On August 12th, 2008, the Center for American Progress presented, "College-Ready Students, Student-Ready Colleges: Enhancing Degree Completion Through Student Empowerment and Systems Change," an event focusing on the issues surrounding higher education. At the event, speakers discussed rising costs, the need for more federal involvement, and agreed on an overall need for change in higher education.

A Federal Agenda for Promoting Student Success and Degree Completion, co-authored and discussed at the event by speaker Josipa Roska.

College for All?
The Labor Market for College-Educated Workers written by speaker Paul Osterman.

If you work with teens with disabilities, you’ll want to know about the Social Security Administration’s Ticket to Work (TTW) program. Its Youth Transition portion offers funds for organizations that help students receiving Social Security disability benefits find employment. Is it right for you? Melody Goodspeed, Youth Transition Specialist for TTW answers some common questions about the funding.

Low-income students who drop out—or are pushed out—of school without a high school diploma face long odds in their search for a path to a successful and stable adult life. In Birmingham, Ala., a former public school teacher is waging a fierce campaign to give such students a second chance. Gin Phillips reports on the World of Opportunity School.

It's a question that pops out during a ride in the car, at the dinner table, through a recently-slammed door after a fight about finishing up homework: "What good is all this stuff I'm learning in school going to do me in the real world?" Programs that make a strong, direct connection between school learning and future career options can be powerfully motivating for students, even those who eventually choose a different path. Gayle Hargreaves reports on one such program that introduces teens to museum careers.

CFK Reports From: Keeping Our Edge: Americans Speak on Education and Competitiveness
Event: Briefing
Organized By: Educational Testing Service
Where/When: Hyatt Regency Capitol Hill; June 21, 2006

In this briefing, the Educational Testing Service (ETS) presented the results of its sixth annual nationwide poll of the public's views on the role of education reform in supporting American competitiveness.

College students (and their parents) need to brace themselves: interest rates on federally-subsidized student loans will go up dramatically this summer. Student aid has also been cut. Connect for Kids' Martha Pitts spoke to David Smith of Mobilize.org about the changes, and about the Mobilize.org campaign to raise awareness.

This Jobs for the Future report looks at whether our society makes good on its promise of a second chance for young people who have dropped out of high school. Among the myths shattered by the research review: dropping out is not just a problem of the poor, but socioeconomic status—not race—is a key indicator for dropping out. Black and Hispanic youth are no more likely to drop out than their white peers in the same socioeconomic group. In addition, most dropouts are persistent in their desire to get more education. The report offers specific policy recommendations to serve disconnected young people.

Schools wherein Hispanic students make up at least 25 percent of undergraduate enrollment account for only about 6 percent of colleges and universities in the United States, but they enroll almost half of Latino college students. This new report by Excelencia in Education offers background, history, and context, and examines what it means that a small (albeit growing) number of schools teaches so many of our nation's Latino students. Short fact sheets are also available.

Efforts to boost college degree rates need to start in high school. As this Department of Education report reminds us, the academic rigor of high school classes is the strongest indicator of whether a student will complete a postsecondary degree. The report also examines factors in college that make a difference to college graduation rates—including continuous enrollment, earning more than 20 credits in the first 12 months and, interestingly, studying math.

Are state officials putting their money—and their measurements—where their mouths are when it comes to boosting postsecondary education among residents? This 50-state survey from Jobs for the Future finds that fewer than half of states specify measurable goals for increasing the proportion of their population with a postsecondary degree. Even those that do may not be doing enough to reach out to the public, and in particular under-represented populations, to promote an agenda of increased education, and to connect people to programs to make it possible to enroll and finish. The report concludes with concrete policy goals for states.