Archive for the 'Time to degree' Category

As many of you know, Bob Dickeson retired from Lumina Foundation last December. It was Bob who envisioned creating this space to discuss college costs—especially as we approached our November 2005 summit in Washington, D.C. Since we launched this site last September, more than 120 of you have subscribed to this blog, indicating your interest in this discussion, and many others have offered comments to Bob and guest bloggers. So, I’m going to pick up where Bob left off, and I hope that you’ll join me.

We found Richard Colvin, director of the Hechinger Institute, taking notes at last week’s national summit on college costs. We told him we have a blog, and asked him to offer his observations. Here is his contribution, which we think is a terrific overview of the day’s events:

The most striking aspect of Lumina Foundation’s national summit on college costs on Nov. 2 was the bracingly honest conversations. The presenters did not minimize the challenges — educational, demographic, political and economic — that lie ahead for the U.S. and its colleges and universities. Nor did they shy away from acknowledging that not only have colleges and universities done little to address these challenges, they have little incentive to do so in the current seller’s education market. Except, of course, if they expect to survive over the long term.

I first became aware of summits and summitry when I was growing up and John Foster Dulles was the Secretary of State (yes, I am that old). Dulles practiced summitry during the Eisenhower administration when, as a nation, we had a common enemy and words like “brinksmanship” and “massive retaliation” crept into the national vocabulary.

Today, former adversaries are now allies, and the threats to our future are somewhat less nuclear.

Today, the threat we care about most at Lumina Foundation, however, is the tragic loss of human potential.

America is blessed with a cadre of “Education Governors” whose commitment to quality K-16 education continues long after their terms expire. One such leader is Gov. Bob Wise (WV), who is now speaking out from his position as president of the Alliance for Excellent Education. He offers the following observations:

With gasoline prices soaring in most parts of the country, many Americans are reminiscing about the days when gasoline was $1.50 a gallon or less. Given the combination of escalating college costs and high school classes that did not prepare them for the rigors of college, many of America’s college students are also longing to turn back the clock.

This week, The Chronicle of Higher Education is highlighting solutions to the rising cost of college, presented in a Lumina Foundation publication, Course corrections: Experts offer solutions to the college cost crisis.

A recent report on focus group research conducted by Widmeyer Communications reveals interesting public perceptions on the cost of college. It seems that parents and others across the country are concerned about a major aspect of college-going these days: the increasing amount of time it takes to complete a degree. Time to degree was a subject of concern referenced in the report of the National Commission on Accountability in Higher Education.

A log is a journal kept on board a ship to measure a journey’s progress. As this Web log embarks, it’s probably a good idea to announce where we’re headed. Lumina Foundation for Education’s destination is increasing the number of people who enter and succeed in postsecondary education, especially adult learners, low-income students, students of color and first-generation students.