After a successful pilot year and transition to full program implementation, the Ohio College Comeback Compact continues to show growth and positive student outcomes for adults with some college but no credential who departed postsecondary education with past due balances. With continued generous support from Lumina Foundation, The Kresge Foundation, and the Joyce Foundation, Ithaka S+R is pleased to continue partnering with the eight public colleges and universities in Northeast Ohio for the third year of the Compact.

The Compact provides an opportunity for adults who stopped out with institutional debt or past due balances to continue their education. It facilitates a collaborative approach to re-engaging adult learners with stranded credits and releasing transcript and registration holds, two key factors that previously prevented this population from returning to postsecondary education. In addition to releasing the holds, the Compact provides an opportunity for students to earn the elimination of their past due balances through successful progression toward a credential.

Growth in Enrollment of Compact-Eligible Students

The numbers tell a compelling story of how an intervention like the Compact can find success in re-enrolling a population of adult learners that have traditionally been excluded from broad adult learner re-engagement efforts. In the second year of the Compact, 344 additional Compact-eligible students returned to postsecondary education, more than double the number of students who returned in the pilot year. This brings the unduplicated headcount of Compact-eligible students returning to 500 unique students, representing a re-enrollment rate of 3.7 percent of all eligible students.

When viewed within the context of adult re-engagement efforts nationwide, the success of the Compact is even more impressive. Focusing on students under 65, 3.16 percent of eligible students re-enrolled during the 2023-24 academic year. According to the National Student Clearinghouse, that rate of re-enrollment is more than half a percentage point higher than the national return rate for adults with some college and no credential (SCNC) (2.56 percent) and more than a full percentage point higher than Ohio overall (2.05 percent). A key difference between the SCNC populations in the NSC data and the pool of Compact-eligible students is the existence of institutional debt, a factor that has historically served as a significant barrier to return. The Compact is effectively putting adult learners with institutional debt on a level playing field with their peers who do not face the same challenge.

In addition to strong growth of Compact-eligible enrollment overall, the Compact continues to be a useful tool to advance equity goals. Continuing a trend seen in the pilot year, the second year of the Compact saw historically underrepresented students continue to be overrepresented in the pool of enrollees, when compared to their representation in the pool of eligible students. Of all eligible students, 46 percent identified as a person of color and 62 percent received a Pell Grant in their previous enrollment; of all enrolled students, 61 percent identified as a person of color and 69 percent received a Pell Grant in their previous enrollment.

Persistence, Completion, and Debt Resolution

While enrolling students is a positive outcome, student persistence and completion are key metrics of a successful intervention. Sixty percent of Compact-eligible students who enrolled persisted for at least one additional term; twenty percent enrolled for three or more terms. The number of students whose debt was resolved yet continued progressing toward credential completion grew alongside overall enrollment each term. For example, more than one-third of Compact-eligible students enrolled in Spring 2024 with no institutional debt left to cancel. This demonstrates that many adult learners’ motivation to return is rooted in credential completion, rather than simply achieving debt resolution.

To that end, in the first two years of the Compact, 60 students completed a credential, representing 12 percent of all students who enrolled. These credentials included 11 certificates, 28 associate’s degrees, and 21 bachelor’s degrees. It should be noted that adult learners progress towards credential completion at a slower rate than their traditionally-aged classmates. Three-quarters of students in the Spring 2024 term were enrolled part-time; of part-time students, approximately half enrolled in 3-6 credits and the other half enrolled in 7-11 credits.

The vast majority of students who enrolled met some or all requirements to have their debt resolved. On average, only 11 percent of Compact-eligible enrolled students each term did not meet any of the requirements for debt resolution, meaning they neither completed the necessary number of credits nor satisfied their bill for the term.

Positive Return on Investment for Institutions

In addition to students receiving positive benefits of returning and having their debt resolved, institutions are seeing a positive impact on their bottom lines. Cumulatively, nearly $400,000 in past due balances held by Compact-eligible students have been resolved in the first two years of the program. We know that nominal debt is not the same as expected collections; institutions may expect to recoup only about 15 percent of past due balances via the collections process, meaning the actual value of debt payments foregone is approximately $60,000.

Tuition receipts were more than 25 times greater than forgone collections.

The tuition generated by the 500 Compact-eligible students who have returned approaches $1.6 million. In other words, tuition receipts were more than 25 times greater than forgone collections. As institutions continue to see enrollment growth and tuition revenue related to re-engaging this specific population of students, the financial benefit of the Compact and similar programs is becoming increasingly clear for both students and institutions.

Key Takeaways from the First Two Years

The Ohio College Comeback Compact has made significant strides in implementing an effective and collaborative solution to the challenge of stranded credits, administrative holds, and past due balances. By leveraging partnerships and a targeted intervention, the Compact has shown how a strategic approach can create pathways of access for a population of adult learners who were previously given few options to complete their credential. A few key observations from the first two years of the intervention highlight areas for continued exploration.

When given the opportunity to return, 95 percent of Compact-eligible students choose to return to their debt-holding institution. According to the National Student Clearinghouse, more than 60 percent of adults with SCNC choose to return to a different institution when they re-enroll. The targeted pool of Compact-eligible students appears to go against this trend, with 95 percent of those who return opting to do so at their debt-holding institution. This does not account for Compact-eligible students who may enroll somewhere other than the eight participating institutions, but does indicate that a preference for their original institution exists. The new federal rule limiting transcript withholding increases the importance for institutions of re-engaging their former, stopped-out students with debt, rather than encouraging their transfer through the continued existence of registration holds. When given the option, students appear to prefer to return to their original institution; when not given the option, students will collect their newly-available transcript and enroll elsewhere.

Robust marketing and outreach efforts are vital to building awareness and helping students navigate their return to postsecondary education. One of the most significant changes to the Compact between its pilot year and full implementation was the addition of an institution-neutral third party outreach provider to support robust marketing, communications, and coaching efforts. ReUp Education partnered with Ithaka S+R and all eight institutions to provide this service and contribute to the growth in enrollment. Collaboration across all these organizations has been key in connecting students to resources and support as they navigated the journey from awareness to enrollment. ReUp Education’s ability to connect with all students, regardless of their prior enrollment, has also supported a greater understanding of the motivations, needs, and challenges of Compact-eligible students, allowing Ithaka S+R and participating institutions to continue refining student-facing aspects of the intervention.

The return on investment for students, participating institutions, and Northeast Ohio continues to be positive. As students have enrolled, persisted, and completed credentials, Compact institutions have seen the financial and completion-related benefits of participation and Northeast Ohio benefits from a growing number of adults with the skills and credentials needed to fully participate in the local economy. What previously was a lose-lose-lose proposition—the presence of transcript and registration holds in response to past due balances—has become a win-win-win solution.

Looking Ahead

The Ohio College Comeback Compact has demonstrated that intentional, collaborative interventions can be an effective approach to re-engaging a population of adults with some college but no credential who have traditionally been excluded from adult re-engagement efforts. Through the support and collective buy-in of multiple stakeholders, hundreds of students have taken advantage of an opportunity to return to postsecondary education and continue their progress towards a high value credential. As the Compact continues to grow and evolve, it may serve as a model for similar efforts that seek to better serve and support adult learners with administrative barriers preventing their return. The benefits of participation and the value the Compact provides are evident for students, institutions, and the local economy.

If you would like to partner with Ithaka S+R to address barriers to adult learner re-engagement, whether through technical assistance or implementing a program similar to the Ohio College Comeback Compact, please contact Brittany Pearce, program manager, at brittany.pearce@ithaka.org.