Reducing Barriers to Postsecondary Education

Reducing Barriers to Postsecondary Education

Educational Attainment Task ForceNovember 14, 2012

Office of Performance EvaluationsAmy LorenzoBryon Welch

2

Major Findings

• Barriers fall into three main areas– Academic readiness– Access– Affordability

• No accurate baseline on current education levels

• Long-term planning will require better coordination of education and workforce needs


3

Nine Recommendations

• Board of Education– Use and management of data– Scholarships– Strategic growth and partnerships

• Department of Education– Counselors

• Department of Labor– Data sharing

• Legislature– Financial support of postsecondary education


Measuring Postsecondary Education

5

Board of Education Goal

• By 2020, 60% of Idaho residents between the ages of 25 and 34 will have a college degree or certificate – Georgetown study suggested 61% of jobs will require

postsecondary education in 2018• Board will measure goal beginning with

programs that take at least one year to complete • There is no current way to establish a baseline or

measure progress using new criteria


6

Educational Attainment of Idahoans 25–34 Years Old, 2010

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60%

1%

3%

1%

18% 9% 21% 8%

Doctorate degree Master's degree Professional degree beyond a bachelor's degree

Bachelor's degree Associate's degree 1 or more years of college credit, no degree

Some college, but less than 1 year

31.5% 52.9%

Boar

d 60

% G

oal


7

Data Limitations

• No way to track one-year certificates• Private institutions and proprietary schools will

not report to longitudinal data system • System will not be used to measure progress• 29% of students in sample data will not be

captured in system• Public institutions have been tasked with

increasing graduates, but no clear link with growth strategy and employment projections


8

Recommendation—Board of Education

4.1: To accurately set a baseline and measure progress, consider the following:– Which institutions or schools offer programs of

at least one year?– Are those entities reporting to the board? If not,

how will they be accounted for?– What data will the board use to determine

current baseline and measure progress?


9

Recommendation—Board of Education

4.2: Establish performance measures and benchmarks to strategically increase the number of degrees awarded at public institutions– Formally coordinate with private institutions and

proprietary schools– Link with recommendation 5.1


Identifying Barriers

Barriers—Students

Percent Responded

Ability to pay for college 83Access to financial aid, such as grants or loans 34Access to scholarships 31

Likelihood of getting a job once I complete additional education 31

Insufficient scholarship amounts 25

Fear or uncertainty about postsecondary academic expectations 24Poor academics while in high school 21

Family or other obligations 15Lack of support from my parents or family 12Lack of interest in attending college 11

When thinking about education after high school, what are the top three challenges you face in making decisions? (N=672)

Barriers—Counselors and TRIOIn your experience, what are the three most common barriers currently facing students in making decisions about postsecondary education? (N=76)

Percent Responded

Ability to pay for college 71

Little or no parental support 46

Fear or uncertainty about postsecondary academic expectations 38

Poor academic performance while in high school 34

Family or other obligations 28

Insufficient scholarship amounts 18

Access to financial aid, such as grants or loans 17

Lack of awareness of the importance of college 16

Other 13Lack of interest in attending college 9

Access to scholarships 3

13

Academic Readiness

• Current Efforts– Requiring college entrance exams• Students can take SAT for free

– Implementing Common Core Standard– Providing more advanced options• AP• Dual credit

– Offering professional-technical preparation


14

Access

• Barriers– Insufficient parental support– High student-to-counselor ratio– Lack of statewide counselor coordinator

• Current efforts– College Access Challenge Grant– GEAR UP– TRIO– Career Information System (CIS)


15

Recommendations—Department of Education

2.1: Dedicate a position to serve as a statewide K–12 counselor coordinator, particularly related to college and career information.

2.2: Take steps to decrease the student-to-counselor ratio, particularly for those positions that provide education and career counseling.


16

Recommendation–Board of Education

3.2: Work with the Legislature to create a strategy to financially support the growth of statewide outreach programs to increase college access that can be sustained in the absence of external financial resources.


17

Affordability

• Barriers– Tuition has increased faster than income– State-funded financial aid lower than neighboring

states• Current efforts– State scholarships are primarily merit based

• Promise scholarships– Promise A– Promise B

• No outcome data on recipients


18

Recommendations—Board of Education3.1: Work with the Legislature to review current

appropriations for need-based scholarships and consider reallocating funds from merit-based scholarships or creating new scholarships that are primarily need based.

4.3: Collect data on scholarship recipients and track academic progress to better assess effectiveness of existing scholarships.


Education and Employment

Idaho Employment by Education and Training Level, 2002–2018

2002 2004 2006 2008 20180%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

36.6% 35.0% 34.0% 37.5% 37.5%

34.4% 35.8% 36.8% 32.6% 31.8%

29.0% 29.1% 29.2% 29.9% 30.6%

Short-term on-the-job training Moderate to long-term on-the-job trainingJobs needing postsecondary education

21

Understanding Employment Data

• Different definitions for “postsecondary education”

• Projections differ but follow similar trends– Department of Labor• 2008 = 29.9% 2018 = 30.6%

– Georgetown University• 2008 = 60.5% 2018 = 61.2%

• Both projections indicate very little change over time


22

Tracking Graduates Into the Workforce

• Idaho does not track most postsecondary graduates into the work force

• Preliminary efforts in several areas– Statewide longitudinal data system– Formal data sharing agreements– WICHE pilot project


23

Linking Employment and Education

• Long-term approaches to consider:– Should Idaho first increase the number of college

graduates in order to attract employers that require a more educated workforce?

– Does Idaho need to first attract the employers requiring an educated workforce in order to incentivize more students to pursue postsecondary education?

– Should coordinated education and employment initiatives take place simultaneously?


24

RecommendationsBoard of Education and Department of Labor

5.1: The Board of Education should develop a strategic plan for meeting its goal to produce the right types of graduates for the right types of jobs available in Idaho now and in the future.

5.2: The Board of Education should work with postsecondary institutions and the Department of Labor to track graduates of Idaho’s postsecondary institutions into the workforce. The Department of Labor should then enter into new or expand existing agreements to track Idaho’s postsecondary graduates in the workforce outside of Idaho.


25

Summary of Findings

• Barriers fall into three main areas– Academic readiness– Access– Affordability

• No accurate baseline on current education levels

• Long-term planning will require better coordination of education and workforce needs


Documents

Reducing Barriers to Postsecondary Education