Daily Lumina News 072823

Support services for college students are more than a nice benefit—they’re essential. Resources such as academic advising, financial aid services, and mental health counseling can mean the difference between stopping out and graduating.
But in many instances, students are unaware of these services, don’t realize that they need them, or don’t know how to access them. A new report from Tyton Partners takes a closer look at this disconnect—and the steps institutions can take to make their student supports more effective.

You can’t measure heart, people often say. But some selective colleges have long wanted to know more about who applicants are, what they value, and how well they might fit in on their campus.
A new initiative by the National Association for College Admission Counseling to assess students’ intangible qualities could change the conversation about what matters in admissions.

After two years of college enrollment doldrums following the COVID-19 pandemic, higher education leaders finally have a bit of good news they can celebrate.
Almost 76 percent of the 2.4 million students who entered college for the first time in the fall of 2021 returned to college in the fall of 2022, according to a new report from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center.

Juan Garcia was proud to walk across a stage this spring at Venture Academy in Stockton to receive a medal for the state seal of biliteracy, proof that he can speak, read, and write in English and Spanish.
Yet many students, particularly English learners, don’t receive the state seal of biliteracy—even though they are bilingual—because there aren’t enough options to show students are proficient in English. A new bill aims to change that.

For many institutions, the critical lens through which law enforcement has been viewed following the murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer is contributing to lower enrollments in criminal justice programs.
But some two-year colleges are seeing a steady or even increasing enrollments in those programs, thanks in part to staying flexible in the courses offered and how they are presented.

New College of Florida, a public college on the state's west coast with fewer than a thousand students, is known for its focus on sustainability and lack of traditional grading. Over the past year, the school has become a focal point for Governor Ron DeSantis to roll out his higher education agenda.
This episode of the NPR Politics Podcast dives into the evolution of New College of Florida and its leading role in DeSantis's fight to reshape education in the Sunshine State.