June 14, 2022

Ivy Tech Spent Years Trying to Improve Rock Bottom Graduation Rates — and It’s Working

In a WFYI report on Ivy Tech Community College's commitment to improving graduation rates, CCRC Senior Research Associate and Program Lead Susan Bickerstaff discussed the pitfalls of developmental education, specifically its demotivating effect on first-year college students.

June 13, 2022

Why Does the Education Department Need a Chief Economist?

CCRC Senior Research Scholar Jordan Matsudaira has been named the first-ever chief economist for the U.S. Department of Education to bring more economic data and analysis to higher education policy decisions. Matsudaira talked with The Chronicle of Higher Education about the department’s new approach.

June 04, 2022

For LI's Community Colleges, Steep Challenges Ahead

CCRC Director Tom Brock talked to Newsday about the challenges facing Long Island's community colleges.

May 27, 2022

5 Years Ago, New York Made 4 Years of College Free for Residents. Here’s How It’s Going

CNBC reported on research from Judith Scott-Clayton, CJ Libassi, and Daniel Sparks on New York's Excelsior Scholarship. They found that only about 25% of eligible first-year CUNY students are Excelsior recipients and the lowest-income students are most likely left out.

May 23, 2022

Free College Programs Should Be Simple, New York’s Excelsior Scholarship Is Not

A recent story in Forbes reported on new research from Judith Scott-Clayton, CJ Libassi, and Daniel Sparks on New York's Excelsior Scholarship, noting that while Excelsior was the first free college proposal to cover both two and four-year institutions, critiques about the downsides of its complex design are holding true.

May 19, 2022

Hoops and Hurdles

Inside Higher Ed wrote about a new Urban Institute report on New York's Excelsior Scholarship by CCRC researchers Judith Scott-Clayton, CJ Libassi, and Daniel Sparks. They found that take-up of the last-dollar program, which targets and mostly serves middle-income students, is low. They hypothesize that the application process and complex contracts students must sign may impede access to benefits.

April 18, 2022

College Enrollment Is Falling. Here's How It Could Impact the Economy

CCRC Director Tom Brock talked to MarketWatch for a video about the drop in enrollment at community colleges and concerns about its effects on the economy and the health of the colleges. More apprenticeships could be one solution, Brock said.

April 14, 2022

States Look to Community Colleges to Fill Labor Gap

CCRC Director Tom Brock spoke with Stateline about the push to expand workforce training and some of the concerns about short-term programs.

March 21, 2022

Work Shift Explainer: California’s Urgent Work to Reform Remedial Ed

CCRC's Nikki Edgecombe and Jessica Brathwaite talked to Work Shift for this explainer on California’s remedial reform. It discusses what’s at stake for millions of vulnerable students, the accomplishments and challenges of the multi-year effort, and the continued investment that will be required to make it work in the nation’s largest public college system.

February 15, 2022

CCAC’s Enrollment Dropped During the Pandemic. What Could This Mean for Allegheny County?

CCRC Director Tom Brock spoke with the nonprofit Pittsburgh news website PublicSource for a story about enrollment drops at the Community College of Allegheny County. A long-term drop could affect the region's economic vitality, he said.