Chicago Board of Education Resigns | Microcredential Generation | Student Loan Whiplash
W/A’s Zoe Almeida is filling in for Ben this week.
This week, Excelencia in Education, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary, held its Fall Convening in D.C. to celebrate colleges and universities that are intentionally serving Latino students through evidence-based, engaging, culturally relevant programs. Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs) are defined in federal law as accredited, degree-granting public or private nonprofit institutions of higher education serving a full-time undergraduate population that is 25% or more Hispanic. As a result, institutions become HSIs because of demographic makeup, not an intentional focus on supporting Latino student success.
That’s where the Seal of Excelencia comes in.
The Seal of Excelencia is a distinction earned by colleges and universities that demonstrate innovation in creating programs that support Latino students, as well as delivering outstanding student outcomes in graduation, retention, and other areas. At this week's convening, Excelencia announced eight newly certified Seal of Excelencia institutions and nine recertified Seal of Excelencia institutions; overall since its inception in 2018, 46 institutions have earned the Seal. As Excelencia notes, the community of institutions that earned the Seal “represent less than 1% of all institutions but enroll 17% and graduate 19% of all Latino students nationwide.”
Additionally, Excelencia announced its annual Examples of Excelencia, this year recognizing four evidence-based programs that intentionally advance Latino student success at the associate, baccalaureate, graduate, and community-based organization (CBO) level.
Excelencia in Education’s president, Sarita Brown reflected on the importance of “driving positive attention to people, places, and programs that produce results,” pointing to the institutions in the room as key to supporting and amplifying the success of Latino students in higher ed.
“We do not need to look away from the challenge,” Brown said, “but to lean into the challenge–we are the proof points. We don’t stop.”
In this week’s edition of Notes, we round up the “Top 5 Articles of the Week.”
We’re also covering:
Top 5 “What We’re Reading” Articles of the Week
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Why More Students Are Choosing Microcredentials
A growing number of college-age students are skipping traditional degrees in favor of microcredentials—short, skills-focused programs designed to get them into high-demand jobs faster and more affordably, according to Inside Higher Ed.
What’s happening: Programs like The College of Health Care Professions (CHCP) in Texas and The Marcy Lab School in Brooklyn are leading this trend.
The big picture: Microcredentials are booming across the U.S. In 2022-23, students aged 18-20 earned more certificates than any other age group, with 154,000 certificates completed—an 11% increase from the previous year, according to the National Student Clearinghouse.
What they’re saying: Eric Bing, chancellor of CHCP, sees the appeal of microcredentials for working adults and nontraditional students. “The traditional education model was built for people who have the luxury of time and money,” Bing told Inside Higher Ed. At CHCP, many students want “to quickly improve their economic situation.”
Go deeper: Read more about “the microcredential generation” in Inside Higher Ed and continue reading for a deeper look at a new survey indicating students are less certain about attending college than ever before.
BREAKING: Chicago Board of Education Resigns En Masse Amid Mayor’s Tensions with CPS Leadership
Chicago Public Schools CEO Pedro Martinez, right, speaks during a Chicago Board of Education meeting at the Roberto Clemente Community Academy, Sept. 26, 2024. Credit: Chris Sweda/TNS via ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock
The entire seven-member Chicago Board of Education is stepping down, Mayor Brandon Johnson’s office confirmed Friday. The resignations mark a significant departure just 15 months after the board was appointed by Johnson. [Axios, Chalkbeat Chicago]
Why it matters: This mass exodus highlights the tension between Mayor Johnson and the school board he selected – raising questions about the stability of the Chicago Public Schools (CPS) leadership as the district grapples with budget challenges and contract negotiations with the powerful Chicago Teachers Union (CTU). [Chicago Tribune, subscription required]
Catch up quick: Friction between the mayor and the board surfaced in July, when the board rejected Johnson’s request to take out a high-interest loan to cover non-teacher pensions and new union contracts. Recently, CPS CEO Pedro Martinez claimed the mayor asked him to resign, a claim Johnson denied. Despite the tensions, the board did not fire Martinez. [Chicago Tribune, subscription required]
The big picture: The board’s resignation complicates efforts to finalize CPS’s budget and negotiate a new CTU contract, crucial tasks as the city shifts toward its first partially elected school board in January. This election will mark the first time Chicago voters can directly elect 10 of the 21 school board members, with the remaining 11 still appointed by the mayor. The city will transition to a fully elected board by 2026. [Axios]
What’s Next: Johnson is expected to name seven new appointments to the Chicago Board of Education on Monday at Sweet Holy Spirit Church on the city's Far South Side.
Counselors Say More Students Are Forgoing College. What Are They Doing Instead?
