Higher Education Access for America’s Vulnerable Students - This PowerPoint, presented at the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC) 2012 National Conference, identifies obstacles to postsecondary participation, particularly among disadvantaged students. The presentation notes current state approaches to providing college counseling, highlights programs in Oregon and Colorado that have improved college participation for traditionally underserved youth, and points to other obstacles to postsecondary participation states are increasingly addressing. (Omari Scott Simmons, Wake Forest University, and Jennifer Dounay Zinth, ECS, October 2012)....

From the ECS State Policy Database: Postsecondary Participation--Enrollments (Statistics) - This policy database—updated weekly—is made possible by your state's fiscal support of the Education Commission of the States....

2012 State of the State Addresses: Governors' Top Education Issues PDF - This analysis highlights the education issues prioritized by governors and the mayor of Washington, D.C. in their 2012 state of the state addresses. The state leaders explained that increasing the quality and availability of education, from preschool through postsecondary, was essential to recovering from the recession, spurring economic growth, remaining competitive, and to the health and well-being of each state's citizens. Top issues include Finance (K-12 & Postsecondary), Teaching Quality, Postsecondary Affordability/Access, School Choice, Workforce Development, Early Learning (P-3), and Reading and Literacy....

College Access: What helps to promote student access to college? - Access related research titles from the ECS Research Studies Database. Links embedded in titles will take you to each study's major findings and recommendations....

From the ECS State Policy Database: Equity (Postsec.) - This policy database—updated weekly—is made possible by your state's fiscal support of the Education Commission of the States....

From the ECS State Policy Database: Postsecondary Participation--Outreach - This policy database—updated weekly—is made possible by your state's fiscal support of the Education Commission of the States....

From the ECS State Policy Database: Postsecondary Students--Adults - This policy database—updated weekly—is made possible by your state's fiscal support of the Education Commission of the States....

From the ECS State Policy Database: Postsecondary Students--Minority - This policy database—updated weekly—is made possible by your state's fiscal support of the Education Commission of the States....

From the ECS State Policy Database: Postsecondary Participation - This policy database—updated weekly—is made possible by your state's fiscal support of the Education Commission of the States....

Strategies to Empower Low-Income and Minority Students in Gaining Admission to and Paying for College PDF - This policy brief identifies barriers created by federal, state and local policies that pose a particular challenge for aspiring first-generation college students in the college and financial aid application process, and provides suggestions for how state-level policy might address each barrier. A final section on "other" barriers to college entry seeks to alert policymakers to emerging issues for which adequate institutional, state and federal policy responses are needed. (Jennifer Dounay, Education Commission of the States, November 2008)...

Involving Families in High School and College Expectations MS Word PDF - While the vast majority of today's high school students – and their parents – anticipate they will attend college, far too many students lack knowledge about the essential steps that must be taken to make the high school to college transition. This ECS Policy Brief provides a synthesis of the research on the college aspirations of many students and their parents today, as well as the documented lack of information far too many families possess on the necessary steps to make the transition from high school to postsecondary. The brief identifies current state policies that address each of the steps necessary to negotiate the bridge from high school to college, and highlights a Texas policy aimed at annually evaluating the accessibility and affordability of public postsecondary institutions in the state. (Jennifer Dounay, Education Commission of the States, August 2006)...

From the ECS State Policy Database: Postsecondary Participation--Affirmative Action - This policy database—updated weekly—is made possible by your state's fiscal support of the Education Commission of the States....

Supreme Court Rules on Affirmative Action MS Word PDF - ...

Affirmative Action MS Word - This policy brief provides an overview of the history of affirmative action in higher education admissions and outlines the legal landscape for such programs as defined by state policies and the U.S. Supreme Court. In particular, the brief discusses the court's landmark decision in June 2003 and touches on the status of alternatives to traditional affirmative action, including "race-neutral" policies currently operating in Florida, Texas and California. (Dale DeCesare, ECS Policy Brief, Education Commission of the States, Last updated July 2003)...

From the ECS State Policy Database: Postsecondary Participation--Admissions Requirements - This policy database—updated weekly—is made possible by your state's fiscal support of the Education Commission of the States....

From the ECS State Policy Database: Postsecondary Participation--Access - This policy database—updated weekly—is made possible by your state's fiscal support of the Education Commission of the States....