Goal five of the National Education Goals of America 2000 calls for dramatic improvement in the educational attainment of the nation's adult population. Encompassed in the goal is a charge to increase the number of college graduates who can think critically, communicate effectively, and solve problems. This paper focuses on measures that can be used to assure that this objective is being met. Several measures will be needed to address the many aspects of college learning that contribute to the development of higher order skills. A set of six indicators is proposed, each of which is expected to promote and gauge progress. The proposed measures will focus on the following areas: (1) opportunities for secondary school students to engage in college-level learning; (2) coherence and depth in college programs; (3) contributions of disciplinary associations to the structure of undergraduate major programs; (4) creation and operation of departmental assessment programs; (5) employer and educator perceptions of work readiness in college graduates; and (6) levels of literacy in adult and young adult populations. Reviews by N. Beck, N. Frederiksen, and J. Herman of this position paper are provided. (Author/SLD)