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.
The SAVE Plan for Student Loan Repayment
Sept. 26, 2023
This year, the Biden administration launched a new income-driven repayment (IDR) plan for federal student loans called Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE). The plan cuts borrowers’ monthly payments compared with current IDR plans, provides earlier loan forgiveness for smaller debts, and prevents unpaid interest from accumulating.
AFT’s Fight for Student Debt Forgiveness
May 23, 2023
A Republican-led Congressional Review Act resolution threatens much more than the Biden’s administration’s student debt relief program. It threatens the debt burdens of hundreds of thousands of public service workers, according to this report from the American Federation of Teachers and the Student Borrower Protection Center.
Best Laid (Repayment) Plans
May 10, 2023
Many student loan borrowers who stand to benefit the most from income-driven repayment plans are the least likely to know about them, according to a report from New America. But when these borrowers do know about IDR, they are the most likely to enroll, the report states.
Improving College Access Through Financial Aid Transparency and FAFSA Simplification
May 4, 2023
Each year, high school seniors fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to determine their eligibility for student financial aid to pay for college. However, not all students do, and those most likely to benefit from federal aid are also less likely to apply for it. In 2016, 63 percent of college-intending…
Paving the Path to Debt-Free College
April 3, 2023
Today, in order to cover the average cost of attending a four-year public college, students from families making $30,000 or less would need to spend 93 percent—nearly all—of their total family income, according to an analysis of College Board data. To cover the cost of a two-year college, these students would need to spend nearly…
Affordability Disconnects
Feb. 6, 2023
Assessing the affordability of an educational experience is difficult. Many factors contribute to the difficulty, including the difference between published tuition and the actual net prices students pay; the opaqueness of full postsecondary degree costs; lack of good data on post-credential earnings and outcomes; and the variance in each learner’s personal circumstances.
Borrowing During a Time of Crisis
Aug. 31, 2022
Although a great deal of attention is paid to student debt, colleges and universities have increased their institutional debt substantially over the past several decades. Institutions primarily borrow these funds for capital investments on campus. This may include building new labs and educational facilities, sports arenas, or dormitories. The array of projects reflects the variation…
State Grant Aid and Pell Grants
July 1, 2022
If federal increases in Pell grant funding are to increase educational opportunities and attainment, states must ensure these increases supplement, rather than replace, state grant aid, states this report from the Urban Institute.
Pell Access and Completion Series Part I: Community College
June 28, 2022
As policymakers mark the 50th anniversary of the Pell Grant program, this report (the first in a three-part series on Pell access) from the Institute for College Access & Success contends that they must make key investments so the program can fulfill its promise of making college truly affordable and accessible for all students, regardless…
Parent PLUS Borrowers: The Hidden Casualties of the Student Debt Crisis
May 31, 2022
Parent PLUS loans, created by Congress to give middle-class parents flexibility in how they pay for college, are increasingly used by low-income families. Among Black families who use Parent PLUS, the share with no expected family contribution now exceeds 40 percent, and the share among Latino families is also high, above 25 percent.
Protecting Borrowers and Advancing Equity
May 16, 2022
As the country waits to see what the Biden administration will do regarding student loan forgiveness, the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators offers its own ideas in this report.The report outlines 30-plus policy suggestions. Among them: strengthen and simplify income-driven repayment programs so they protect borrowers and allow them to repay in accessible,…
How Black Women Experience Student Debt
April 16, 2022
Forty-five million Americans collectively owe $1.7 trillion in student loan debt. Women hold nearly two-thirds of that debt, and because of the gender pay gap, are more likely than men to have trouble paying off their debt, according to a report from The Education Trust. Black women in particular hold more student debt than any…
The Power of Certainty
March 24, 2022
Proposed "free college" policies vary widely in design. This report from the National Bureau of Economic Research examines the effects of two free-tuition models on the schooling decisions of low-income students.
College Confidence
Feb. 18, 2022
This report explores high school families’ understanding of college financing. Specifically, the study documents what college-bound students and parents know about financial aid, the FAFSA, scholarships, and student loans. The report also explores perceptions of college costs, exposes common misconceptions, and gauges how financially prepared high school families are for college.
Income-Driven Repayment of Student Loans
Feb. 9, 2022
Much of the policy debate emerging from concerns over student debt focuses on the structure and operation of Income-Driven Repayment plans. This report from the Urban Institute suggests recommendations for change.
Which Colleges Are Worth the Cost?
Feb. 7, 2022
College education is widely acknowledged to be a good investment, but some postsecondary programs and institutions in the United States fail to pay off. This report from the Bipartisan Policy Center outlines an improved methodology for estimating the ROI from college enrollment, with the goal of pointing the way toward better regulation of higher education…
The Colleges Where Low-Income Students Get the Highest ROI
Feb. 2, 2022
College typically pays off for low-income students, but not as much as it does for their peers. Low-income students have a lower return on investment than all students across public and private institutions and certificates, associate degrees, and bachelor’s degrees, largely because they tend to earn less as adults, according to a new report from…
How the Pandemic Could Affect the Rise in Student Debt
Dec. 21, 2021
Spikes in borrowing from the federal government during or closely following recessions in the past three decades have played a key role in the country’s growing federal student loan debt. The economic crisis spawned by the COVID-19 pandemic may leave a different legacy, however. This report from The Pew Charitable Trusts explores trends in enrollment,…
Shut Out: The Need to Increase Access to the University of California and the California State University
Dec. 14, 2021
In California and across the nation, the value of a college degree continues to increase. A new report from the Campaign for College Opportunity provides recommendations for policymakers and campus leaders to increase college access, improve college attainment, and close racial/ethnic gaps.
Student Loan Borrowers With Default History Foresee Difficulties When Repayment Resumes
Dec. 6, 2021
With payments on federal student loans set to resume in May 2022 after a COVID-19-related pause, findings from a new survey by The Pew Charitable Trust indicate that the restart could be especially hard for one group of vulnerable borrowers: those who previously experienced default but had exited it before the start of the pause.