According to a recent survey of more than 1,500 high school counselors, students are less certain about attending college than ever before:
This isn’t surprising. College enrollment has been declining for years. Downward trends were exacerbated by the pandemic, and are expected to worsen in the aftermath of the 2024-25 “Better FAFSA” debacle. Confidence in the value of a degree—and higher education in general—has also eroded over the last decade, waxing and waning in favorability between age groups, genders, political parties, and more. [USA Today; The Wall Street Journal, subscription model]
The bottom line: Young people want faster, more affordable methods of entering the workforce; they want to make money to sustain themselves and their families without accumulating major debt. Young people want to build their lives and careers on their own time and terms.
What’s Plan B?
Non-degree pathways—apprenticeships, boot camps, certificates, industry/trade certifications, and professional licenses—are piquing the interest of Gen Zers as an alternative to college. The interest is so prevalent that it has earned the generation nicknames like the “microcredential generation” and “toolbelt generation.” [Inside Higher Ed; NPR]
A 2023 survey commissioned by American Student Assistance (ASA) and Jobs for the Future (JFF) found that high school graduates on a non-degree pathway (AKA, “pathway youth”) were more likely to be employed, with 65% report working part- or full-time, compared to 51% of non-pathway youth.
A separate analysis by JFF found that 389,860 young people ages 16-24 started a Registered Apprenticeship (RA) program between 2010-2020, with the number of young apprentices rising steadily year-over-year (aside from 2019-2020 due to the onset of the pandemic).
Young people trust that these non-degree pathways are effective and lead to employment opportunities. 70% of pathway youth are confident in their post-high school plans, 71% felt prepared for the workforce, and 9 in 10 say they are satisfied with the pathway they are pursuing or pursued. [eSchool News]
But a lack of overall information on non-degree pathways and skills-based hiring being relatively uncharted territory for employers is hindering Gen Zer’s success, and making it more difficult for counselors to provide the appropriate level of support.
领英推荐
Students and counselors need more information: Nearly 1 in 3 non-college youth (32%) report lacking confidence in knowing the steps they need to take to access the workforce or postsecondary opportunities, and two-thirds (64%) of non-pathway youth say they would have considered a non-degree pathway if they knew more about them.
Schools don’t have many resources to share, though: nearly 50% of educators say their high school isn’t providing enough information about non-degree pathways to students. Educators also don’t feel as confident in the pathways as Gen Zers do; 35% say they believe employers favor applicants with college degrees and one-third (33%) feel they don’t know how to assess the quality of a non-degree pathway.
The lack of information—and thus lack of encouragement—from their schools pushes Gen Zers to explore non-degree pathway options on their own.
The way forward: Improving data collection and dissemination of information on non-degree pathways is critical, and several organizations are stepping up to directly address or assist states with closing the information gaps.
Young people are ready for alternatives to college, but they can’t navigate these pathways alone. To help them succeed, we have to adapt our policy infrastructure and career guidance to include the non-degree options reshaping the future of work.
Student Loan Whiplash
Student loan debt repayment and forgiveness made headlines throughout the week. Here’s what you missed:
Go deeper: Read more about Biden’s forgiveness plan—and the case against it—from our team, here.
FCC and Department of Education Release Cybersecurity Resource Guide for Schools
In a continued effort to address rising cyber threats, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and the U.S. Department of Education jointly released a cybersecurity resource guide aimed at helping schools and libraries bolster their network security. The guide focuses on budget-friendly and impactful solutions in light of the increasing number of cyberattacks on K-12 institutions.
Why it matters: The guide comes at a time when ransomware attacks on schools are on the rise, with 121 incidents in 2023, up from 71 in 2022. Over the past five years, K-12 institutions have faced more than $53 billion in downtime costs and had over 6.7 million personal records breached. [K-12 Dive]
The details: The guide outlines several key recommendations to enhance cybersecurity, including the implementation of multi-factor authentication (MFA), enforcing strong password protocols, recognizing and reporting phishing attempts, and regularly updating software. The FCC's Schools and Libraries Cybersecurity Pilot Program will provide financial support, offering $200 million over the next three years to help schools and libraries deploy these security measures and improve their defenses against cyber threats.
What’s next: Schools and libraries can apply for funding through the FCC's Cybersecurity Pilot Program to defray the costs of implementing these cybersecurity measures, ensuring that even budget-constrained institutions have access to essential protections.
FAFSA Beta Begins
The U.S. Department of Education (ED) started beta testing the functionality of the 2025-26 FAFSA form on October 1, the form’s historic launch date. The beta test will involve four stages, each stage taking roughly two weeks, and a limited number of students and community-based organizations (CBOs), who will file real FAFSA forms to be processed by ED and sent to colleges and state agencies.
According to ED, the selected CBOs work with students from low-income backgrounds, first-generation college students, mixed citizenship status families, and students experiencing homelessness or incarceration. The students come from multiple states and include both high schoolers and college students.
The FAFSA is expected to be available to all students and contributors by December 1. Meanwhile, issues with the 2024-25 FAFSA persist, raising questions on whether or not this time around will actually be better.
Go deeper: Read more from The Hill, The New York Times (subscription model), and The Chronicle of Higher Education.
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