41 million working-age Americans attended some college but have no credential to show for it, due to financial, administrative, or practical obstacles that stand in their way.
At Ithaka S+R, we’ve prioritized streamlining the path for and supporting adults on their way to a credential of value. Working across multiple states, we’ve seen significant positive outcomes for both adult learners and higher education institutions, with the promise of more to come.
Ohio College Comeback Compact
Since 2022, the Ohio College Comeback Compact has made strides to offer Northeast Ohioans with some credits and no credential a path back to continue their education. Through the program, stopped-out learners can re-enroll at one of eight participating colleges and get back on track to complete their degrees with up to $5,000 in institutional debt forgiveness.
Discover more:
- Turning Debt into Credentials: The Ohio College Compact Continues to Benefit Adult Learners, Institutions, and Northeast Ohio
- Removing the Institutional Debt Hurdle: Findings from an Evaluation of the Ohio College Comeback Compact
- Second Chances: A Qualitative Assessment of the Ohio College Comeback Compact
Supporting adult learners across the US
We’re collaborating with higher education state and system offices across the country to address the barriers facing adult learners.
- In Kentucky, a technical assistance project in collaboration with the Kentucky Council for Postsecondary Education worked to identify barriers to re-enrolling adult learners and assess intervention opportunities.
- In North Carolina, we collaborated with the University of North Carolina system to assess the scope of unpaid balances and administrative holds and provide recommendations to re-enroll and re-engage a critically underserved student population.
- In Pennsylvania, we are facilitating a community of practice with the Pennsylvania Department of Education that unites a wide range of postsecondary education institutions across the state to set ambitious goals and share promising practices for institutions to re-enroll and support adult learners.
- In New Jersey, we’re working with the New Jersey Office of the Secretary of Higher Education to assess current initiatives to support adult learners in the state, propose improvements and interventions, and build a community of practice invested in removing barriers to re-enrollment.
- In Tennessee, we are collaborating with the Tennessee Board of Regents, Tennessee Higher Education Commission, and a number of community college practitioners from across the state to better understand the challenges adults with some college but no credential face and identify practical solutions for implementation in the coming academic year.