Daily Lumina News 041924

The challenges in implementing the long-overdue effort to simplify the Free Application for Federal Student Aid have affected millions of families, straining the capacity of college counseling and financial aid offices nationwide.
There’s time later to figure out what went wrong. For now, we have to work together to minimize any further harm to those most in need—our students—writes Lumina Foundation's Jamie Merisotis in his latest column for Forbes.

Keischa Taylor is a rare success story among college students who are also parents. She began her college education in her early 20s, balancing it with raising two sons and working retail jobs. And she just finished her bachelor’s degree last semester—at 53.
Many student-parents have long had to rely on themselves and each other, as Taylor did, to make it through college. Now, that's changing as student-parents begin to garner new attention.

Maria Artica is a first-generation student who plans to become a doctor. She is pursuing her dream by first getting an associate degree in life science at Richard Bland College, a two-year institution in Virginia.
As with many students, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid is Artica's gateway to paying for her education. However, ongoing issues with the form this year have left students like Artica with new affordability concerns and questions about the future.

As conservative opponents of diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts intensify and expand their battle against the work and the people who do it, administrators and faculty members are increasingly being caught in the crossfire.
In their responses, colleges have struggled to contend with anti-DEI legislation and political pressure as faculty members call on them to defend longstanding practices—and professors.

Timing matters for colleges in distress. How much cash is in the bank at a given moment can mean the difference between shuttering and staying open.
Given those time pressures, the Higher Learning Commission—which accredits around 1,000 institutions, primarily in the Midwest—is working to predict potential closures faster so it can protect students from the fallout.

There is no single issue preventing many student-parents from realizing their educational dreams; therefore, there is no single solution. There are several.
And the best way to assess and prioritize policy solutions for student-parent success may be to center student-parents themselves as co-collaborators. Nia Ariel Davis Sigon, an expert on equity and access, explains more.