As demand for more highly educated workers rises, a growing number of community colleges have expanded their services beyond two-year degree programs and begun conferring baccalaureate degrees. These programs, referred to as Community College Baccalaureate (CCB) programs, have become increasingly prevalent: Prior to 2000, only four states offered…

Today's postsecondary students accumulate college credit and other validated learning experiences from more sources and in more forms than ever before. As credit accumulation options have proliferated, student mobility patterns have also shifted and are now increasingly multi-directional, crossing institutional types, system and state boundaries,…

Since 2005, the Chinese government has vigorously extended influence over American education. While well-researched in some areas, that influence is merely noted elsewhere. This report fills a gap in previous work by examining the role of Mandarin education in Communist China, how the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) developed language as a tool of…

Community college enrollment has significantly declined since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Between the spring 2020 term and the spring 2022 term, community college enrollment declined by nearly 17 percent nationwide. This alarming trend has posed a threat to the well-being of community colleges and the students they serve, which includes…

The Center for the Study of Child Care Employment led the development of three research reports that provide a nationwide analysis of trends, gaps, and opportunities facing early educator preparation programs and state competency and compensation policies. While the research was conducted before the COVID-19 pandemic, the crisis has only made the…

Nearly half of the states allow community colleges to award bachelor's degrees as one strategy to meet workforce demands, increase access to educational and career advancement opportunities, address affordability and raise attainment rates. Emerging research also suggests that community college bachelor's degrees may play a role in better serving…

All students--particularly students of color--benefit academically and socially from having teachers who are people of color. However, people of color face systemic barriers to becoming and remaining teachers at multiple points throughout their careers. For example, people of color are more likely than their White peers to incur student debt,…

As additional states embark on the process of implementing four-year degrees at community colleges, they can learn from others' experience for help navigating the legislative, regulatory, and program approval processes. This brief uses examples from states currently offering bachelor's degrees at their community colleges to provide guidance for…

This Special Report examines four principles for state leaders to consider as they develop or evaluate financial aid redesign reform efforts. The financial aid redesign principles, identified through a Thinkers Meeting that included experts from across the country, fall into four areas: Financial aid programs should be student-centered,…

This Policy Snapshot provides summary information for 2017 legislation related to attainment goals and plans, as well as policy actions from previous years.

Every year millions of Americans gain valuable college credit-worthy learning through workplace training, the military, apprenticeships, & professional certifications. Nearly all of this learning goes unrecognized by colleges & universities. Without a consistent way to recognize, reward, and transfer this learning, many people are left…

State policymakers are in a unique position to enable the innovations in education necessary to prepare students for a rapidly changing world. Working with 8,000 educators nationwide, the Aurora Institute identified the top 10 issues to address in state policy for transforming the K-12 education system: (1) Profile of a Graduate; (2) Innovation…

This policy report discusses the growing interest in free community college policies across state legislatures, addresses the limited potential of current policies to help states reach their completion and attainment goals and offers a new, inclusive framework for including adult students in free community college policies. The following is…

In the United States, the prevailing high school mathematics course sequence begins with a year of Algebra I, followed by a year of geometry and a year of Algebra II. Educators and others have raised concerns about the extent to which this sequence, which prioritizes the mastery of algebra, is appropriate for the longer-term education and career…

America's diverse higher education landscape includes more than 700 four-year nonprofit colleges and universities that focus on baccalaureate education. These private nondoctoral (PND) institutions are located in almost every state and collectively enroll about 1.6 million students and award nearly 150,000 degrees annually, with the majority of…