Student classroom
The national higher ed landscape as we know it:

U.S. colleges and universities enroll nearly 16 million students. Among the undergraduate population, 4 in 10 students leave college before completing a degree. Today, there are more than 40 million Americans with some college and no degree.

Supporting Students

So all learners have the tools to succeed.

We can do this by supporting:

  1. Parenting students

  2. Students of color

  3. Students from low-income backgrounds

Now is the time to:

  1. Streamline SNAP benefits for eligible students

  2. Equitably expand access to public transportation for today's students

  3. Remove barriers to affordable, high-quality child care for parenting students

Connecting Opportunities

So multiple pathways through learning are valued and connected.

We can do this by connecting:

  1. Workers and learners to on-ramps that lead to quality programs, work, and further education

  2. Learners to workforce development, higher education, and employment pathways

  3. The 39 million Americans who have some college and no credential with a route to return to higher education

Now is the time to:

  1. Expand Pell Grants to make high-quality, short-term programs affordable

  2. Reset academic and financial standing for returning students

  3. Increase access to credit for prior learning

Delivering Value

So postsecondary programs provide value for learners in their pursuit of a career and further education.

We can do this by ensuring:

  1. Institutions can innovate and evolve while providing high-quality education

  2. Students are protected from low-quality education

  3. Data collection is improved to include all students

Now is the time to:

  1. Ensure gainful employment includes earning and repayment metrics that support today's students' success

  2. Incentivize accreditors to assess institutions' measurements of student outcomes

  3. Count all students in national data systems

Read our response to COVID-19