KU joins national alliance to help low-income students graduate


WASHINGTON – The University of Kansas is a founding member of the University Innovation Alliance, a group of 11 major public research institutions dedicated to helping more low-income and first-generation students successfully earn their degrees.

Bernadette Gray-Little
Bernadette Gray-Little

Chancellor Bernadette Gray-Little and Joshua Robinson, a junior from Overland Park, took part in today’s announcement in Washington, D.C.

The founding members of the alliance have raised and will match $5.6 million to facilitate the sharing of ideas and to scale proven interventions, with the intention of developing a national “playbook” that will benefit low-income and first-generation college students.

“The achievement gap is real, and far too many students fall into it, never realizing the opportunities available to college graduates. At KU, we’re working to ensure that more students earn their degrees, and this collaboration with universities across the nation will help us learn from their experiences and vice versa,” Gray-Little said.

High-income students are seven times more likely to attain a college degree than low-income students. The American economy will face a shortage of at least 16 million college graduates by 2025. The founding members of the UIA are focused on addressing the achievement gap and pending shortage at a time when public funding for higher education has been decreasing. 

“There is a lot of talk about disruption in higher education. We think that the real disruption will come through collaboration,” said Michael Crow, president of Arizona State University and chairman of the UIA. “Colleges typically are forced to compete for students, research support and top spots on college rankings. While there are many institutions that have come up with creative solutions to some of our sector’s most urgent problems, those ideas rarely travel far from where they are hatched.” 

The 11 alliance members serve large numbers of low-income and first-generation college students, and each institution has pioneered programs to help students succeed in various aspects of their college program. The goals of the UIA are to collaborate to share innovation and adapt successful programs. 

 

University Innovation Alliance members:

  • Arizona State University                
  • Georgia State University                
  • Iowa State University                   
  • Michigan State University              
  • Oregon State University                
  • Purdue University
  • The Ohio State University
  • University of California, Riverside
  • University of Central Florida
  • The University of Kansas
  • The University of Texas at Austin.

 

Supporting foundations and charitable organizations:

  • Ford Foundation
  • Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
  • Kresge Foundation
  • Lumina Foundation
  • USA Funds.

Tue, 09/16/2014

author

Gavin Young

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Gavin Young

KU Office of Public Affairs

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