Improving Higher Education Attainment for All Students: A National Imperative

Once a world leader, the United States has fallen behind other nations in the educational attainment of its population. Although the percentage of adults age 45 to 54 who hold at least a baccalaureate degree is higher in the United States than in other Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) nations, the United States now ranks below several other nations, including Norway, the Netherlands, Korea, New Zealand, Denmark, and Sweden, in the share of adults age 25 to 34 who hold this credential. While the U.S. invested heavily in the educational attainment of earlier generations, other nations have been investing substantially in their younger populations. Essentially, educational attainment has stalled in the United States, with about 30% of adults in each age cohort holding at least a bachelor\u27s degree. Over this same period, however, educational attainment has been rising dramatically in some other nations. In Korea, for example, 34% of adults age 25 to 34 now hold at least a baccalaureate degree, up from just 17% of adults age 45 to 54.

Maryland\u27s Higher Education Gains at Risk

This Op-Ed described the struggles that Maryland\u27s higher education is currently facing, outlining several solutions

Éire Higher Education: What American Can Learn from Ireland

In July 2012, the executive doctoral class of 2013 from the University of Pennsylvania’s Higher Education Management Program in the Graduate School of Education conducted an in-depth comparative study of higher education in Ireland. The international study, an important component of the executive doctoral program, was structured to model research that we completed on the relationship between public policy and performance in five U.S. states: Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Texas and Washington (http://www.gse.upenn.edu/irhe/srp). This research provided the foundation for the students’ research. Students examined four performance areas related to Irish higher education: 1) preparation and participation for post-secondary education; 2) completion of certificates and degrees; 3) affordability for students and families; and 4) research. Students were divided into teams to collect and analyze data on these performance areas within the broader historical, political, economic, and social context of Ireland. After an intense period of preparation, students spent a week interviewing higher education administrators and faculty at seven Irish universities and Institutes of Technology. These interviews were supplemented with interviews with the Higher Education Authority and a review of relevant documents and data related to Irish higher education. To better understand the context of Irish higher education, students also attended lectures entitled: The Rise and Fall of the Celtic Tiger, the Irish Potato Famine, and Teaching and Learning in Ireland. Teams of doctoral students were organized according to the performance areas. Each team conducted research and presented a final report based on its data collection and analysis to Irish leaders and delegations from the five U.S. states at an Irish/U.S. Higher Education Roundtable. Students also presented their findings to the Minister of Education and Skills, Ruairi Quinn. This report reflects the lessons learned from the student research and the Roundtable discussion

State of Attainment: Three Ways That States Can Help More Students Access Higher Levels of Education

Fourteenth place. That\u27s where the United States ranked in the proportion of 25- to 34-year-olds who achieved postsecondary degrees, according to a 2012 report by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development. Unless the U.S. increases the share of the population that has completed a college degree, the country will lack the educational skills and training required to meet the workforce demands of a global economy. Sixty-three percent of job researchers predict, will require education beyond high school in 2018. For the U.S. to be competitive on a global scale, it must devote more effort to closing the considerable gaps in degree attainment that persist across demographic groups. The groups least likely to earn a degree are students from lower-income families, blacks, Hispanics, and those whose parents have not attended college

The actin binding proteins cortactin and HS1 are dispensable for platelet actin nodule and megakaryocyte podosome formation

A dynamic, properly organised actin cytoskeleton is critical for the production and haemostatic function of platelets. The Wiskott Aldrich Syndrome protein (WASp) and Actin-Related Proteins 2 & 3 Complex (Arp2/3 complex) are critical mediators of actin polymerisation and organisation in many cell types. In platelets and megakaryocytes, these proteins have been shown to be important for proper platelet production and function. The cortactin family of proteins (Cttn & HS1) are known to regulate WASp-Arp2/3-mediated actin polymerisation in other cell types and so here we address the role of these proteins in platelets using knockout mouse models. We generated mice lacking Cttn and HS1 in the megakaryocyte/platelet lineage. These mice had normal platelet production, with platelet number, size and surface receptor profile comparable to controls. Platelet function was also unaffected by loss of Cttn/HS1 with no differences observed in a range of platelet function assays including aggregation, secretion, spreading, clot retraction or tyrosine phosphorylation. No effect on tail bleeding time or in thrombosis models was observed. In addition, platelet actin nodules, and megakaryocyte podosomes, actin-based structures known to be dependent on WASp and the Arp2/3 complex, formed normally. We conclude that despite the importance of WASp and the Arp2/3 complex in regulating F-actin dynamics in many cells types, the role of cortactin in their regulation appears to be fulfilled by other proteins in platelets

Much Accomplished, Much at Stake: Performance and Policy in Maryland Higher Education

The challenge: To maintain an internationally competitive work force, Maryland aims to increase the share of its adult population that holds at least an associate degree from 44% to 55% by 2025. To achieve this goal, the state must improve the performance of its higher education system, ameliorating its weaknesses and building on its strengths. The bottom line: Maryland’s higher education system is leaving poor, urban, black, Hispanic and native-born Marylanders behind. But a strong record of marshaling resources to achieve higher education goals and the state’s relative wealth put Maryland in a good position to do something about this problem, if it so chooses

A Story of Decline: Performance and Policy in Illinois Higher Education

In the mid-and late-1990s, Illinois was a top-performing state in preparing students for college, enrolling residents in college, and keeping college affordable: • Compared with residents of other states, large percentages of Illinoisans earned a high school diploma or a General Education Development (GED) diploma by age 24; earned high scores on college entrance exams; and enrolled in college immediately after high school. • Illinois led the nation in the proportion of young adults (ages 18 to 24) and working-age adults (ages 25 to 44) who were enrolled in college. • Illinoiswas a leader in keeping higher education affordable for families, as measured by (1) the share of family income required to attend the state\u27s public two-year and four-year institutions and (2) the availability of state need-based financial aid. During the past decade, however, the state has experienced substantial declines in higher education performance. At the same time, the state has made no progress toward ameliorating a persistent pattern of inequity in higher education