The Great Admissions Redesign
Lumina Foundation is seeking to work with states, higher education systems, and groups of colleges and universities ready to transform how potential students apply, enroll, and access their institutions.
Featured Resources
Some highlights of Lumina's work
We're sharing tools and takeaways from our efforts to create a better-educated nation.
A Stronger Nation
We're tracking America's progress toward the nation's 60% attainment goal.
Community College Challenge
The Million Dollar Community College Challenge team is shining a spotlight on the great work of community colleges around the country.
REACH Collaborative
We're supporting community colleges in six states to create short-term credential-to-degree pathways for adults who are Black, Latino, Hispanic, and Native American.
Changing the Narrative on Student Borrowers of Color
A collection of essays from student loan experts sets the record straight on borrowing among students of color.
Community Grants
Our community grants portfolio supports local organizations in our hometown of Indianapolis and around central Indiana.
Historically Black Colleges and Universities
Hear stories about how HBCU's help students thrive.
Tuition Reimbursement
Meet a few of the workers and employers participating in tuition reimbursement programs.
Lumina Impact Ventures
Lumina Impact Ventures is the Foundation's impact investing arm partnering with mission-aligned social enterprises.
Local Talent Handbook
A guide for local leaders to build talent pool in their communities.
I Want That Job!
A series from WorkingNation on promising career paths for early career workers
History of Federal Student Aid
A film series documenting the policy and the political origins of federal financial aid programs
Beyond Financial Aid
How colleges can strengthen students’ financial stability, leading to higher completion rates
State Strategy Labs
Lumina supports state leaders’ efforts to increase education levels by offering nonpartisan research, data, peer advice, and technical support.
Degree Qualification Profile
A learning-centered framework for what college graduates should know and be able to do to earn the associate, bachelor’s or master’s degree.
Reorienting Colleges Toward Student-Centered Practices
Jan. 29, 2025
As policymakers in the higher education policy community look for ways to improve the higher education system so that it better meets students’ needs, they should draw on lessons from the health care sector and its patient-centered care model, states this report from the Center for American Progress. By focusing on the holistic needs of…
Strategies Colleges Can Use to Support Student Navigation
Dec. 19, 2024
Navigation supports are the actions college staff take to help students navigate their college experience, persist, and succeed in college. Examples include advising, mentoring, orientation programming, and other approaches that provide information, as well as access and connections to support services useful for getting ahead. Effective student navigation interventions support persistence, build students’ social capital,…
Critical Connections
Sept. 17, 2024
Historically Black Colleges and Universities have been doing more with less for more than 150 years. Despite chronic underfunding, these institutions are engines of economic mobility for historically excluded students. When all variables are held constant, the graduation rate of Black students is 11 percentage points higher at HBCUs than at other colleges and universities.
Juggling Roles and Achieving Goals: California’s Undergraduate Student Parents
Sept. 6, 2024
Student parents in California face unique challenges as they balance academics, work, and family responsibilities. Yet, their identities, experiences, and needs are often overlooked due to gaps in data collection practices.
Making the Invisible Visible
Sept. 5, 2024
Parenting students are neither a small fraction of California’s undergraduates nor a niche, special interest group—and that’s very much true at California State University. The fact that the majority of this population are students of color, women, and/or first-generation college students means that ensuring parenting students have the support to attain their degree is both an equity imperative and a…
2023-2024 Basic Needs Report
May 15, 2024
Like many of today’s learners, basic needs insecurity is a growing challenge for students on college campuses in New Mexico. According to a survey from the University of New Mexico’s Basic Needs Project, of the nearly 10,000 respondents, 5,802 are considered food insecure. Most alarming, 3,868 of students had very low food security, the most…
Bridging Educational Gaps, Building Brighter Futures: Paid High School Work-Study Programs
April 4, 2024
In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a pressing need—as well as an opportunity—to find new, innovative approaches for recovering high school dropouts and retaining those at risk of dropping out.
