Lumina Foundation is working to increase the share of adults in the U.S. labor force with college degrees or other credentials of value leading to economic prosperity.
With its robotics lab, rapid prototyping suite, video studio, and collaborative research spaces, the Innovation Studio marks Worcester Polytechnic Institute as a leader in STEM education. In many ways, however, the physical facilities on the university’s 160-year-old campus—whether antique or state-of-the-art—aren’t the real story.
Students at Worcester Polytechnic aren’t bound by buildings. In fact, the school’s stellar reputation for fostering learning outside the classroom stretches across Massachusetts, the United States and, indeed, the world.
"Jorge" had confidence in his educational path. After saving enough money, he planned to transfer to Texas State University to study mechanical engineering. Then, state officials agreed to the federal government’s demand to stop offering in-state tuition rates to undocumented students living in Texas.
The ruling may have truncated the education dreams of thousands of students, including Jorge. Their aspirations—to become engineers or lawyers or join other professions—haven’t disappeared. But the road has grown steeper. And for some, it may now be out of reach altogether.
College financial aid administrators and student advocates say a Trump administration plan to crack down on fraud in the federal aid system could burden university staff and hinder access to college programs.
While they endorse the idea of combating fraud, they express particular concern that genuine Pell Grant recipients may become entangled in the detection system, unable to overcome the additional steps required for identity verification.
The House and Senate are advancing dramatically different approaches to federal education funding, with proposals that could fundamentally alter how millions of students access and pay for college.
The impact of these competing approaches would be profound. The House expansion could democratize access to career training, potentially addressing workforce shortages in critical industries. Meanwhile, the Senate's scholarship restriction may well discourage institutions from offering comprehensive aid packages to their neediest students.
For more than three decades, John Quackenbush has been working in biomedical research, investigating the mechanisms that cause healthy people—and ultimately their cells—to become diseased.
He has raised his son in Boston, built a life with his wife, and has a mortgage. However, with around $1 million of federal funding cut from his work at Harvard University, he is considering walking away from his research and moving out of the United States. Quackenbush isn’t alone. Other scholars at Harvard plan to follow his lead.
Sania Kamani wasn’t entirely clear about her path forward in life after high school, but she knew that four years of traditional college learning in classrooms was not for her.
Then, after learning about a registered apprenticeship program at Harper College in Palatine, Illinois, just northwest of Chicago, something clicked—and the connection between school, work, and her future became crystal clear.
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