Washington Student Achievement Council (WSAC) coordinated the development and administration of the Washington Student Experience Survey (WSES) in 2022 as a response to research showing that unmet basic needs represent an increasing barrier to the success of higher education students. This survey collected census-level data on basic needs security…

Student engagement in institutions of higher education has become a central priority for educators and administrators. What "student engagement" means for a diverse student body is an important question for public institutions with justice-related missions. As social welfare policy shifts to allow more recipients of public assistance…

Students from low-income families consistently trail behind their peers in retention and degree attainment. Research on college student experiences suggests that low-income students experience "cultural mismatch" at college--they feel that their backgrounds are at odds with the middle-class values dominant on campus (Armstrong &…