tag: Rural students

About 60 million individuals—roughly 19 percent of the US population—live in rural areas. Rural students graduate high school at higher rates than the national average (90 percent, compared to 87 percent nationally), yet only 19 percent of them go on to obtain a postsecondary degree, below the national average of 33 percent. Fewer rural students enroll in college, and when they do, they are more likely to drop out before obtaining a credential. That’s why Ithaka S+R recently launched the…

Ithaka S+R is delighted to welcome four summer interns who will contribute to projects across our higher education research and advisory portfolios: Jennifer Butler, Beza Taddess, William Redding, and Brianna Zichettella. Jennifer Butler, a PhD student in sociology and social policy at Princeton University, will join the American Talent Initiative (ATI) team, contributing research and content development on topics related to bachelor’s degree attainment, access, persistence, and student success. Beza Taddess, a PhD student in sociology at Princeton University…

Late last year, we launched the Rural Student Success Network. The 17 institutions participating in this learning cohort will develop action plans to support student success in three priority areas: helping community college transfer students complete their bachelor’s degrees, enrolling and supporting adult learners, and aligning academic offerings with regional labor market needs.

With support from ECMC Foundation, Ithaka S+R is forming a network of rural-serving institutions supporting student success and economic mobility. The two-year grant will help rural-serving institutions support community college transfer students and adult learners, and align their program offerings with local workforce needs. Rural-serving institutions are engines of opportunity and vital to their communities. Yet, many face unique challenges: shifting demographics, declining enrollment, and limited resources. Boosting enrollment, improving student outcomes, and aligning degree offerings with local and…

In February I attended two virtual conferences—From Small Town to Campus (February 10-11) and Roadmaps to Rural Student Success (February 23-24)—both centering on the experiences of rural students pursuing and obtaining higher education degrees. A bevy of speakers and attendees shared personal experiences about growing up rural or working with students from rural backgrounds. As these talented individuals spoke on the advantages and challenges associated with rural student success, a number of themes emerged, not only across sessions,…

The American Talent Initiative (ATI), a coalition of high-graduation-rate colleges and universities committed to enrolling and graduating more low- and middle-income students, began a webinar series on special interest topics that we hope will elevate best practices in recruiting talented low- and moderate-income students. This summer, we hosted a webinar on the challenges of identifying, recruiting, and enrolling rural students. In this post, we summarize the key research and best practices presented on the webinar. What is the definition…