Performance-based funding models for higher education, which tie state support for institutions to performance on student outcomes, have proliferated in recent decades. Some states now tie most of their higher education appropriations to completion outcomes and include bonus payments for historically underrepresented groups to address equity gaps…

Student diversity in the classroom and on campuses is increasing. As librarians prepare to visit classrooms for single instruction sessions, it is important to account for global perspectives present in those environments as well as in the information that students use in their courses. This article presents a case study based on two workshops…

It is imperative for policy makers and institutional leaders to commit to expanding high-quality postsecondary pathways that can meet today's students and deliver on the promise of a personally and professionally rewarding career. Competency-based education (CBE) is focused on actual student learning rather than time spent in class or focused on…

Internationalization at institutions of higher education in the United States results in greater linguistic diversity of the student body. Admission policies for international students include English proficiency standards which are meant to ensure that multilingual students for whom English is an additional language can function linguistically in…

In 2012, Governor Kasich instituted a call-to-action, "Campus leaders throughout Ohio must work together to rethink how the state allocates its investment in our public higher educational facilities." (Ohio Higher Education Capital Funding Commission, 2016). The intent of Governor Kasich was to drive more equitable outcomes and…

College students, staff, and faculty all across the country are demanding greater racial and socioeconomic justice in higher education, where longstanding inequities create barriers for students who are Black, Latino, or from low-income backgrounds to earn a postsecondary degree. In response, policymakers and higher education leaders have made…

In 2011, Ohio passed state-wide legislation prohibiting undocumented students from receiving in-state resident tuition (ISRT). In 2013, a student-led advocacy campaign resulted in the Ohio Board of Regents extending ISRT consideration to recipients of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), a subsection of the larger population of…

Education Commission of the States (ECS) conducted interviews with members of the National College Attainment Network (NCAN) in six states to gather insights into current and critical state policy issues. This summative paper outlines the findings of these interviews, which took place between May and July 2021. The interviews also gathered input…

Three National College Attainment Network (NCAN) member organizations (a total of seven individuals) participated in interviews regarding postsecondary access and attainment policy in Ohio. Interviewees identified several policy priorities in the state--notably, FAFSA completion and college affordability. These policy issues and emerging trends…

In Ohio, the pandemic has forced students to pause their pursuit of a college degree or abandon their aspirations for higher education all together. The health crisis has accelerated a downward trend in enrollment in public higher education, at least for now, and thrown into sharp relief the barriers that prevent Black and brown students, and…

Accessibility in K-12 and higher education is becoming an increasingly complex terrain to traverse as schools increase online materials and instructional delivery options. This white paper provides an overview of critical terms, legal precedents, and other considerations for course designers, instructors, and administrators as they work to improve…

To compete for decent-paying jobs, today's students--particularly those coming from low-income families--need more than a high school education. In fact, the odds of living in poverty can be reduced by 20 to 30 percent with some college attendance or by earning an associate's degree rather than a high school diploma or equivalency. However, public…

This qualitative single descriptive case study addressed the perspectives of how minority women perceived higher education institutions support or lack of support in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields. The problem was that there is a disproportionately small number of minority women being prepared to fill STEM jobs.…

Just over fifty years ago, the author began his senior year on the bucolic campus of Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. By the time of his graduation in 1969, he had been affiliated with the university for seven years, having studied cello there since the age of fourteen. Yet this familiarity did little to quell the profound alienation that he felt…

This brief tells the story of Lumina Foundation's and states' efforts to promote an equity agenda for higher education, featuring the 2015 Equity Policy Academy-- which focused on improving educational equity for students from historically underserved groups--as a turning point. Based primarily on interviews with Lumina staff and key state leaders…