Understanding the Excellence Gap & Valuing Community College

Students from Loudoun County Public Schools participate in a robotics competition as part of a rigorous STEM enrichment program for high ability students with financial need.

July 19, 2019 – Here’s what we’re reading this week about the issues affecting high-achieving students. Articles describe growing recognition for the value of community colleges. Also, read about the growing excellence gap in our new K-12 research brief.

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Elementary & Secondary Education:

  • Education Next quotes researcher Jonathan Plucker in an article describing math enrichment programs for high-achieving students: “The country needs to develop talented, visionary problem solvers, yet we’re not finding ways to get enough of that talent. We have a very diverse student population that gets more and more diverse every year; those are a lot of talented kids that are totally sidelined.”
  • For The Thomas B. Fordham Institute, Chester E. Finn, Jr., states that “there’s no agreement on who’s gifted, what exactly ‘gifted education’ is, or how it should be done.” Finn shares additional findings and insights from a recent Institute for Educational Advancement survey.

 

Higher Education:

  • In Community College Daily, Lynn Tincher-Ladner writes that students should enter community college with a tranformative (rather than transactional) approach, in order to have an immersive and successful experience. Phi Theta Kappa’s undergraduate research program, Honors in Action, is one such immersive opportunity.
  • “As university tuition costs rise and community colleges become more attractive to some students, donors are taking notice,” states The Chronicle of Philanthropy. “Community colleges today serve 41 percent of all undergraduates in the country.”

 

Cooke Foundation Highlights:

  • The excellence gap is growing. Our new research brief looks at NAEP data and finds that lower-income students are increasingly less likely than their peers to attain an advanced level of achievement. Philanthropy News Digest shares a summary of the brief’s findings.
  • Four Cooke Scholar alumni — Aaron Fulkerson, Samantha Pratt, Richael Young, and Daniel Leon-Davis — share the lessons they’ve learned as entrepreneurs. Explore their journeys in an immersive, interactive platform.
  • Cooke College Scholar Hangyul “Lyna” Kim and Cooke College Scholar Semifinalist Christian Alexander are among just 16 Los Angeles students selected as Milken Scholars. Lyna has contributed to research on solar thermal fuels and organized programs for English Language Learners, hands-on science opportunities, and served as editor-in-chief of her high school’s literary journal. Christian organized social events for senior citizens in his community and designed a robotic arm to assist the elderly and disabled.

 

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Photo header: Students from Loudoun County Public Schools participate in a robotics competition as part of a rigorous STEM enrichment program for high ability students with financial need.