While civics learning was marginalized in an era of standardized testing and fiscal constraints, more states are incentivizing students, schools, and districts to foster civics learning and engagement opportunities through civic diploma seals and school recognition programs. With an eye toward equitable implementation, these early adopters…

"Pathways to Implementation" highlights innovative strategies and effective models in career pathways policy, implementation, and programming, as well as challenges states encounter in this work. This seven-part series addresses the key elements of Bellwether's framework for career pathways policy implementation. Each brief defines the…

"Pathways to Implementation" highlights innovative strategies and effective models in career pathways policy, implementation, and programming, as well as challenges states encounter in this work. This seven-part series addresses the key elements of Bellwether's framework for career pathways policy implementation. Each brief defines the…

"Pathways to Implementation" highlights innovative strategies and effective models in career pathways policy, implementation, and programming, as well as challenges states encounter in this work. This seven-part series addresses the key elements of Bellwether's framework for career pathways policy implementation. Each brief defines the…

Education Savings Accounts (ESAs) offer parents a publicly funded, government-authorized savings account they can draw on for certain K-12 educational expenses. As these programs have expanded in recent years, they have become a flashpoint in education policy debates. For some, ESAs are an extension of existing private school choice programs'…

In 2015, Tennessee launched Tennessee Promise (TN Promise), one of the most comprehensive and well-funded statewide free-college scholarship programs in the country. To support TN Promise students, and especially those from the lowest-income households, tnAchieves, a key partner facilitating all non-financial components of TN Promise, implemented…

While about three-fourths of all public school districts offer dual credit opportunities in Career Technical Education (CTE) courses, many programs face gaps in alignment between secondary and postsecondary CTE programs that lead to quality and equity inconsistencies in early postsecondary opportunities (EPSOs) across career pathways, ultimately…

We analyze the rollout of a Statewide Dual-Credit (SDC) program intended to expand access to college-level courses during high school. We find that SDC increased early postsecondary course-taking among students in the middle of the achievement distribution, especially through courses in vocational subjects, without decreasing participation in…

Utilizing narrative inquiry and thematic analysis, this study followed up with adult students who initially participated in a qualitative project, Understanding How Students Reconnect: A Longitudinal Study (Collom et al., 2021). Five participants shared their experiences as adult students during COVID-19, which included their experiences shifting…

As college promise programs proliferate across the United States with noted intentions to promote access through increased affordability, it is necessary to understand the relationship between these programs and other forms of financial aid, including loans. Using federal, state, and program-level data, we leverage a natural experiment to estimate…

While research has documented outcomes for students served by promise programs, few studies have considered the behavior of institutions themselves in the promise era. A new source of revenue combined with larger and more diverse cohorts is likely to motivate changes in spending and staffing--decisions instrumental to student access and success.…

Tennessee was one of the 10 states selected to participate in New Skills for Youth (NSFY). NSFY, launched by JPMorgan Chase & Co. in 2016, is a $75 million, five-year initiative, aimed at strengthening and expanding high-quality career pathways for youth. As part of this initiative, the Council of Chief State School Officers, Advance CTE and…

The Career and Technical Education (CTE) playbook series has explored strategies and processes states can use to strengthen CTE program quality and provide students with pathways to postsecondary credentialing and middle- and higher-wage career opportunities. This fifth playbook in the series addresses the final set of steps for strengthening…

Objective: States increasingly create promise programs to increase college enrollment and degree attainment. The objective of this study was to understand the experiences of adult learners using the Tennessee Reconnect Grant (TN Reconnect) as they transitioned to becoming college students. Methods: Drawing upon interviews with 23 adult learners,…

Analysis of student-level data to inform policy and promote student success is a core function of executive higher education agencies. Postsecondary data systems have expanded their collection of data elements for use by policymakers, institutional staff and the general public. State coordinating and governing boards use these data systems for…