The Institute for College Access & Success

2022 was extraordinary for . We celebrate the progress made from the culmination of work that TICAS, allies, and partners saw come to fruition this year. From our efforts to increase the maximum awards that students receive in , to expanding and streamlining financial aid programs in Michigan and California, and strengthening student protections – we have laid the groundwork for years to come. We look forward to continuing our work that centers students, whilst being laser-focused on advancing racial equity in .

Read TICAS President, Sameer Gadkaree’s end-of-the-year reflection: https://bit.ly/3G7NbPw

It was a vital year for policy in Michigan. This past year, we saw increased investments, new generous state scholarship opportunities, and continued support for existing aid programs. We look forward to continuing our work in improving access, affordability, and attainment opportunities for all Michiganders.

Read Senior Director of Policy & Advocacy, Onjila Odeneal's statement outlining TICAS Michigan's priorities for FY24: https://bit.ly/3BBJ9w0

On Oct. 31, the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments about race-conscious college admissions. Though the end of affirmative action inches closer, one beat holds true: no Supreme Court decision alone could reverse the multi-decade and systemic issue of racial inequities in . And while the Biden-Harris administration has tools to remedy the dire consequences of an overturned affirmative action decision, they fail to correct decades of intentional and oppressive policies that increase barriers to educational opportunity, particularly for Black, Latinx, Indigenous, and other students of color.

Martin Luther King Jr. declared, “The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends towards justice.” The fight for racial equity in higher education may be a long road ahead, but it will never cease to exist.

Read more from TICAS’ Marshall Anthony Jr., Ph.D. and Casey Nguyen's latest op-ed, via Newsweek: https://bit.ly/3Fn4pH3

Please help us give a warm welcome to TICAS’ newest team members!
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🎓 Chris Lechuga joins TICAS as Associate Vice President of External Affairs and Strategic Communications. Chris brings nearly two decades of experience working in both higher education at the University of El Paso, Texas and K-12 space as well as the Greater El Paso Chamber of Commerce. Most recently, Chris served as a Director at The Raben Group, a national public affairs and strategic communications firm.
🎓 Carol Ashley joins TICAS as an Operations Coordinator. Carol comes to TICAS with experience in many positions within the non-profit college access world.
🎓 Ellie Bruecker joins TICAS as an Associate Director of Policy Analytics. Ellie brings expertise in financial aid policy, state and federal regulation of higher education, and quantitative analysis. Ellie was formerly a Senior Research Associate at the Seldin/Haring-Smith Foundation, a foundation that invests in solutions that expand equitable access to public services and supports accountability for abuse of authority.
🎓 Nicolette Del Palacio joins TICAS as a Senior Program Associate, California. Nicolette previously served as a Senior Community Organizer at the Public Rights Project, an organization that empowers state, local, and tribal governments to fight for civil rights and for economic and environmental justice.

We look forward to working together to ensure that is accessible, affordable, and equitable for students everywhere!

This week marked the beginning of the 2023-24 California Legislative Session by swearing in new assemblymembers and senators, we look forward to working with legislators to ensure that the state’s education system is accessible and works for all students in California. TICAS also applauds Governor Gavin Newson, Senate Pro Tem Toni Atkins, and Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon for their continued alignment in eliminating state taxation for in the state of California.

Read TICAS' full statement from Manny Rodriguez here: bit.ly/3uBoCUA

NEW BLOG: States must focus on removing roadblocks to completing college if they aim to meet economic and workforce demands. The College Completion Strategy Guide - a collaboration with TICAS, MDRC, The Education Trust, and State Higher Education Executive Officers Association - offers unique resources to help state and institutional leaders remove barriers and increase .

Read more from TICAS' Jhenai Chandler: https://bit.ly/3uv1ebj

Members of the LEO team recently spent time in D.C. at the first in-person Comprehensive Approaches to Student Success (CASS) Community of Practice. Our work with The Institute for College Access & Success to create and maintain this community of practice is a great example of how we take our research beyond the academic journal. This community of practice is based on the work of innovative student success programs and the rigorous research that makes them model programs that are now being scaled and replicated all over the country.