Design and Implementation of College and Career Pathways in Rural Communities
March 12, 2024
College and career pathways are a critical strategy for supporting economic development in rural communities and creating economic advancement opportunities for youth. However, implementing pathways requires recognizing rural communities’ unique needs and opportunities. This report from Jobs for the Future outlines three promising strategies for implementing rural pathways: build on local strengths and context, prioritize…
Challenges and Opportunity
March 10, 2024
Community colleges are a critical component of the U.S. higher education system, providing access to students from traditionally underserved communities. However, enduring challenges to completion stemming from educational, economic, and social inequities persist.
Nontuition Expenses: A Framework for Developing Policy Solutions
Dec. 8, 2023
Discussions about college affordability often revolve around helping students pay their tuition and fees. But nontuition expenses, including food, housing, and other living expenses, make up a large portion of student budgets and contribute to increased student debt. These expenses can be a barrier to student enrollment and completion. Lack of information about the true…
High School Students’ Use and Impressions of AI Tools
Dec. 5, 2023
Roughly half of high school students report using popular AI tools, according to a new report ACT. Students who do not use the tools seem to be more skeptical of the technology, the study says. Among the study’s key findings: Forty-six percent of students surveyed report that they had used AI tools. Of those who […]
Food Insecurity and Higher Education
Nov. 20, 2023
Food insecurity continues to be a barrier to postsecondary access and student success. Underrepresented, first-generation, non-traditional, and low-income students have food-insecurity rates ranging from 33–51% compared to 10% among U.S. adults. The factors contributing to food insecurity at institutions of higher education are complex, such as the increased cost of higher education, the limited usage…
Creating Positive College Campus Racial Climates for Students of Color
Oct. 19, 2023
Getting into college is one accomplishment. However, what happens once a student arrives on campus? How are they treated? How do they feel? Students of color often experience college differently than their white peers because of the negative attitudes, behavior, and practices some peers and faculty have toward students of color because of their race…
‘Non-Submitters:’ Evidence on Students Who Start But Don’t Complete a College Application
Sept. 13, 2023
Not all students who could benefit from college apply. With data on more than 1.2 million high schoolers, this report from Annenberg Institute at Brown University shows that nearly 25 percent of students start but never complete a college application. Specifically, the study finds large gaps by race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and education-career plans, as well…
Compliance and Compassion: CLP Dual Enrollment and Admissions & Records
July 14, 2023
Dual enrollment can help increase college access, completion, and transfer rates, particularly for students from communities that have been historically underrepresented in college. Many community colleges in California are expanding equitable dual enrollment opportunities, and their admissions and records departments play an essential role in providing an open door to college for dual enrollment students.
Student Customer Service Perceptions Among Community College Practitioners
June 21, 2023
When it comes to designing a modern student experience, the forces that shape what students expect are at work long before they arrive on campus. Not meeting expectations of fast, seamless, tech-enabled customer service can lead to students abandoning the admissions process or discontinuing their programs, says this report from EAB.
10 Best Practices for Supporting College Students’ Mental Health
May 1, 2023
Not only has mental health become a pressing public health issue, but it’s also the No.1 reason students drop out of college, with 69 percent of four-year students and 55 percent of two-year students who have considered withdrawing citing emotional distress as their primary reason.
Stressed Out and Stopping Out
March 21, 2023
Researchers have long warned of a growing mental health crisis on U.S. college campuses and demand for campus counseling services rising past the capacity of many schools to keep up with it. The situation was exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, which isolated students at a time when social relationships are particularly important to their ability…
Let’s Talk
March 1, 2023
College leaders are taking more notice of the impact of mental health issues on their students. This concern has led to not only a remarkable increase in demand for mental health services, but also subsequent turnover and burnout from the counselors endeavoring to provide these services.
Using Research to Improve the Postsecondary Educational Outcomes of Community College Students in Foster Care
Jan. 24, 2023
Community college is the most common pathway into postsecondary education among young people in foster care. This pathway is a logical choice for both academic and financial reasons. Many young people in foster care with aspirations for postsecondary education need remediation before they are prepared for college-level coursework. At community college, students can take courses…