News

Keith Witham Reflects on His First Six Months as Vice President of Education Philanthropy

Halfway through his first year as Vice President of Education Philanthropy, Keith Witham provides an overview of the past six months of Ascendium’s grantmaking. He also looks ahead, reaffirming Ascendium’s commitment to transforming the lives of learners from low-income backgrounds through postsecondary education and workforce training.

How a Coalition of Nonprofit, Private Colleges Is Tackling Economic Inequity

Although the vast majority of learners pursue postsecondary education in hopes of landing a good job, career advising is frequently limited and opportunities such as internships are often out of reach for learners from low-income backgrounds – many of whom work while attending college and can't afford to take on unpaid work. The Yes We Must Coalition hopes to solve this by helping member institutions employ strategies for career preparedness that have proved successful at community colleges.

Q&A: UIA’s Bridget Burns on Helping Struggling Students Get Back on Track (Part 2)

Students who receive a D or F or withdraw (DFW) from a course often stall out and can risk losing future financial aid. The COVID-19 health crisis exacerbated DFW rates, especially among learners from low-income backgrounds. In part two of our interview, University Innovation Alliance (UIA) founding CEO Dr. Bridget Burns discusses what UIA institutions have learned from efforts to help students recover credits and regain momentum towards completion, as well as what other lessons they learned from the health crisis.

Q&A with UIA’s Bridget Burns, Improving Learner Outcomes with Updated CUNY Transfer Explorer, and More

• Q&A: UIA’s Bridget Burns on Helping Struggling Students Get Back on Track (Part 1)
• Updated Tool Saves Time and Money to Improve Learner Outcomes
• Helping Learners See a Clearer Path: Awareness Continues to Build Around Guided Pathways Framework

Helping Learners See a Clearer Path: Awareness Continues to Build Around Guided Pathways Framework

The guided pathways framework is a whole-college redesign of the student experience that helps learners explore, choose, plan, and complete programs aligned with their education and career goals. It can be especially helpful to learners from low-income backgrounds as it more clearly outlines their program with considerations to efficiency and affordability. As leaders in developing, evaluating, and implementing the guided pathways framework, Community College Research Center (CCRC) continues to build awareness of this targeted reform strategy.

Q&A: UIA’s Bridget Burns on Helping Struggling Students Get Back on Track (Part 1)

Students who receive a D or F or withdraw (DFW) from a course often stall out and can risk losing future financial aid. At many institutions, learners from low-income backgrounds make up a disproportionate percentage of this group. University Innovation Alliance’s founding CEO spoke with us about an innovative solution to identify DFW patterns and help these learners recover credits and regain momentum towards completion.

Evolving Our Team to Better Meet the Needs of Learners, We’re Hiring, and More

• Changes in Education Philanthropy Support Evolving Needs of Learners from Low-Income Backgrounds
• New Initiatives Aim to Cut Early Student Dropouts by Increasing Connection
• Why Supporting Financial Aid Administrators Is Key to Unlocking Opportunities for Incarcerated Learners

Changes in Education Philanthropy Support Evolving Needs of Learners from Low-Income Backgrounds

Ascendium’s Education Philanthropy is adapting our organizational structure to meet the current and future needs of learners from low-income backgrounds. The promotion of two internal leaders to key positions will enhance our grantmaking strategy, tools, and partnerships. We are also hiring a deputy director of education grantmaking to oversee strategic grantmaking pipelines in one or more philanthropic focus areas.

New Initiatives Aim to Cut Early Student Dropouts by Increasing Connection

Studies have shown the benefits of connectedness and early momentum are especially strong for learners from low-income backgrounds. For the long-term academic wellbeing of these learners, it's essential for postsecondary education institutions to implement strategies to retain students from pre-enrollment through early course successes. Two new grants aim to help them do just that.

Support for Evidence-Based Workforce Training Models, New Projects to Help English-Language Learners, and More

• Targeted Investments Support Expansion of Evidence-Based Workforce Training Models
• New Projects Examine Barriers for English-Language Learners
• Recent Resources Show the Value of Good Workforce Training Programs