U.S. Higher Education Policy
Forum: Increasing Access, Quality
and Completion by 2020
Martha Kanter
Under Secretary of Education
New York University
November 7, 2011
“By 2020, America will once again have the highest
proportion of college graduates in the world... So tonight
I ask every American to commit to at least one year or
more of higher education or career training... every
American will need to get more than a high school
diploma.”
President Barack Obama
Address to Joint Session of Congress
February 24, 2009
“America cannot lead in the 21st century unless we have
the best educated, most competitive workforce in the
world.”
President Barack Obama
Remarks on Higher Education
April 24, 2009
2
Education Requirements for Jobs, 2018
Some college
12%
Associate's degree
17%
Bachelor's degree
23%
Graduate degree
10%
High school graduate
28%
Less than high school
10%
Georgetown University, Center on Education and the Workforce, 2010 p. 14
http://www9.georgetown.edu/grad/gppi/hpi/cew/pdfs/FullReport.pdf
3
Earnings & Tax Payments by
Educational Attainment
$120,000
$100,000
$100,000
Taxes Paid
$91,900
After-Tax Earning
$25,600
$23,100
$80,000
$67,300
$55,700
$60,000
$16,200
$39,700
$40,000
$33,800
$8,700
$24,300
$20,000
$42,000
$9,300
$68,800
$74,400
$7,100
$51,100
$4,700
$19,600
$13,000
$42,700
$26,700
$31,000
$32,700
$0
No High
School
High School Some College Associate's
Degree
Bachelor's
Degree
Master's
Degree
Doctoral
Degree
Professional
Degree
Sources: The College
Board, Education
Pays, 2010
Projected Labor Supply and Demand, 2020
Source: McKinsey Global Institute, An Economy
that Works: Job Creation and America’s Future,
2011
The Achievement Gap Persists
Current Educational Attainment
% if Adults Age 25-34 with an Associate’s Degree or Higher
80.0%
68.9%
70.0%
60.0%
60.0%
50.0%
45.7%
40.0%
30.0%
26.5%
23.1%
20.0%
20.0%
18.8%
10.0%
0.0%
Black
Hispanic
American Community Survey 2007-2009
Asian
Pacific
Islander
Native
American
White NonHispanic
2020 Goal
Low Income Students have a Lower
Graduation Rate
70.0%
60.0%
58.0%
50.0%
43.3%
40.0%
35.8%
All income levels
30.0%
25.2%
22.9%
20.0%
19.1%
At or below poverty level
101-150% of poverty level
10.0%
0.0%
% of students who earned a % of students who earned a
bachelor’s degree at a 4-year certificate or associate's
degree at a public 2-year IHE
IHE within 6 years
within 6 years
U.S. Department of Education 2009
Beginning Postsecondary Students Study
Pell Grant Graduation Rates
are Inconsistent
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
Certificates - 2005
full-time cohort
within 2 years
Associate's - 2004
full-time cohort
within 3 years
Bachelor's - 2002
full-time cohort
within 6 years
0%
Complete College America, September 2011
Percentage of Adults Age 25-34
with Postsecondary Education
(Associate Degree of Higher in U.S. per 2008 Current Population Survey, U.S. Census Bureau)
Source: OECD Education at a Glance 2011
Table A1.3a Population with tertiary education (2009)
9
0.0%
-10.0%
-20.0%
-30.0%
-40.0%
-50.0%
-60.0%
Minnesota
New Mexico
North Dakota
Alabama
Alaska
West Virginia
Rhode Island
Wyoming
Hawaii
Delaware
Arkansas
Louisiana
Maine
Massachusetts
New Jersey
Maryland
Nebraska
Kentucky
Mississippi
Illinois
Tennessee
Florida
Connecticut
Indiana
Kansas
Montana
Utah
Vermont
Idaho
Iowa
Texas
Oklahoma
South Carolina
New York
Missouri
Virginia
Georgia
South Dakota
Wisconsin
Ohio
Oregon
North Carolina
Michigan
Nevada
Pennsylvania
Colorado
California
Washington
Arizona
New Hampshire
10.0%
No Data
No Data
Reductions in State Funding
Approximate Percentage Change in FY 2012 State
Operating Support for Four-Year Public Universities
AASCU, 2007-2011
President Obama’s
2020 Strategic Vision and Goals
Goal
• 10 million more graduates from community colleges,
four-year colleges and universities by 2020
(beyond 2+ million expected due to growth)
Goal
• Every American completes one year or more of
higher education or advanced training in his/her
lifetime
Result
• “Best educated, most competitive workforce
in the world”
11
Achieving the 2020
College Completion Goal
Increase the U.S. College Degree Attainment Rate
from 41 to 60%
10 million more Americans ages 25-34 with an associate
or baccalaureate degree
(8 million beyond 2+ million projected growth)
A third will come from high schools
- 3.7 million more high school graduates will
become college graduates
Two thirds will be adult learners
- 6.3 million adults will become college graduates
Note: The attainment rate reflects the number of individuals in the population
who have attained the degree or diploma. This differs from the
graduation/completion rate, which measures the number of individuals
within a cohort who graduate or complete their program within a certain amount
of time.
Postsecondary Strategic Objectives
Access
Close the opportunity gap by improving affordability and
increasing access to college and workforce training,
especially for adult learners, low-income students, and
underrepresented 21st century students.
Quality
Foster institutional quality with accountability and
transparency.
Completion
Increase degree and certificate completion and job
placement, with special attention to fast growing first
generation, under-represented and economically
disadvantaged populations.
13
The State of Our States:
A Snapshot in Time
States with the Highest Attainment Rates as
well as Graduation Rates
States with the Lowest Attainment Rates as
well as Graduation Rates
Attainment 6-Yr Grad
Rate
Rate
Connecticut
Iowa
Maryland
Massachusetts
Minnesota
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New York
Pennsylvania
Vermont
46.0
45.0
44.9
52.7
48.1
43.9
45.2
47.3
42.4
63.1
65.8
64.9
62.9
68.5
60.6
63.3
62.0
63.6
66.7
42.3
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
Idaho
Louisiana
Nevada
New Mexico
Oklahoma
West Virginia
Attainment
Rate
6yr Grad
Rate
30.2
30.4
31.6
27.0
33.5
28.6
27.4
29.0
30.3
28.8
47.2
30.0
27.6
42.1
40.3
41.5
39.6
39.4
46.8
45.5
IPEDS 2008-09: Bachelor’s Degree Seeking Students
American Community Survey 2007-2009
Noteworthy State Efforts
PERFORMANCEBASED FUNDING
COLLEGE AND
EFFICIENCY
TRANSFER AND
ACCELERATED AFFORDABILIIT
CAREER
AND
ARTICULATION
LEARNING
Y
ALIGNMENT
PRODUCTIVITY
Aligned
Standards -Early
Assessment
Illinois
Indiana
Michigan
P
P
P
New York
Ohio
Wisconsin
P
LEARNING
OUTCOMES
Dual or
Innovative Concurrent
Tuition
Cost
Enrollment -Transfer to
Stabilization Reductions -- Revamped
4-Year
- Financial
Productivity - Remedial Ed Aid
- Equity
- Course
Redesign
P
P
P
P
P
P
P
P
P
P
P
P
P
P
P
P
P
P
P
P
OUTREACH TO
ADULTS
Re-Engaging
College
Dropouts -Adult Ed -Career
Pathways
P
P
P
P
P
P
P
Mapping of MSIs and the 2020 Goal
Initiatives Launched / Ongoing
College Completion Tool Kit for States
 Data Dashboard for ED Website
 Request for Information (RFI)

