Shaping the Future of Higher Education: An Overview of the Institute for Higher Education Policy
Introduction
Higher education is a dynamic field that develops future leaders and transforms organizations by enacting equitable policies and practices. The Steinhardt Institute for Higher Education Policy seeks to define and assess the critical challenges facing colleges and universities in the present era. An integral part of New York University's Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development, the Institute engages faculty from many fields and disciplines. This article provides an overview of the Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP) and its initiatives to promote equitable access, affordability, and completion in higher education.
Promoting Completion: Degrees When Due
Across the country, 40.4 million adults have earned some college credits but stopped out before earning a degree. To promote completion, the Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP) launched an innovative, nationwide completion initiative: Degrees When Due (DWD). Through DWD, institutions apply an equity lens to their own real-time student data to ensure that today’s students - students of color, low-income students, working students, student parents, and many others - are re-engaged to cross the finish line.
A college degree is the best path to turning career aspirations into a successful livelihood and financially secure, fulfilling life. Yet, higher education remains widely unaffordable for those who would benefit the most.
Addressing Affordability and Equitable Value
Using publicly available data, Rising Above the Threshold: How Expansions in Financial Aid Can Increase the Equitable Delivery of Postsecondary Value for More Students measures the current landscape of equitable value being delivered by postsecondary education institutions. To do so, the report leverages the Postsecondary Value Framework’s Threshold 0, the baseline for minimum economic return. To meet Threshold 0, students must earn at least as much as a high school graduate, plus enough to recoup their investment in college within ten years. The study results found that at least 2,414 institutions, enrolling 18.3 million undergraduates nationwide, meet or exceed Threshold 0.
To improve affordability and increase postsecondary value for students and communities, state and federal policymakers should work together to design affordability programs that reduce value inequities across student race and income levels. Policymakers have the power to increase equitable value for students by:
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- Doubling the maximum award available through the federal Pell Grant. This would enable 95 additional institutions, which enroll nearly 610,000 students annually, to meet Threshold 0. At its peak, the max Pell Grant was worth more than 75% of the average cost of attendance at a four-year public university. Today, it covers less than 30%. Increasing max Pell Grant to 50% of this cost and tie it to inflation.
- Establishing free college programs that use a first-dollar approach. This would enable 44 additional public institutions, enrolling roughly 216,000 students, to meet Threshold 0. First-dollar programs have a substantially greater impact on postsecondary value than last-dollar programs-which make a minimal impact on the number of institutions meeting Threshold 0. Investing in first-dollar free college programs increases affordability.
- Funding non-tuition expenses for students from low-income backgrounds.
- Avoiding narrow restrictions on eligibility for student aid. Eligibility for need-based financial aid-whether in the form of Pell Grants, other grant aid, or free college programs-should be as inclusive as possible.
- Investing in four-year pathways. Free college programs are often limited to public two-year institutions, but these programs would reach more students if expanded to include public four-year colleges.
- Providing support for completion.
- Disaggregating earnings data by race and ethnicity.
- Improving access to earnings data for students who have started, but not completed. In addition to the outcomes the Department of Education (ED) already publishes for program completers, ED should publish earnings outcomes of students who leave school without a degree.
The analysis draws from the work of the Postsecondary Value Commission, managed by IHEP, which sought to define, measure, and improve postsecondary value and make it more equitable.
Addressing Barriers to Access and Completion
Access to higher education remains one of the most powerful pathways to economic mobility, yet students from low-income face significant barriers to college enrollment and completion. Despite possessing equal talent and potential, these students are far less likely to attend college and, once enrolled, encounter greater challenges in persisting to graduation. Federal policy plays a critical role in leveling the playing field for students from all economic backgrounds. Through strategic investments in financial aid, support services, and institutional capacity, we can remove barriers that prevent talented students from accessing and completing higher education. When more students have the opportunity to develop their skills and knowledge, the benefits extend far beyond individual success-strengthening local communities, driving regional innovation, and fueling national economic growth.
Financial aid award letters can be difficult to decipher and vary from institution to institution. The benefits of a postsecondary degree are profound, but not all students have equal access to education opportunities after high school. TRIO, GEAR UP, and national and community service programs (such as AmeriCorps) play an important role in the college access and success movement. Food insecurity affects nearly one in four college students, creating barriers to academic success, degree attainment, and overall well-being. ED should ensure student loan counseling is consumer-tested with students and balances an informative process with one that does not create barriers to aid.
Graduate Programs in Higher Education
Higher Education remains a dynamic and exciting field that develops future leaders who will transform organizations that enact equitable policies and practices so that faculty, students, and staff can flourish in an environment of research, engagement, and higher learning. Masters and doctoral graduate programs are designed to equip aspiring academics and administrators with the knowledge, skills, and experiences needed to excel in the dynamic field of higher education and student affairs. With a graduate program, individuals will be well-prepared for a wide range of career paths in higher education administration, including roles in student affairs, academic advising, career counseling, residence life, and more.
Policy and Advocacy Efforts
NCAN resubmitted program funding requests for fiscal year 2023 to the US Senate and House Committees on Appropriations (Labor-HHS-Ed Subcommittees). NCAN submitted program funding requests for FY23 to the US Senate Committee on Appropriations (Labor-HHS-Ed Subcommittee). Efforts are underway to expand access for college students with demonstrated financial need to critical food supports through the SNAP by passing the Enhanced Access To SNAP (EATS) Act of 2021 (H.R. 1919/S. the Student Food Security Act (H.R. 3100/S.
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Collaboration and Engagement
The Institute’s programs encourage collaborative relationships among scholars, institutional leaders and policymakers in an effort to raise public awareness about the essential roles of colleges and universities in the organization of modern societies. The Higher Learning Commission will hold its Annual Conference on March 21-24 in Chicago where educators from around the nation will gather to address challenges at hand for higher education today. The signature event will feature more than 200 sessions. Our members represent the diversity of higher education: public universities, community colleges and private institutions, teaching on rural, urban and online campuses, serving students throughout the world. HLC’s latest analysis of Institutional Update data provides an overview of student enrollment, program completion and financial trends within our membership.
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