Expanding Career Pathways to Maximize Student Opportunities
June 7, 2023 2:00-3:00 PM
Learn MoreThe reauthorization of the Higher Education Act (HEA) provides a critical opportunity to eliminate race- and income-based disparities in college preparation, enrollment, persistence, and completion. All4Ed believes these disparities are caused, at least in part, by inequities at the high school level that lead to inadequate preparation for higher education.
As Congress develops its proposal to reauthorize HEA, All4Ed urges it to include several pieces of legislation described in this fact sheet.
Eighty percent of good paying jobs require postsecondary education, and 56 percent require a bachelor’s degree or higher.1 In fact, all but one of the fastest-growing jobs that pay more than $50,000 per year require postsecondary education.2
Despite the level of education required by the job market, students are insufficiently prepared for, and have inequitable access to, higher education. The United States has reached its highest high school graduation rate on record—84.6 percent. Nonetheless, 70 percent of beginning students at public two-year colleges require remediation in college to master academic content they should have learned in high school, including nearly 80 percent of Black college students and 75 percent of Latino college students.3 Students who come from privilege—the top socioeconomic quintile—have a 50 percentage-point advantage in college enrollment compared to their peers in the lowest quintile.4 Overall, only 60 percent of first-time college freshmen graduate within six years—with major completion gaps between White students (64 percent) and students who historically have been underserved (21 percent for Black students and 32 percent for Latino students).5
The reauthorization of the Higher Education Act (HEA) provides a critical opportunity to eliminate race- and income-based disparities in college preparation, enrollment, persistence, and completion. The Alliance for Excellent Education (All4Ed) believes that these disparities are caused, at least in part, by inequities at the high school level that lead to inadequate preparation for higher education. To address these inequities, a reauthorized HEA must
As Congress develops its proposal to reauthorize HEA, All4Ed urges it to include the pieces of legislation described in the remainder of this document.
Reduce the Need for Postsecondary Remediation: PREPARE Act
Poor preparation for postsecondary education costs students extra time and money to earn a degree and, in many cases, inhibits students’ chances of earning a degree at all. Research shows that first-year students seeking bachelor’s degrees who take remedial course work are 74 percent more likely to drop out of college than students who do not need remedial course work. Of those students who do take remedial course work, and ultimately earn their degrees, they take nearly one year longer to do so.6
The Promoting Readiness in Education to Prevent Additional Remediation and Expense (PREPARE) Act, introduced by Senators Doug Jones (D-AL), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), and Maggie Hassan (D-NH), authorizes grants to states to align high school and postsecondary education and reduce the need for postsecondary remediation. States receiving grants are required, among other things, to
States must reserve at least 80 percent of PREPARE Act funds to make competitive subgrants to eligible entities that consist of a partnership between at least one local education agency (LEA) and an IHE or higher education system operating in the state. Eligible entities that include a high-need LEA, an LEA that serves a high-need high school, or a high-need IHE, among other things, receive priority consideration. Eligible entities must implement innovative, evidenced-based practices to improve high school education and college preparation and to strengthen remedial education at the postsecondary level.
Accelerate Time to Degree: Fast Track To and Through College Act
While it is critical to improve college remediation for students who are underprepared, research shows that one-quarter of students are academically ready for college before twelfth grade begins. Of the estimated 850,000 students who are college ready early, 30 percent are from low-income families; among these students from low-income families, one-quarter are students of color.7 Instead of relegating high-achieving students to a traditional high school course sequence, students should be able to enroll in college-level course work as soon as they demonstrate college readiness.
The Fast Track To and Through College Act aims to increase college completion and reduce college costs by rethinking senior year of high school and accelerating time to degree. It authorizes competitive grants to states that will provide all college-ready students in all school districts access to two new “Fast Track” pathway options:
Grant funds will be awarded to partnerships of state K–12 education agencies, public higher education systems, and school districts to implement programs and activities that improve student preparation for, and participation in, accelerated academic work. Funds will enable states to adopt statewide policies for identifying eligible college-ready high school students based on multiple indicators and to develop credit-transfer agreements and AP/IB exam policies to ensure that college-level courses offered in “Fast Track” pathways follow students from high school to higher education and result in useable credits at all in-state public colleges and universities. In addition, states can use funds to
Finally, to make “Fast Track” participation widely available for students from low-income families and help expand access to early postsecondary course work, federal Pell grants could cover dual- and concurrent-enrollment costs for eligible students without affecting their twelve-semester lifetime eligibility to receive a Pell grant.
Expand Access to Advanced Course Work: Go to High School, Go to College Act
The benefits of taking college-level course work in high school extend to all students, not just those who are college ready. Research finds that students who experience rigorous course work in high school demonstrate readiness for college-level work and complete postsecondary credentials at substantially higher rates than their peers experiencing less-rigorous preparatory course work. Programs such as dual enrollment and ECHSs provide students with rigorous course work experiences, with striking outcomes for historically underserved students. Students who attend ECHSs are three times more likely to obtain an associate’s degree within six years of graduating from high school than those who attend traditional high schools.8
The Go to High School, Go to College Act introduced by Senators Rob Portman (R-OH) and Mark Warner (D-VA) and by Representatives Marcia Fudge (D-OH) and Elise Stefanik (R-NY) creates the College in High School Federal Pell Grant Pilot Program to allow students from low-income families to earn college credits while still in high school at no cost. The bill authorizes a pilot program for 250 IHEs to allow high school students participating in dual-enrollment programs offered by the IHEs the opportunity to apply for Pell grant funding to pay for those courses. The pilot program is modeled after the U.S. Department of Education’s (ED’s) Experimental Site for Dual Enrollment and builds upon the experimental site in two key ways:
Improve Affordability via College Savings Accounts: American Dream Accounts Act
The rising cost of college attendance prevents many students from earning postsecondary degrees. Even for students with financial assistance, college costs can be unmanageable. Research from the National College Access Network finds that just 48 percent of community colleges and 27 percent of four-year public institutions are affordable for the average Pell grant recipient.9 To assist in financing postsecondary education, college savings account programs are emerging as a promising practice to help students save for college, develop a college-bound identity, and succeed in college.10
The American Dream Accounts Act has been introduced by Senators Chris Coons (D-DE) and Marco Rubio (R-FL) since the 113th Congress, but it has yet to be introduced in the 116th Congress. The bill authorizes ED to award competitive grants to state and local partnerships to create American Dream Accounts, which are personal online accounts for students from low-income families that monitor postsecondary readiness and include a college savings account. Grantees would be required to open American Dream Accounts for participating students no later than ninth grade. Each American Dream Account would do the following: