Lumina Foundation is working to increase the share of adults in the U.S. labor force with college degrees or other credentials of value leading to economic prosperity.
“Civil dialoguing” has become one of the latest buzzwords in higher education, with numerous organizations offering to aid colleges in teaching it. In the past two years, some of the best-known institutions in the country have started programs dedicated to teaching students to engage with ideas and people they disagree with.
Proponents of these programs say they hope to create a better college experience and impart essential skills. Others fear that the rise of such efforts is merely a response to outside pressures. They also worry that constructive-dialogue training acts as a conduit for conservative political influence on campus.
Research shows that, by 2031, 72 percent of jobs that offer a living wage and decent benefits will require some level of advanced education. For educators and policymakers alike, this creates a new sense of urgency to prepare people for both today’s jobs and the tech-driven opportunities of tomorrow.
In this interview, Lumina Foundation's Jamie Merisotis reflects on what the future workforce looks like through the lens of education, the value of credentials and what they represent, and the necessary changes to better connect today's higher education system to the needs of a changing labor market.
By the time seniors at Kingsborough Early College Secondary School graduate high school, most have earned associate degrees from CUNY Kingsborough Community College. In fact, the majority—57 percent—of CUNY Kingsborough students are not stereotypical college students. They’re high schoolers.
CUNY Kingsborough is one of six community colleges across the state where high schoolers constitute the lion's share of students. It could be the harbinger of something bigger. As community college enrollment has declined nationwide in recent years, dual enrollment programs—where high school students take college courses and earn college-level credit—are expanding in New York state and elsewhere.
Too often, conversations about international students in the United States focus on visas, quotas, or the politics of immigration. Such discussions often overlook the human element and the extraordinary contributions these students make to college campuses, communities, and the wider world.
In this essay, the president of Antioch College says that if we are serious about building a just and prosperous future, we must not close doors to international students. Instead, we should expand pathways for them to study, thrive, and contribute here. Their stories remind us that American higher education is at its best when it is both a beacon and a bridge.
Jaqueline Hernandez knows a stable income could be transformative for her family. At one time, she envisioned a different future for herself. In high school, she graduated at the top of her class. But the longer Hernandez has been out of school and without a full-time job, the harder it feels to get back on track.
She's far from alone. Since the pandemic, nearly 125,000 young adults in the greater Houston metro area are neither employed full time nor in school. They may take on short-term or gig work to get by, but it often isn't enough to escape poverty. Mothers like Hernandez are especially vulnerable: More than 40 percent of young mothers in the Houston area are not working or in school, four times the rate among young women without children.
In his new book, The University’s Voice: Principled Silence and Purposeful Speech, Steven Poskanzer draws on his 20 years as a college president—first at SUNY New Paltz and then Carleton College—to offer guidelines for when university leaders should issue public statements on behalf of their institution and when they should remain quiet. A lawyer by training, Poskanzer is a firm proponent of First Amendment protections for free speech but also believes that higher education and society both benefit when top administrators practice reticence—except in a few key situations.
Poskanzer talks about slippery slopes, moral culpability, and the limits of academic freedom in this interview.
