The latest on innovative strategies that support postsecondary attainment for all students, including adults and underrepresented minority populations, by ACE staff and guest contributors working to advance new higher education models to expand access and success.

From its first programs for returning World War II veterans, ACE has led the national movement to recognize and promote adult learner programs in higher education. As the highly respected leader in the evaluation of workforce and military training, the Council demonstrates its commitment to adult learning and attainment through a wide range of programs and initiatives that support postsecondary access and success.

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Featured Posts

A College Unbound

In 2015, Robert L. Carothers joined the board of College Unbound after stepping down from serving as the president at the University of Rhode Island for 18 years. Most of the students came thinking of themselves as having failed, he writes, but College Unbound “taught them to reframe failure and to see that their lives had been about learning, even if they could not see it.”

A Unique Experiment in Serving the Educationally Underserved

David A. Bergeron, senior fellow for postsecondary education policy at the Center for American Progress and formerly of the Department of Education’s Office of Postsecondary Education, considers how College Unbound works to reconcile the goal of greater access for older adults with the lack of meaningful outcomes.

A College Unbound: Cohorts, Educational Trauma, and Micromodels as Catalysts for Innovation

The highly nontraditional model of College Unbound—a unique institution designed for low-income adults who have started college but not finished—presented regional accreditors with a challenge. Louis Soares and Ursula Gross look at the tensions between innovation and accreditation that such institutions present—and how they can be overcome.

Better Teaching, Better Institutions

Teaching and learning aren’t just at the heart of higher education—they drive the institution. ACE Senior Vice President Philip Rogers looks at ACE’s partnership with the Association of College and University Educators, whose courses on comprehensive teaching methods helps faculty become more effective educators.

New Tuition Model at Hiram College Offers Educational, Career, and Financial Benefits

Calls for U.S. colleges and universities to develop more relevant curricula, pave the college-to-career pathway, and offer affordable degrees are growing in strength and number. President Lori Varlotta discusses the latest innovations at Hiram College to respond to these needs.

Erasing the Community College Stigma

ACE’s Jon Turk argues that community colleges are the solution to many of the challenges we face around higher education affordability, access, and success. But how do we convince students and families of their value?