Open Educational Resources (OER)
FIPSE/First in the World




$120 million FIPSE program in President’s 2012 budget
proposal
Modeled on ED’s I3 program
Will focus on innovation to raise capacity and efficiency in
teaching and learning
Aimed at catalyzing a cultural transformation in higher
education to create a new dynamic of rising productivity
and quality
Grants Reform



TRIO – GEAR UP
Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs)
International Education Programs
Civic Learning and
Democratic Engagement





Education’s role in a healthy democracy
AASCU leadership in American Democracy
Project
AACC’s Democracy Commitment Initiative
Report from National Task Force: Call to action
for government, K-12, higher education,
community organizations, employers,
foundations
Opportunity for creating a tipping point for
growing efforts in civic learning and engagement
Rulemaking

Teacher Preparation
◦ TEACH Grants
◦ Institutional Reporting & State Accountability
◦ Nominations due November 25th

Student Loans
◦
◦
◦
◦

Income-based repayment
“Naturally readable” Direct Loan regulations
Total and permanent disability
Nominations due by November 28th
Experimental Sites
◦ Pell Grants
◦ Student Eligibility
◦ Direct Loan Program
STEM Education

STEM degrees are in high demand
◦ 4 of the 10 fastest growing occupations are in STEM
fields

100,000 STEM teachers in the next decade
◦ Effective Teaching and Learning – Mathematics and
Science Partnerships
◦ Teacher and Leader Pathways
◦ Presidential Teaching Fellows
◦ STEM teacher loan forgiveness

35% of STEM majors complete their degrees
◦ Unacceptable rates for women and students of color
Federal Student Aid




Improve loan servicing to provide increased
college completion and avoid defaults
◦ In-school counseling and financial literacy
Implement gainful employment regulations
Increase college affordability by executing
the loan consolidation initiative
Enable IHEs to experiment with Pell grants
and loans to increase college completion
Strengthening Community Colleges
5 Million More Community College Graduates by 2020
◦ October 5, 2010
 First White House Summit for Community Colleges
◦ February-April 201
 Four Regional Summits held
◦ May 2011
 Virtual Community College Summit held
◦ September 2011
 $500 Million Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College &
Career Training Grants Awarded
◦ Spring 2012
 $500 million to be awarded in FY12 (Round 2)
◦ $5 billion investment from the American Jobs Act
Strengthening Community Colleges
College Affordability
 Reinventing Developmental Education
 Improving Transfer and Articulation
 Improving Business and Industry
Engagement
 Serving Veterans, Service Members, and
Their Families
 Scaling Effective Practices

White House Initiative
Completion Agenda
Community Action Summits and Tribal
Consultations
 Blue Ocean College Completion Strategy
 Data systems and indicators
improvements
 Completion philanthropy
 President’s Interfaith and Community
Service Campus Challenge

Today’s Opportunities

2012 Budget Proposals for Expanding Capacity
◦ $5,550 Pell Grants
◦ First In The World
◦ State College Completion Challenge Grants

Convening Higher Education
◦ ACE Presidential Commission
◦ SHEEOs, NASH



Identifying, Promoting and Scaling Best Practices
Increasing College-Ready High School Graduates
Improving Retention and Graduation Rates
◦
◦
◦
◦
Shorter time to degree
Streamlined business operations
Greater economies of scale for business functions
Program consolidation
A vibrant and prosperous America depends on its
educational system – in fact, the future of our democracy
depends on the positive contributions of critical thinkers
and engaged citizens.