All posts by WPAdmin
NACAC Urges Support and Flexibility for Students and Schools Affected by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma
NACAC extends its deepest sympathies to colleagues, students, and others in Texas, Florida, and other areas who have been affected by the catastrophic rains and dangerous floodwaters caused by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma.
Feds Offer Tips for Students Seeking Work-Study Funds
Counting on Federal Work-Study funds to help pay for college?
Officials at the US Department of Education want to make sure students understand the program’s quirks. For instance, being awarded work-study funds doesn’t guarantee you a job.
“Some schools may match students to jobs, but most schools require the student to find, apply for, and interview for positions on their own, just like any other job,” according to a recent article shared on the department’s Homeroom blog. “Either way, students who are interested in work-study or who have already been awarded work-study should contact the financial aid office at their school to find out whether positions are available, how to apply, and how the process works at their school.”
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NACAC Urges Passage of DREAM Act
NACAC expressed its strong support today for the reintroduction of the DREAM Act, which would provide certain undocumented students the opportunity to become lawful permanent residents and eventually apply for citizenship.
The DREAM Act, first proposed in the early 2000s and reintroduced this afternoon by Senator Lindsay Graham (R-SC) and Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL), would also allow states to grant in-state tuition to DREAMers — making a college degree more affordable for thousands of students.
Achieving Balance: Tips to Help Students Navigate Their Freshman Year
Editor’s note: A version of this post originally appeared on Admitted in September 2016. It’s being republished as part of NACAC’s Best of the Blog series.
To-do lists, reasonable goals, and regular exercise can help freshmen stay on track.
Those tips and more are included in a USA Today piece aimed at helping first-year students maintain their health and happiness.
“Achieving life balance is one of the largest challenges that college freshmen face,” the article notes. “After all, you must juggle a wide variety of activities — from your coursework to your social life to your extracurriculars — in addition to monitoring your mental and physical well-being.”
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#NACACreads: For-Profit Colleges Examined in ‘Lower Ed’
How do students interpret the value of for-profit colleges?
You may be surprised. Tressie McMillan Cottom — author of Lower Ed — certainly was.
While the high cost of attending for-profit schools automatically triggers concerns about debt and default for many college counselors, price is often viewed in an entirely different light by students.
“I was stunned to learn that students used high price to indicate institutional quality,” she tweeted during a Monday #NACACreads discussion of her book. “That alone subverts almost everything we know!”
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YesU: New App Helps Families Navigate the Financial Aid Process
New York Times bestselling author Wes Moore launched BridgeEdU with one goal in mind: To increase college access and completion rates for low-income and first-generation students.
The program, which began in Baltimore in 2014, uses a high-tech, high-touch academic support model to help students transition during their first year of college. But as Moore and his staff quickly discovered, the complex process of applying for financial aid can create roadblocks for even the most motivated students.
Case in point? Although all members of the inaugural class of BridgeEdU scholars reported that they had applied for financial aid, the staff soon discovered that a whopping 75 percent hadn’t completed the FAFSA, and most of the students had not created accounts with Maryland’s state grant agency.
The experience inspired BridgeEdU staff to create YesU — a mobile app released in 2016 that offers customized step-by-step support to students across the nation as they apply for financial aid.
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Campus Tour Tips from a College President
Editor’s note: A version of this post originally appeared on Admitted in March 2016.
Spring break is just around the corner at high schools across the country and many juniors will use the time to check out college campuses.
For one dad, the season brings back fond memories. L. Jay Lemons recently shared tips for making the most out of campus visits.
Lemons, president of Susquehanna University (PA) — a NACAC member institution — knows of what he speaks. In addition to leading a liberal arts institution, in recent years he’s toured dozens of college campuses as a parent.
Researcher: US High Schools Must Invest in College Counselors
Editor’s Note: A version of this post originally appeared on Admitted in December 2015.
US high schools must devote more time to college counseling if they want to “see the fruit of other investments,” according to one education researcher.
In a 2015 column, New America staffer Abigail Swisher makes the case that students need both rigorous curriculum and personalized guidance to achieve their postsecondary plans.
“If we want to recreate the American high school as a place where all students have the resources for success in college and career, we need to reinvent the role of counselors,” Swisher writes, citing data from NACAC and other education associations. “This could mean reducing the caseload or number of responsibilities each counselor has, or it might mean moving to an entirely different model of support.”
Continue reading Researcher: US High Schools Must Invest in College Counselors
New Report Highlights Popular Community College Majors
Transportation and law enforcement majors are seeing declining enrollments at America’s community colleges, while history and math programs remain popular among students at two-year schools.
Those findings are included in a new report released this week by the National Student Clearinghouse.
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