Advancing Virginia
Advancing Virginia

Author: Virginia State Council of Higher Education, Richmond

Publisher:

Published: 2007

Total Pages: 26

ISBN-13:

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Despite many accomplishments and a widely-praised system, there remain significant challenges to address in higher education in Virginia: (1) Although the state performs well in six-year graduation rates for bachelor degree programs, graduation rates at specific four-year institutions range from the very high end of the spectrum to the very low; (2) Growing burdens placed on students from the lowest income levels due to rising tuition charges is a public policy matter of great concern; (3) Statewide remediation rates of 18-21% for college freshmen indicate that improvement is needed in the P-12 system; (4) Rising enrollment demands risk loss of students to the public college system, with accompanying loss of access to higher education opportunity; (5) Lack of progress in advancing Virginia's national standing in research; and (6) Continued skill shortages, especially in nursing, teaching, engineering and technology. The intent of this plan is to establish clarity about state priorities, to inform a coordinated system of higher education within which distinctive institutions may operate with a high degree of autonomy, and to serve state and national needs at a high level of quality by focusing on access, alignment and investment. Twelve goals and accompanying strategies are articulated: (1) Enhance Access Through P-16 Curricular Alignment; (2) Enhance Access Through Improved Coordination of Information; (3) Enhance Affordability Through Financial Aid Advocacy; (4) Enhance Affordability Through Education and Investment Incentives; (5) Improve College Readiness Through Strengthened P-16 Cooperation and Communication; (6) Strengthen P-16 Coordination Through Expanded Data Collection and Analysis; (7) Support State Workforce Needs Through Strengthened Participation in Post-Secondary Education; (8) Conduct a Comprehensive Economic Impact Study of Higher Education; (9) Improve Alignment Between Higher Education and the Commonwealth's Workforce Needs; (10) Strengthen Academic Program Quality and Accountability Through Assessment; (11) Enhance Research Through Investment in Targeted Consortia; and (12) Enhance Research Through Investment in Infrastructure.

Mismatch
Mismatch

Author: Richard Sander

Publisher: Basic Books

Published: 2012-10-09

Total Pages: 370

ISBN-13: 0465030017

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The debate over affirmative action has raged for over four decades, with little give on either side. Most agree that it began as noble effort to jump-start racial integration; many believe it devolved into a patently unfair system of quotas and concealment. Now, with the Supreme Court set to rule on a case that could sharply curtail the use of racial preferences in American universities, law professor Richard Sander and legal journalist Stuart Taylor offer a definitive account of what affirmative action has become, showing that while the objective is laudable, the effects have been anything but. Sander and Taylor have long admired affirmative action's original goals, but after many years of studying racial preferences, they have reached a controversial but undeniable conclusion: that preferences hurt underrepresented minorities far more than they help them. At the heart of affirmative action's failure is a simple phenomenon called mismatch. Using dramatic new data and numerous interviews with affected former students and university officials of color, the authors show how racial preferences often put students in competition with far better-prepared classmates, dooming many to fall so far behind that they can never catch up. Mismatch largely explains why, even though black applicants are more likely to enter college than whites with similar backgrounds, they are far less likely to finish; why there are so few black and Hispanic professionals with science and engineering degrees and doctorates; why black law graduates fail bar exams at four times the rate of whites; and why universities accept relatively affluent minorities over working class and poor people of all races. Sander and Taylor believe it is possible to achieve the goal of racial equality in higher education, but they argue that alternative policies -- such as full public disclosure of all preferential admission policies, a focused commitment to improving socioeconomic diversity on campuses, outreach to minority communities, and a renewed focus on K-12 schooling -- will go farther in achieving that goal than preferences, while also allowing applicants to make informed decisions. Bold, controversial, and deeply researched, Mismatch calls for a renewed examination of this most divisive of social programs -- and for reforms that will help realize the ultimate goal of racial equality.