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Vice-President Kamala Harris Is Raising the Profile of HBCUs

Not only is Kamala Harris the first woman to hold the office of Vice President, but she is also the first Vice President to graduate from a historically Black college or university (HBCU), and because of that, she is raising the profile of HBCUs. She is a strong advocate of HBCUs and that advocacy had led President-Elect Joe Biden to pledge $70 billion to them. Harris will undoubtedly spearhead the effort to ensure that commitment materializes. HBCUs graduate 20 percent of all Black students with only a fraction of the support predominantly white institutions receive. The financial need among students at HBCUs is high. Three in five students receive financial aid. Scholarships and big donors that are ubiquitous at larger, mostly white universities are not common at HBCUs. For decades, the federal government denied HBCUs funding to build facilities. They were also denied funding to conduct research, which has created long-term competitive disadvantages. This kind of institutional racism and its lasting consequences have forced HBCUs to seek legal redress. Some efforts have been made to rectify the damage done to HBCUs; however, it is clear that a concerted, long-term strategy for investing in them is necessary to sustain them and ensure they get the funding they need to be able to compete with predominantly white institutions. HBCUs are hopeful that our new Vice President will be a strong advocate for them and help them dismantle the institutional racism that has worked against their efforts to thrive. 

Alder Graduate School of Education

Alder Graduate School of Education (GSE) is seeking California-based course instructors for three online courses for the Spring 2021 term (job description and application). They are also looking for program supervisors for single subject World Languages (job description and application). Alder is looking for experts in their fields who prioritize anti-racist and DEI-focused education, and love to teach teachers. If you are interested, please complete the brief application by Thursday, November 12th. If you are not familiar with Alder GSE, please visit their website.

  
WestEd and SRI

WestEd and SRI have worked for the past several years to identify opportunities to shift teacher preparation systems to become more clinically-oriented and grounded in continuous improvement approaches through the Next Generation of Educators Initiative (NGEI). As NGEI wraps up, WestEd and SRI have released their final reports. These four reports highlight lessons learned and promising practices that emerged through the initiative, as well as specific examples of partnership’s work throughout. 

Building Strong Partnerships to Improve Clinically Oriented Teacher Preparation

Strengthening the Clinical Orientation of Teacher Preparation Programs

Strengthening the Data Use and Continuous Improvement Capacity of Teacher Preparation Programs

The NGEI Approach to Improving Teacher Preparation in the CSU Through a System of Supports
 

The 74 Million

While the outcome of the presidential election had the nation on edge through Saturday when Joe Biden was finally declared the winner, contests up and down the ballot in 2020 will have long-term consequences for education coast to coast. In the coming months, governors and state legislatures will play a pivotal role in determining how to steer schools through the pandemic's public health and economic crises.

That’s why we’ve curated 48 contests from the federal, state, and local level with key implications for students, teachers, and families, and why we’re reporting both the outcomes and the those that remain too close to call.


Education Commission of the States

The Education Commission of the States (ECS) has also compiled education-related election results in an easily searchable format. To track state policies in your state click here.

With uncertainty about finances and on-campus possibilities for next year, students are putting off filing the FASFA. In the middle of the country’s current economic and health crisis, there’s a disturbing trend in higher education: Fewer high school seniors are filling out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), which is typically the first step in receiving federal and state grants, federal loans and institutional aid for college.