Topic: Educational Transformation
Upcoming Event
May 1, 2024
Adult Learner Re-Engagement in Pennsylvania
Informational Webinar with PDE and Ithaka S+R
On Wednesday May 1 at 11:00am-12:00pm ET, join the Pennsylvania Department of Education and Ithaka S+R for a webinar providing practical information on how higher education institutions in Pennsylvania can better support adult learners. By working with students to resolve past due balances and administrative holds, institutions are able to enroll students who were previously blocked from returning to college. Register to attend by Friday, April 19 to learn about strategies to engage, enroll, and support adult…
Past Event
May 21, 2024
Providing Credit Transfer Visibility to Improve Credit Mobility
In DXtera Institute’s April Tuesday Session, Ithaka S+R’s Emily Tichenor and Andromeda Yelton from JSTOR Labs will discuss their Universal Transfer Explorer project, a new, public, non-profit, national credit mobility website that will help address the many challenges college students face when they move between institutions or attempt to transfer credits they earned in high school or elsewhere. This “universal credit transfer explorer” will go live later this year with data from an inaugural set of institutions across three states.
Past Event
April 12, 2024
Universal Transfer Explorer Pilot
At the Washington Intercollege Relations Commission Spring 2024 Meeting/Conference, Ithaka S+R’s Emily Tichenor will join Alex Tadio (Washington State University), David Berner (Shoreline Community College), and Abby Chien (Washington Student Achievement Council) in a session providing an overview of the universal transfer explorer pilot project. The session will take place on Friday, April 12 at 12pm EST. Learn more.
Past Event
April 11, 2024
CUNY Transfer Explorer
Making Smart Transfer Decisions
This session will provide a refresher on the widely used CUNY Transfer Explorer. Additionally, we will take a deep dive into introducing some of the newest features as well as engage in a discussion surrounding an upcoming expansion called “CUNY K-16 Gateway.” Attendees will leave the session more fully understanding how CUNY Transfer Explorer can help their students navigate the transfer credit process. Join Pooja Patel and Christopher Buonocore on April 11 at the CUNY Graduate Center to learn…
Past Event
April 2, 2024
The Evolution of T-Rex
Transfer Tuesday with the Business and Technical Teams
You may be familiar with the core functionality of CUNY Transfer Explorer, but how about some of the newer features and enhancements that have been made? How about our goals for this upcoming year? Did you know that CUNY will be joining the “Universal Transfer Explorer” model? In a virtual presentation on April 2, learn from the business and technical team, including Ithaka S+R’s Pooja Patel and Chris Buonocore, Kara Heffernan, and Deira Pereya. You will also have an…
Past Event
March 19, 2024
Promoting Belonging
Evaluating Holistic Supports for First-Generation College Students
Over one-third of college students today identify as first-generation students. To better understand how to support success for this growing population of students, this study explores whether participation in a comprehensive student support program influences levels of belonging and mattering and examines whether these outcomes are related to institutional satisfaction. On Tuesday, March 19, 2024, at 3:45 PM-4:45, join Ithaka S+R’s Ifeatu Oliobi and the Kessler Scholars Collaborative’s Kristen Glasener for a paper presentation on holistic supports for first-generation college…
Past Event
April 5, 2024
Resetting Tuition at Minority Serving Institutions
Implications for Enrollment and Institutional Finances
At NBER’s Financing Higher Education Spring 2024 Conference, Ithaka S+R’s Catharine Bond Hill and James Ward will join a panel with Daniel Corral (University of Toronto) and Bridget T. Long (Harvard University and NBER), which will focus on resetting tuition at minority serving institutions and the implications for enrollment and institutional finances. Learn more about the panel, scheduled for Friday, April 5 at 2:15pm.
Past Event
March 14, 2024
Estimating the Effect of Tuition Freezes and Caps on Graduate Program Expansion and Tuition
At the Association for Education Finance and Policy (AEFP) Annual Conference in Baltimore, Ithaka S+R’s James Ward will present a paper, co-authored by Cameron Childress, Ifeatu Oliobi, and Robert Kelchen, estimating the relationship between state mandated tuition freezes and caps in undergraduate programs and institutions’ use of graduate programs to to protect against revenue shocks. The authors estimate the effect on graduate program enrollment, the number of graduate programs, and tuition levels. Learn more about the session, taking place…
Blog Post
February 22, 2024
Providing Credit Transfer Visibility to Improve Credit Mobility
Ithaka S+R’s “Universal Credit Transfer Explorer” Launching in Three States in 2024
To help address the many challenges college students face when they move between institutions or attempt to transfer credits they have earned in high school or elsewhere, Ithaka S+R is launching a new, public, non-profit, national credit mobility website. This “universal credit transfer explorer” will go live later this year with data from an inaugural set of institutions across three states, thanks to collaborations with the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities system, the South Carolina Commission on Higher…
Blog Post
February 13, 2024
No Longer Stranded?