We are thrilled to announce Carrie Welton as our new Senior Director of Policy & Advocacy, Anti-poverty & Basic Needs! Carrie will lead TICAS’ financial vulnerability efforts to align anti-poverty and programs to close equity gaps and improve outcomes for systemically marginalized students.

As a lifelong advocate, Carrie is committed to reducing barriers, particularly for students of color, parenting, first-generation, and immigrant students. She will build on TICAS’ previous work on student financial vulnerability while deepening our expertise on public benefits/social safety net as it intersects with and access, completion, and affordability.

Today, we celebrate the newly released regulations for closing the 90/10 loophole, restoration for incarcerated individuals, and conversions. Our statement: bit.ly/3NdjGxC

TUNE IN: Tomorrow starting at 9:30am ET for 's Education Summit, where experts, students, and lawmakers will gather to discuss the most pressing issues and solutions for building an education system that centers equity and prepares the future workforce.

TICAS' Sameer Gadkaree will join The Atlantic's Adam Harris and College Promise's Martha Kanter on stage to discuss the path forward for providing accessible and affordable for America's future workforce.

Register to attend virtually here: https://www.theatlantic.com/live/education-summit-2022/

Pell Access and Completion Series | Part IV: Working with Pell Grant Completion Data - The Institute for College Access & Success

OUT TODAY! Part IV and the final piece of our series on access & completion illustrate potential improvements to how data are collected and analyzed in the higher ed field. Read the brief:

Pell Access and Completion Series | Part IV: Working with Pell Grant Completion Data - The Institute for College Access & Success New series highlights baseline statistics on access to the federal Pell Grant program and completion rates for U.S. higher education institutions by three sectors—community colleges, non-profit institutions, and for-profit colleges.

NEW BLOG: To reach California’s new 70 percent statewide attainment goal by 2030, Californians need strong commitments from all higher education systems – including our private non-profit institutions. For these institutions, a clear commitment and goal should be to accept more community college transfer students via the Associate's Degree for Transfer (ADT) pathway. It is critical that policymakers work with ICCUs to ensure that the sector – not students – are held accountable for meeting their transfer commitment in exchange for sustained public financial aid funding.

TICAS’ latest blog sheds light on how ICCUs commitment to broaden transfer access for students impacts the sector’s funding.

Read the blog: https://bit.ly/3y2iy9J

Earlier this year, President Biden announced plans for an initiative called ‘Fresh Start,’ allowing federal student loan borrowers experiencing delinquency or default to get back into good standing. This means defaulted borrowers can regain federal student aid eligibility, including access to federal Pell Grants and campus-based aid such as a federal Work-Study. Borrowers will also be shielded from collections – protecting them from social security, wage, and tax garnishments. Fresh Start will allow borrowers to receive additional education to experience the transformative power of a postsecondary degree.

For more information, tap the link in our bio

TICAS in partnership with the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) Associate Professor Ozan Jaquette, University of Arizona Assistant Professor Karina Salazar, data scientist Crystal Han, and UCLA Ph.D. student Patricia Martin to release a -part series of comprehensive reports that explain and analyze the currently unregulated business of generating student prospects (“student lists”) for colleges across the United States to purchase and use for recruiting practices. Out today, Geodemographics of Student List Purchases: A First Look analyzes actual student list purchases made from the College Board by public universities while The Student List Business: Primer and Market Dynamics provides insight into of how student lists work, and the current landscape for student list data. The reports released today find that although ‘student lists’ perpetuate harmful biases and exclusion in recruiting, they also play an important role for college access, especially for historically underrepresented students. A third report exploring policy options to address the student list business is forthcoming next week.

Read the reports bit.ly/3UoJjif

President Biden's recent student loan cancellations will help millions of borrowers, in addition to his cancellation of billions owed by students who have been defrauded by their colleges and his move to lower monthly payments for all borrowers. But what now? Borrowers need systematic change to ensure that every student who wants to earn a high-quality degree can do so without being saddled with debt. TICAS President, Sameer Gadkaree deep dives on how policymakers can carve out a path to debt free college and make college accessible and affordable for all.

