A new report on Black students in the community college system found fewer are signing up to attend two-year schools, and the college enrollment downturn has been even sharper in the pandemic.

Debra West, chancellor of Arkansas State University Mid-South, an Arkansas college which has started to buck the trend, said her two-year school also has seen declining enrollment, and the drop was more dramatic among white students than Black students. But West pointed out the school has renewed its focus on adding programs to attract more students of color.

One popular course of study trains people for the in-demand field of commercial truck driving.

"The other area that we think we have tremendous room for expansion in is in health care," West explained. "We're going to start by focusing on our EMT program and hopefully expanding that into a paramedic program, because we know there's a lot of interest in health care programs in our area, and great demand for trained health care workforce in our area."

The report by the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies on Black students' experiences in community college showed enrollment dropped 18% for all Black students from Fall 2019 to Fall 2021, and detailed other pressures preventing students from completing school, including hunger and housing insecurity.

The report also found lower graduation rates among Black community college students. West said her school's overall graduation rate was only about 9% in 2015. However, they have implemented some recommendations from Complete College America, such as eliminating late registration, creating flexible scheduling and capping most associate degrees at 60 hours. Now, she reported the graduation rate is ticking up.

"We have actually increased our graduation rate by 19.8% over the past five years," West noted. "We're currently at 33.6%, which is pretty average for Arkansas, but indicates that we still have work to do."

Last year, the school's completion rate for African American students was 31%, and 32% for white students. West added student loans are not an issue at the school, as it does not provide them. Instead, students get locally-funded scholarships or federal Pell Grants.

Support for this reporting was provided by Lumina Foundation.

A group of West Virginia Democratic delegates is calling for a special session to address West Virginia University's budget shortfall.

Del. Evan Hansen, D-Morgantown, said the legislature shares responsibility for the university's budget crisis, which has resulted in plans to slash 143 faculty positions and eliminate nearly 30 majors. The university's board approved the cuts last week.

Hansen pointed out that over the years, the university's funding has declined by tens of millions of dollars, and added people statewide will feel the impacts of a diminished university system.

"It's a big hit on the local economy and on the regional economy, and for the families of people who are losing their jobs," Hansen noted. "Across the state, there's a lot less discretionary funds available for various programs that provide services in counties all across West Virginia."

The university is facing a $45 million deficit, which its president, E. Gordon Gee, said is due to declining state funding and decreased enrollment. In addition to Hansen, three other delegates are asking the governor to call the legislature into session to support the university.

Hansen emphasized some of the programs targeted for cuts related to diversifying the energy sector and others, have value for the employers and businesses in the Mountain State.

"For example, the public administration program is very important in West Virginia," Hansen outlined. "The parks and recreation program that's being eliminated is something that doesn't make a lot of sense to me, given that we're leaning into an outdoor recreation and tourism based economy. "

According to U.S. Census Bureau data, West Virginia is rapidly losing its population, and is among more than a dozen states experiencing population losses between 2021 and 2022.


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A bill passed during Nevada's last legislative session requires Nevada students in public high schools to learn about economics and financial literacy. But a report from the nonprofit, nonpartisan Milken Institute shows many people across the country, young and old, lack the basic knowledge to make smart financial decisions.

Sal Khan, founder of the Khan Academy, said in order to bridge the equity gap around the country, it has partnered with Capital One to offer a free financial education program that is available online.

"Before I even started tutoring my cousins and started Khan Academy, I worked in finance," he said. "I saw the gap that was there, even among folks with professional degrees and college degrees, but we were always looking for a way to resource this and to really get it into the classroom."

Khan added the virtual course allows individuals to learn at their own pace and from wherever they choose. According to the FINRA Foundation, people with higher financial literacy are less likely to have late fees or make only minimum payments on their credit cards.

Kerone Vatel, head of community impact and investment with Capital One, said younger generations across the country are experiencing "angst" when it comes to what she calls "adulting." She added Capital One is excited to join Khan Academy to help people of all ages foster financial wellbeing. Vatel explained there are a lot of things to navigate in today's world, from student debt and credit-card debt to eventually figuring out whether to purchase or rent a home in today's economy.

"So there is a very practical fallout from this," Vatel continued. "We see from research that students who engage in high-quality financial literacy education are twice as likely to save. We know that unexpected things happen in life. Two years ago, I had a major health scare."

The lessons and curriculum, independently developed by Khan Academy, will help people take better control of their finances and let them examine their own spending habits to foster saving over time, Vatel said.

The complex and confusing process of applying to college is thought to be contributing to a decline in the number of high school graduates who go on to higher education. Now, a nonprofit is stepping in with a challenge to those institutions.

In a new survey of 16- to 22-year-olds, more than half said applying for college is their "most stressful academic experience" so far. That led the Lumina Foundation to launch The Great Admissions Redesign.

To improve the application process, said Lumina strategy director Melanie Heath, almost $3 million is being offered to state higher-ed systems, where enrollment has declined across the board "in all types of different degree programs, among all ages of students, among all races of students - particularly for students of color."

In Texas and elsewhere, pandemic disruptions led many typically bound for college to jump into the workforce, where good-paying jobs were on the rise.

More information about The Great Admissions Redesign is online at luminafoundation.org.

In June, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that consideration of race in college admissions violates the Constitution, effectively ending the attempts by many universities to increase diversity. In Texas, the decision primarily impacts the University of Texas at Austin, where race was considered in undergraduate admissions, along with many private universities.

Heath said changing the decades-old admission process will require a heavy lift.

"Simplifying admissions is not something that can be done institution by institution," she said. "What's really needed is something at the system or state level - or at least, with three or more institutions."

She said proposals will need to demonstrate that the application process would increase college opportunities for students of color or low-income households, and first-time attendees.

Support for this reporting was provided by Lumina Foundation.