Short Takes

The National Student Clearinghouse (NSC) has released a report on undergraduate graduation trends for the 2021-2022 academic year highlighting differences in undergraduate degree completions by student age and institution type.

A new report from The Urban Institute highlights racial disparities in the distribution of state need-based aid. Using state enrollment data to assess patterns, researchers found consistent disparities existed in 11 states.

The National Student Clearinghouse Research Center has released the inaugural report in its new transfer and progress series to shed a light on the unique effects the pandemic continues to have on transfer enrollment patterns for students across the U.S. higher education system.

A report from the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE) discusses how the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated existing issues in the public educational pathway. The report outlines the demographic changes in public elementary, middle, and high schools and provides recommendations for how leaders can respond to these shifts.

Despite their longstanding success in supporting Black students, who comprise over 75 percent of their student population, HBCUs report struggling to meet these students’ mental health needs. In response, Active Minds and UNCF collaborated in spring 2022 to learn more about the state of mental health resources and practices at HBCUs.

ACE has partnered with the TIAA Institute through the American College President Study on a new report that identifies five equity-minded principles for conducting presidential searches. The report explores key steps of the typical search process and connects equity-minded principles to each step with the goal of changing the protocols, practices, and norms that form the pathway to the college presidency.

Every Learner Everywhere has released a new report in tandem with Achieving the Dream and the Online Learning Consortium that provides insight into four key questions about the use of professional learning to serve racially minoritized and poverty-affected students.

The National College Attainment Network (NCAN) has released data on Pell Grant distribution based on the number of high school graduates who had completed the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Over $3.6 billion of funding was left unallocated during 2022.

Of all racial and ethnic identity groups in the U.S. student population, Black students are the least likely to complete a degree or certificate program within six years, according to the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center (2022). In response, Gallup and the Lumina Foundation developed a report on the systemic and institutional challenges Black students face in their pursuit of higher education.

Students aged 25 and above or who identify as Black, Indigenous, or Latino are more likely to pursue college part-time and are disproportionally affected by inequitable institutional policies. In its new report on closing persistence gaps, Complete College America highlights the following statistics:

The Mary Christie Institute, in partnership with the Healthy Minds Network, the American Association of Colleges and Universities, and the National Association for Colleges and Employers, have released a new report that provides insight into the mental health and well-being of the new Generation Z workforce. The report draws attention to how the work environment changed because of COVID-19 for this particular age group, and the resulting increase in mental distress.

Over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, Congress passed three pieces of legislation that granted a total of $76 million to the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF). The Department of Education recently released a report detailing how this money was spent as well as the impact these funds had on student success and helping colleges and universities stay financially afloat.