Oct. 28, 2016: Education News We're Reading This Week

Posted October 28, 2016 | By Cooke Foundation Staff

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October 28, 2016 – Here’s our weekly roundup of education news you may have missed. Where a student attends high school affects graduation rates and college attendance, but should universities rely on such predictors? Articles this week examine new findings.

                                                                                  

Elementary & Secondary Education:

  • The 74 Million examines the narrowing achievement gaps in test scores from the National Assessment of Educational Progress.

  • “Why are so many students from poor families still not making it through high school?” A piece in The Washington Post looks at how attending high-poverty and racially segregated schools can influence outcomes.

 

Higher Education:

  • “45 percent of students from higher income high schools had obtained a college degree within six years of graduation, compared to 24 percent of students from lower income schools,” states Diverse: Issues in Higher Education.

  • Many colleges use predictive data to identify risks to student success and advise on degree pathways. A recent report from New America describes concerns including transparency, privacy, and profiling students based on demographic data. As new findings published by vibeffect demonstrate, “students from low-income households are likely to thrive in four-year, traditional higher education institutions.” However, high-thrivers from low-income backgrounds often have characteristics opposite of their peers with higher incomes.

  • At this week’s College Board Forum, the National College Access Network (NCAN) presented its “Streamlined FAFSA” proposal to simplify the process of receiving and renewing financial aid for low-income students.

  • CBS News highlights the “mixed news” from the College Board’s annual Trends in Higher Education report.

 

Cooke Foundation Highlights:

  • Executive Director Harold O. Levy’s popular LinkedIn post shares advice for the next president on addressing college affordability.

  • “More must be done to give community college students pathways to the bachelor’s degrees they want and are supremely capable of earning,” writes Levy in Community College Journal.

  • Two siblings, Dominic and Rain Jocas, are among this year’s cohort of Cooke Young Scholars. The Suburbanite features their story with information about the application process.

  • USA Today publishes Cooke Scholar Sagar Chapagain’s op-ed on healthcare policy.

 

Cooke Foundation Scholarship & Grant Opportunities:

  • We are now accepting applications for our College Scholarship Program until Nov. 30, 2016. High-achieving high school seniors with financial need should apply now for this generous award. The foundation provides recipients with up to $40,000 per year toward their degree, in addition to college advising and opportunities for internships, study abroad, and graduate school funding.

  • Submit your proposal for a Good Neighbor Grant by Nov. 15, 2016. Selected grantees in the metropolitan Washington, D.C. area will receive a one-time grant of between $10,000 and $35,000 to support the establishment of new programs or the enhancement of existing initiatives that support high potential, low-income students.