Suicide-related behavior (SRB) is a growing mental health concern on college campuses. We argue that causes of this rising trend go beyond student stress, to include outdated campus policies, overburdened counseling center staffing, and untapped targets for prevention efforts. We outline the social-ecological model applied to suicide and related…

Although the number of students in higher education institutions (HEIs) has increased over the past two decades, it is far from assured that all students will gain an academic degree. To that end, institutional analytics (IA) can offer insights to support strategic planning with the aim of reducing dropout and therefore of minimizing its negative…

From 2017 to 2019, MDRC's College Promise Success Initiative (CPSI) worked with College Promise programs nationwide, helping transform perceptions about college affordability and access while aiming to increase rates of enrollment and completion. Staff from the programs in CPSI met at the end of 2019 and shared insights on effectively designing…

This study examines the efforts of higher education systems in six states to implement large-scale changes to improve student outcomes in mathematics in community colleges and four-year colleges and universities as part of the Mathematics Pathways to Completion (MPC) project. The three-year project was launched in 2015 to help Arkansas,…

The real data on students' postsecondary outcomes are affordable, accessible, and unfortunately underutilized. If harnessed for advising high school students before graduation, these data could significantly change the approach to preparing students for college and career success across the country. How can we get more leaders and stakeholders to…

Community. Collaboration. Co-creation. These are the three principles that the Community Engagement Coalition (CEC) has applied for more than ten years to tackle myriad community-wide challenges. A partnership of several coalitions in the southeast Indiana region, the CEC understands that increased rates of postsecondary completion benefit not…

A market paradigm shift towards a 'knowledge-based economy' means Australia is moving towards a major skills crisis whereby the workforce will lack skills attainable from higher education. Moreover, those from low socio-economic backgrounds, and who are confronted with disadvantage, still face challenges in gaining entry to university. The Fast…

Increasing numbers of high schools are offering senior-year transition curricula in math and English to better prepare graduating students for college. These transition curricula are typically full-year, high school credit-bearing courses taken by students at risk of being placed into developmental (also known as remedial) courses upon enrollment…

Many students face unique and significant obstacles as they pursue postsecondary degrees, including the navigation of two complex systems: higher education and financial aid. Given the importance and complexity of the issues, multiple stakeholders, including philanthropists and researchers, have dedicated resources to understanding and improving…

The purpose of this paper is to share the challenges faced with the rapid transition from face-to-face to online teaching due to the COVID-19 pandemic and highlight successful online teaching strategies. The challenges are presented in a question and solution-based analysis to help educators mitigate barriers for students who are engaged in online…

Through Engrossed Second Substitute House Bill 1599 (E2SHB 1599) the Legislature tasked the State Board of Education (SBE) with providing an analysis of the equity and adequacy of the new graduation pathway options through stakeholder outreach and engagement. SBE has solicited and received feedback on the graduation pathway options. In the…

Supporting students' mental health needs is critical in high-poverty urban school districts where many students are at risk for mental health problems. Although teacher-student relationships are at the core of student mental health promotion in the classroom, many teacher preparation programmes do not adequately prepare pre-service teachers…

The Washington Legislature directed the State Board of Education (SBE) to provide an analysis of the equity and adequacy of new graduation pathway options through stakeholder outreach and engagement. This report contains the "Second Interim Graduation Pathway Options Report--July 2020" and the "Washington Graduation Pathway Options:…

Disadvantaged students increasingly confront ruthless competition for higher education degrees, while losing out on opportunities for social mobility. Some of Hong Kong's low-income households defy the trend: families take on risk, including considerable debt, to send their offspring abroad, rather than test their chances at home by dealing with…

The authors investigated the design and implementation of the capstone courses that are part of Virginia's College and Career Readiness Initiative. Based on a set of performance expectations for college readiness, two capstone courses--one in English and one in mathematics--were developed to help support high school juniors and seniors who intend…