How New Department of Education Rule Creates Opportunities for Students and Institutions
In 2020, Ithaka S+R estimated that approximately 6.6 million students did not have access to their educational transcripts due to past due balances, resulting in stranded credits. This challenge may impact any student, but our research indicated it was more likely to affect students who identified as women, racial and ethnic minorities, and those from low-income backgrounds. During our initial investigation of stranded credits, we found that nearly all higher education institutions used transcript holds as a tool to…
Past Event
February 20, 2024
Expanding Access to Adult Learners with Institutional Debt
Achieving the Dream Conference 2024
Join us at the Achieving the Dream annual conference in Orlando, Florida for a session on the Ohio College Compact presented by Ithaka S+R’s Joanna Dressel and Brittany Pearce. The Ohio College Comeback Compact is a novel approach to re-enrolling adult learners with some college, no credential (SCNC) who stopped out with institutional debt that inhibits their return to higher education, whether back to their original institution or to a new institution. The Compact permits these students to…
Past Event
March 5, 2024
Shark Tank: Edu Edition
SXSW EDU 2024 Session
The Chronicle of Higher Education’s ninth annual pitch-a-thon pays homage to the TV show, but with a twist. The panel of experts bring a mix of viewpoints—from a journalist, a college-president-turned-equity expert, and an entrepreneur—weighing in on transformative ideas from contestants representing new companies, nonprofits, and big dreamers for improving the college experience. Panelists include Goldie Blumenstyk (The Chronicle of Higher Education), Catharine Bond Hill (Ithaka S+R), and Paul Freedman (Guild Education). Learn more about the panel, on…
Past Event
February 22, 2024
Third-Party Agreements
Risk Assessment, Negotiation & Quality Control
Third-party agreements help institutions tap the expertise and resources of external providers. Third-party agreements can also be complex and fraught with risk. On February 22 at 2pm ET, join institutional law and policy experts as they share actionable insights for skillfully developing and managing a range of third-party and online program management agreements. In this webinar, panelists will explore critical elements to weigh before using third parties, risk assessment, negotiation, quality control, due diligence and monitoring. This complimentary webinar is…
Past Event
March 14, 2024
Improving Accreditation through NACIQI Oversight
At the Association for Education Finance and Policy (AEFP) Annual Conference on March 14, 2024, Ithaka S+R’s Bethany Lewis will present findings from a qualitative study examining the relationship between the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity (NACIQI) and individual higher education accrediting organizations, with a focus on meaningful ways NACIQI can influence accreditors’ behaviors that may lead to improved student outcomes. Learn more about the conference.
Blog Post
January 18, 2024
Understanding ROI on Postsecondary Education
Using Data to Support Strategic State Investments
The State Higher Education Executive Officers Association (SHEEO) recently shared findings from their annual survey, shedding light on the top ten policy priorities among the public executives in each state responsible for overseeing postsecondary education. Topping the list were three key areas: (1) supporting workforce and economic development, (2) ensuring adequate funding for public colleges and universities, and (3) addressing the growing concern among students and the public regarding the value of a college degree. States need better data…
Past Event
February 21, 2024
The Enormous Benefits of Credit Mobility Transparency: CUNY Transfer Explorer as a National Model
National Institute for Transfer Student Success Annual Conference
Having faculty work together to articulate courses and programs across institutions is notorious for taking years to complete, if it completes at all. In a session at the National Institute for Transfer Student Success Annual Conference in St. Louis, MO, Ithaka S+R’s Martin Kurzweil will join Lexa Logue and David Wutchiett to describe an alternative approach for facilitating student transfer consisting of obtaining high-quality credit transfer information and then making it public, enabling students intending to transfer and those persons…
Blog Post
November 30, 2023
Improving Data Collection and Management Practices to Understand Stranded Credits
Institutional debt is an understudied and overlooked type of student debt that hinders stopped-out students’ ability to complete or further their education. This specific debt often results in “stranded credits”—earned credits that students cannot access because their former institution is withholding their transcript or blocking registration until they settle their unpaid balance. Institution record systems are not designed to facilitate easy access to understanding who is affected by stranded credits. But, with small changes and greater collaboration, institutions…
Blog Post
November 10, 2023
What’s Next? Ideas for Future Exploration in Student Veteran Access and Success
This October, we embarked on a blog series focusing on the experiences of student veterans in higher education, sharing takeaways from our conversations with eight campus-based programs and non-profit organizations that support student veterans’ college success alongside the latest enrollment data. Those conversations provided insights into many best practices that institutions can employ to recruit, enroll, and graduate veteran students, while also introducing new questions and ideas for future work. In this installment, we identify…
Blog Post
November 9, 2023
Who Has Stranded Credits?
Insights from a New Ithaka S+R Survey
In August 2022, the Ohio College Comeback Compact (“Ohio Compact” or “Compact”) was launched to offer a pathway to re-enrollment for stopped-out college students with stranded credits in the Northeast Ohio region. The Compact allows stopped-out students to return to any of the eight participating public colleges and universities despite owing institutional debt and having their transcript withheld. Through the Compact, students are eligible to receive up to $5,000 in debt forgiveness and a release of their transcript…
Research Report
November 9, 2023
Institutional Supports for Students with Stranded Credits
Survey Results from the Ohio College Comeback Compact
As of 2023, 43.6 million borrowers owe more than $1.7 trillion in student loan debt. The burden of debt negatively impacts borrowers' ability to provide for their families, purchase a car, or buy a home. However, there is another, often overlooked, institutional debt that students may owe their former institutions after stopping out. It is estimated that 6.6 million students owe $15 billion in unpaid balances to their institutions.