Nontraditional Ideas & Individualized Plans

Posted April 5, 2019 | By Cooke Foundation Staff

Cooke Scholars learn about college options at Scholars Weekend 2016

April 5, 2019 – Here’s our weekly roundup of education news you may have missed. Income share agreements and transfer students are the focus of higher education coverage. Other articles discuss promising outcomes from pre-K programs and personalized learning plans.

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Elementary & Secondary Education:

  • WAMU 88.5’s DCist celebrates the tenth anniversary of Washington, DC’s public pre-K program for 3- and 4-year-olds. By providing early education at no cost to families, the district’s pre-K program is one intervention for narrowing kindergarten-readiness gaps between students with financial need and their more affluent peers.
  • The Education Redesign Lab at the Harvard Graduate School of Education shares best practices for implementing Individualized Learning Plans (ILPs) and other personalized plans that can support student success. State and organization programs, including the Cooke Young Scholars Program, use ILPs to outline educational needs and goals for students.

 

Higher Education:

  • “The divide between rich and poor students could hardly be more vivid than it is at [University of Southern California], where the children of celebrities and real estate moguls study alongside the children of nannies and dishwashers,” writes The New York Times in an article about the experiences of students from different socioeconomic backgrounds.
  • Even when college is tuition-free, balancing work and family obligations with homework creates many challenges for adult learners. NPR describes how the Tennessee Reconnect program is working to address student support.
  • The promise of college access through Income Share Agreements (ISAs) is often met with concerns about consumer protections. In Forbes, Alison Griffin outlines a balance for policymakers and advocates.

 

Cooke Foundation Highlights:

  • Very few community college students enroll at selective four-year colleges and universities — but those who do are more likely to graduate than students coming from high school or transferring from other four-year institutions. Dr. Jennifer Glynn, our director of research and evaluation, summarizes her recent findings in a piece for the Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT).
  • The life of a lawyer isn’t always as seen on TV and film. Cooke Scholar Ricky Steelman addresses popular misconceptions about a day in the life of an attorney and outlines steps for students to explore this career.
  • In The EvoLLLution, Jenny Rickard describes how The Common Application is working with institutional leaders and organizations like the Foundation to remove barriers in the transfer admissions process.

 

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Photo header: Cooke Scholars learn about college options at Scholars Weekend 2016.