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EDUCATION PHILANTHROPY DIVISION OF ASCENDIUM EDUCATION GROUP

Resource Library

Sharing knowledge is at the heart of our mission. Explore Ascendium’s growing library of publications that examine the complex challenges facing postsecondary learners, and how we’re helping our partners address them.

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MDRC ImprovingOutcomes
MDRC

Improving Outcomes for Men of Color in College: Recommendations for Advancing Success in the “Dual Pandemics”

March 2023
Across colleges and universities, the COVID-19 health crisis and racial injustice have contributed to startling enrollment declines for men of color. This is particularly true at community colleges, which serve as a primary pathway into postsecondary education. This brief from MDRC’s College Completion Strategy Guide shares strategies that colleges and universities can use to support this population of learners.
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transferAndProgressFall2022
National Student Clearinghouse Research Center

Transfer and Progress

March 2023
A recent National Student Clearinghouse Research Center analysis reveals concerning trends: that community college enrollments and transfer rates, particularly from two- to four-year institutions, continue to fall. Community colleges and transfer play an important role in serving learners from low-income backgrounds as they pursue their educational goals. The report, the first in a series that uses a new measure of students’ income background, builds on work done tracking transfer trends throughout the COVID-19 health crisis.
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rural comm
The Aspen Institute

Rural Community College Excellence: A Guide to Delivering Strong Opportunity for Students and Communities

March 2023
Rural community colleges not only provide a space for educational attainment, they also serve as hubs that generate opportunities for upward mobility and drive local talent development. However, excellent rural community colleges often receive less attention than their urban peers. This guide uplifts the strategies and practices of excellent student-centered rural community colleges identified through the Aspen Prize process.
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Rural Matters
Rural Matters

Institutional Resilience in Puerto Rico and Rural Areas (Part III)

March 2023
The third in a four-part podcast series, this episode highlights work by Excelencia in Education that explores resiliency efforts at five Hispanic-serving institutions (HSIs) in Puerto Rico. These rural-located institutions are committed to student success for Latino learners, even amidst challenges such as declining enrollment, demographic shifts and fiscal constraints. Lessons learned from these HSIs are applicable to institutions on the mainland facing similar issues.
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pr resource
Excelencia in Education

Institutional Resilience in Puerto Rico: A First Look at Efforts by Puerto Rican HSIs

February 2023
Excelencia in Education conducted interviews at five Hispanic-serving institutions (HSIs) in Puerto Rico to learn more about their efforts in resilience over the last five years. This report identifies key efforts by those HSIs that demonstrate resilience, including overviews and strategies that can be used by postsecondary education institutions to improve opportunities for Latino learners.
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Alternatives to College Social resource
Academic Intelligence

Short, Affordable College Alternatives Lead to Careers with Upward Mobility

February 2023
In this Future U. podcast episode, Merit America and Marcy Lab School founders talk about how their organizations train learners facing financial and other barriers to postsecondary education and connect them with careers in the technology sector. Merit America’s program is designed for and supports working adults while the Marcy Lab is an alternative to college for those who either never enrolled or dropped out. Organizations like these are creating opportunities for low-income learners to pursue careers leading to upward mobility.
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rural texas resource
Columbus Learning Center Management Corporation

Rural Learning Systems: Driving Outcomes in Rural Texas

February 2023
UpSkill Coastal Bend, a partner in the Rural Learning Systems cohort, is working to increase educational attainment and workforce training for learners across six rural counties in Texas. This article by CivicLab explains how the organization is connecting learners to postsecondary education and training for in-demand jobs. These include existing jobs and those that may come from the expansion and retention of businesses who need skilled workers.
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hendry co resource
Columbus Learning Center Management Corporation

Rural Learning Systems: Talent Development in Hendry County

February 2023
The FutureMakers Coalition, a partner in the Rural Learning Systems cohort, has brought together educators, employers, community organizations and others in rural Hendry County, Florida, to build better systems for boosting educational attainment and improving job training. This article shares what the coalition has done so far in their effort to get more learners from low-income backgrounds the education and training they need to meet the demands of skilled jobs in their communities.
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LISC
Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC)

Rural LISC Apprenticeship Toolkit

January 2023
The Apprenticeship Steering Committee, a county-based workforce collaborative that brings industry, workforce, postsecondary education, and community partners together to create a sustainable model for talent development via apprenticeships, developed this toolkit. Leaders in other rural regions may find the topics discussed and lessons learned applicable to furthering their workforce goals.
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kent state transfer v2
Kent State University Foundation

Lessons From a Multi-College Transfer Partnership

January 2023
Kent State University worked with three local community colleges to advance a “statewide comprehensive transfer blueprint” modeled on the Aspen Institute’s Transfer Playbook. Kent State and its partners implemented two key strategies recommended in the Playbook, clear programmatic pathways and tailored transfer student advising, with success. The partnership resulted in a transfer process that can help all learners transition to four-year programs and meet their academic goals.
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Institute for Higher Education Policy

Recommendations to Inform the U.S. Department of Education’s Research and Evaluation Set-Aside Authority

January 2023
The U.S. Secretary of Education can set aside a certain percentage of funding from Higher Education Act programs within the U.S. Department of Education (ED) for evaluation purposes. These funds allow ED to further understand how to improve programs to better support learners’ postsecondary education success. The Institute for Higher Education Policy recommendations were developed by experts to help inform ED’s decision-making.
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moving fwd
Association of Public and Land-grant Universities

Future Opportunities for Rural Workforce and Rural Development (FORWARD) Curriculum

January 2023
Cooperative Extension professionals (CEPs) are embedded within many communities across the U.S. This curriculum was created to help CEPs leverage their experience and serve as facilitators of workforce solutions in rural communities. Using this curriculum will help them work with community stakeholders to design and implement career pathways that lead learners and workers from low-income backgrounds to in-demand jobs in rural places.
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