly 20, 2021

Adult Learners

These are some of the ‘open secrets’ that block college completion for many people

We’ve all heard about the hidden curriculum or the unwritten rules that college students must navigate to earn their credentials. But what about the “open secrets” — the official policies and requirements that act as barriers to student success?

Haley GloverJuly 14, 2021

Adult Learners

States are using fast, short-term credentials to get workers back on their feet.

In recent years, the debates about proposals to expand the federal Pell Grant program to pay for short-term workforce programs offered at community colleges have been lively. Several states have taken matters into their own hands, using federal stimulus dollars to provide aid to adult learners seeking short-term certificates and certifications. These state initiatives offer essential…

Amber Garrison Duncan, Kermit KalebaMay 10, 2021

Adult Learners

Community-based organizations help students gain valuable work skills quickly

People are struggling right now to find jobs, pay bills, and care for family. Located within those struggles is the need to upskill or reskill to be equipped for available jobs and better opportunities. Community-based organizations (CBOs) provide a critical means of support. They create new pathways to education and employment and help fill gaps…

Haley GloverMarch 18, 2021

Adult Learners

Finishing college can be hard when ‘life gets in the way’ – but there is help

Thirty-six million adults have some college credit but have yet to earn a degree. The first step colleges and policymakers need to take to re-engage these adults is to listen to those who have traveled through the system.

Dakota PawlickiMarch 2, 2020

Adult Learners

Why adults quit college and how to bring them back

From our freshman through senior years of college, my roommate worked tirelessly at Applebee’s Bar and Grill so she could afford to attend school. It’s not easy to balance work and school, but she figured it out.

Wendy SedlakDec. 17, 2019

Adult Learners

Audio: Go beyond the ‘hot-buttons’ around immigration, Jamie Merisotis says

The United States needs millions more qualified people to fill open jobs, and immigration is a vital part of filling that gap, Jamie Merisotis says.

Tracy ChenOct. 9, 2019

Adult Learners

Focus magazine: Rural college students are a vast and vital national resource

We’ve all heard the phrase “flyover country,” the dismissive term often used by coastal elites to describe the vast middle parts of the nation that they tend—or choose—to ignore. Those two words encapsulate a troubling view—the idea that the nation’s less populated areas are somehow less important or less valuable, that the people there can…

Jamie MerisotisSept. 23, 2019

Adult Learners

Rural America can yield a bumper crop of talent. So let’s cultivate it.

We’ve all heard the phrase “flyover country,” the dismissive term often used by coastal elites to describe the vast middle parts of the nation that they tend—or choose—to ignore.

Jamie MerisotisAug. 9, 2019

Adult Learners

At commencement, remembering the long struggle to get my degree

As I walked into the stadium for my community college graduation, a photographer from the school’s PR department asked for a quick word. It was the same question I’d heard from others after finishing my associate degree: “So, what’s next for you?”

Jimmieka MillsJune 12, 2019

Adult Learners

College today: More students are older, working, supporting others

We talk about college affordability a lot these days, but the challenges for some students go beyond just money: Forty percent work full time and one fourth have children or other dependents.

Dakota PawlickiJune 3, 2019

Adult Learners

Homeless, hungry college students deserve better

Uncertainty is part of college: We’re unsure about what major to choose, about homework and class assignments. We’re trying to figure it all out at once. But the worst stress comes from being unsure whether you’ll have a home or enough food.

Jimmieka MillsFeb. 20, 2019

Adult Learners

“I decided to keep going” – High school dropout to college freshman

Nyla Wills dropped out of high school as a sophomore about six years ago to help care for her ailing mother and work to support the family. In 2017, when it came time to continue her education, she did so through a Goodwill Excel Center.

Dakota PawlickiJan. 21, 2019

Adult Learners

Lumina announces new round of Adult Promise states

California, Hawaii, Idaho, Kentucky, North Carolina, and Ohio receive grants to support state-led efforts to better serve adults seeking education after high school.

Nov. 9, 2018

Adult Learners

College finances: Going back to school complicated for some adults

We celebrate the idea that earning a bachelor’s degree results in an average of $1 million in additional lifetime income. But future earnings don’t mean much when you’re a student struggling to make rent, pay for tuition, and cover all your other expenses.

Terri TaylorSept. 21, 2018