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August 2024 IllinoisCAN Newsletter
Illinois College Access Network Newsletter
August 2024
Welcome to IllinoisCAN's monthly newsletter.
The mission of IllinoisCAN is to improve postsecondary access and success for low-income and first-generation college students in Illinois. IllinoisCAN builds the capacity and effectiveness of college access organizations to help students reach their goals. IllinoisCAN monthly newsletters are intended to be for us and by us – professionals around the state working to improve college access.
In this issue:
Update on Access to the 2024-25 FAFSA Form for Individuals Without a Social Security Number
The U.S. Department of Education has announced "the extension of a process change that allows those without a Social Security Number (SSN) to immediately access the online FAFSA form after creating a StudentAid.gov account, as announced in the July 30, 2024 electronic announcement (GENERAL-24-95).
"This extension will continue until the Department both develops:
- A longer-term solution to the manual identity validation process that avoids the delays and confusion associated with the current process; and
- The ability for those without an SSN to utilize the FUTURE Act Direct Data Exchange (FA_DDX) to transfer their tax information into the FAFSA form."
Read the announcement at https://bit.ly/3WFx96r.
Workers with 4-Year Degrees Will Hold Most Good Jobs in 2031, Report Predicts
"The number of good jobs will grow substantially by 2031, and the majority of them will require at least a four-year degree, Georgetown University's Center on Education and the Workforce predicted in a new report. Researchers expect the number of good jobs for workers with a bachelor's degree or higher to increase by over 15 million from 2021 to 2031, according to the report. It defines good jobs as those offering a minimum of $43,000 per year and a median annual salary of $74,000 in 2022 dollars for workers aged 25 to 44. Meanwhile, the center predicted that the good jobs available to workers with a high school diploma or less will decline by almost 600,000 during that period."
Read the report at https://bit.ly/4dwXECx.
Illinois Lawmakers File SB3965 Equitable Funding Formula
"Senate Majority Leader Kimberly A. Lightford and Representative Carol Ammons announced ... the filing of legislation aimed at advancing a student-centered funding approach for the state's public universities that will make college more accessible for thousands more Illinois students aspiring to earn a degree.
"This legislation comes after over two years of discussions with stakeholders, young adults, advocates, university leaders, and legislators, spearheaded by the Commission on Equitable Public University Funding. SB3965, the Adequate and Equitable Funding Formula for Public Universities Act, outlines a student-focused university funding formula that considers what each university needs to meet its unique mission and serve its unique student population. It also identifies what each university can afford to spend based on current state appropriations and an estimate of the tuition and fees a university can and should collect from its students, and other available resources. This process identifies an institution's "adequacy gap," or how far it is from full funding, allowing the state to allocate funding in an equitable manner."
Read more at https://bit.ly/3SJPU7P.
Flawed FAFSA Rollout Leads to 11.6% Drop in Students Filling Out the College Financial Aid Form
"As this year's tumultuous rollout of the so-called Better FAFSA came to a close, the number of students who completed the form dropped 11.6% compared to last year, according to data from the National College Attainment Network.
"Nationally, 46% of graduating high school seniors this year completed the Free Application for Federal Student Aid by June 28, according to data released Saturday by the nonprofit. The form unlocks federal, state, and institutional aid to attend college and the application period closes on June 30 each year. The nonprofit NCAN advocates for equitable access to higher education and annually tracks FAFSA completion rates.
"States with laws requiring high school students to fill out the FAFSA before graduation and states with free college programs that incentivize students to submit the form saw higher completion rates than states without such programs or requirements. But even in states where filling out the FAFSA is tied to graduation, the percentages were lower than in past years."
Read the article at https://bit.ly/3WCDtf3.
A Suburban Family Promised Chicago Students Help Paying for College. Then They Backed Out.
"The college dreams of hundreds of low-income and first-generation students from Chicago are up in the air after a north suburban family backed out on a longstanding commitment to provide scholarships just weeks before the start of classes.
"Former Abbott Laboratories executive Jack Schuler announced earlier this month that his family's education foundation was suspending all scholarship payments."
Read the story at https://bit.ly/4dCNfV8.
How States and Districts Can Close the Digital Divide to Increase College and Career Readiness
The Center for American Progress recently released its first brief "in a summer 2024 series of products ... that will focus on policy recommendations to enhance the use of technology in K-12 public schools.
"This issue brief highlights resources that states and districts can access to work toward closing the digital divide and presents a case for future policymaking that prioritizes proactively addressing technological advancements to strengthen ed tech, ultimately increasing college and career readiness."
Read the brief at https://ampr.gs/4dwXH1b.
Reasons Students Consider Leaving or Stopping Out: Insights from the 2023 Diverse Learning Environments Survey
"Administered by the Higher Education Research Institute (HERI) and housed at the Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing (CRESST), the Diverse Learning Environments Survey (DLE) captures student perceptions regarding institutional climate; campus practices as experienced by faculty, staff, and peers; and student learning outcomes. Diverse student populations are at the center of the survey, and the instrument is based on studies of diverse student bodies and the complexity of issues that range from student mobility to intergroup relations. The 2023 DLE survey was fielded from October 2022 to April 2023. Data from the 2023 survey offer useful insights for college and university administrators, faculty, and staff to better understand students' experiences. This brief highlights differences in students' perceptions of their learning environments – even within the same campus contexts – to identify potential pressure points against persistence and completion."
Read the brief at https://bit.ly/4fHAhHU.
Race and Ethnicity in Higher Education
"The Race and Ethnicity in Higher Education project provides a data-informed foundation for those working to close persistent equity gaps by providing a glimpse into the educational pathways of today's college students and the educators wo serve them.
"This project examines data that provide a foundation from which the higher education community and its many stakeholders can draw insights, raise new questions, and make the case for why race and ethnicity still matter in American higher education."
Download the report at https://www.equityinhighered.org/.
Do you have events, news, requests, or resources to share with college access colleagues?
IllinoisCAN monthly newsletters are intended to be for us and by us – professionals around the state working to move college access forward. For inclusion in the next newsletter, send content by August 31st to ISAC.IllinoisCAN@illinois.gov.
Find us on Facebook:
- Like and Follow the Illinois College Access Network page
- Join the IllinoisCAN Facebook group established for members to connect and collaborate
Share IllinoisCAN with colleagues as we expand to our statewide network.
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