Read his take on reducing dependence on debt to finance in The Hechinger Report: bit.ly/3Tspzd5

Today the Biden-Harris administration announced it would eliminate up to $10,000 for student loan borrowers and up to $20,000 in debt for borrowers eligible for Pell. The Administration also announced it will extend the repayment pause through the end of 2022, with payments to resume in January 2023.

Over the coming months implementation of these announcements is critical to ensure that relief is given to the borrowers that need it most.

Read our statement here: bit.ly/3AELVzB

OUT TODAY! Part III of our series on access & completion presents data trends for for-profit institutions, finding that for-profits predominantly awarding certificates tend to have higher Pell Grant access and completion rates than other types of for-profits, although research consistently finds certificate programs provide weaker economic returns than other postsecondary credentials. Additionally, this brief finds completion rates for Pell Grant students at for-profits are increasing at a much slower pace than at public and non-profit institutions.

Read the brief: https://bit.ly/3dovEGH

The Pell Grant is targeted to students with the greatest financial need, and many policymakers find the Pell Grant a useful policy lever for promoting access and success for students from lower- and moderate-income backgrounds. There are several examples where policymakers use Pell eligibility to allocate resources and hold colleges accountable for their outcomes; however, basic information about Pell access and completion is not well-documented in policy research. To address this problem — and to provide baseline statistics useful in policy conversations — this analysis provides new information about Pell enrollments and degree completion rates for public and non-profit four-year universities.

The second in a three-part series on the Pell Grant, this brief presents basic data trends finding Pell Grant access and completion rates vary by selectivity.

Read the brief: https://bit.ly/3cd9KG2

If you have federal student loans, you may be overwhelmed and confused by the barrage of announcements and information coming your way.



We’ve created a Q&A on the latest information on the current state of federal student loans — read the full update, which includes tips on how to stay on top of repayment and links to helpful resources, here: https://bit.ly/3IyxIHS

Last week, the Michigan state legislature passed its FY23 budget, investing over $2 billion in higher education. From an overall increase in investments to increases in scholarship and financial aid spending, these investments take strides at improving college access and affordability for Michiganders. However, legislators still have about $7 billion remaining on the table, which opens up an opportunity for the state to tackle even more disparities in college access and affordability.

Check out our Michigan higher education budget snapshot to see what’s included and how it affects Michigan students: bit.ly/3z9wcJj

TICAS has worked nearly two years with a community of seven evidence-based college completion programs. We met with the programs in February and again in May to discuss the experiences of programs, coaches, and students over the last two years and to learn how they have adapted to keep as many students on track to graduate as possible.

A new brief looks at both the difficulties and decisions that programs have encountered and offers some insights for the field on innovative approaches to recruiting and retaining students during COVID-19,summarizing lessons learned and offering insights for the field on navigating recruiting and retaining students during a time of many obstacles.

Read the brief: bit.ly/3aePQK2

We joined a diverse coalition of 17 groups united in strengthening need-based to applaud California Governor Newson and the state Legislature for reaching a final 2022-23 budget agreement that will help more students access the Cal Grant Program, solidify the foundation for crucial data infrastructure, and reinforce accountability measures needed to protect students and consumers.

Read the letter: https://bit.ly/3ycsDjK

The is targeted to students with the greatest financial need, and many policymakers find Pell to be a useful policy lever for promoting access and success for students from lower-income backgrounds. Policymakers use Pell eligibility to allocate resources and hold colleges accountable for their outcomes; however, basic information about Pell access and completion is not well documented in policy research. To address this problem — and to provide baseline statistics useful in policy conversations — this analysis provides new information about Pell enrollments and degree completion rates for community colleges.

As the first in a three-part series on the Pell Grant, this brief provides background on the community college sector and data used in the analysis, followed by trends on the percentage of undergraduates receiving Pell Grants over time.

Read more: https://bit.ly/3boiOY3