New Report from American Student Assistance and Education Strategy Group Details How U.S. States Can Use Data to Incentivize Postsecondary and Workforce Success in Public Education

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Jun 04, 2024, 09:00 ET

BOSTON, June 4, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- In 2023, U.S. states spent nearly half a trillion dollars on public education, including more than $360 billion on K-12 education and more than $120 billion on higher education. To maximize the return on investment and ensure that education drives economic mobility, states must monitor and encourage a focus on measures that track how well K-12 and higher education institutions are preparing students to succeed in the next phase of their education-to-workforce journey. To that end, a new report, "Measurement for Mobility: How U.S. States Can Use Data to Incentivize Postsecondary and Workforce Success in Public Education," from Education Strategy Group (ESG)—a mission-driven organization committed to expanding economic mobility by increasing educational attainment—and funded by American Student Assistance^® (ASA)—a national nonprofit changing the way kids learn about careers and prepare for their futures—examines how states are rethinking how to measure and support the long-term success of students in their reporting, accountability, and incentive systems.

"We are long past the point where getting young people into college should be the only measure of accountability and success of our K-12 system. Exposure to career and metrics that show progress towards long-term success must be considered if we are to push our K-12 systems to think differently about how they are serving all students—especially students of color and those from low-income backgrounds—to achieve economic mobility," said Julie Lammers, SVP of Advocacy and CSR, American Student Assistance (ASA).

"What we measure in education matters. If the ultimate goal is to prepare students for successful futures after they leave our high schools and colleges, we should prioritize those outcomes as measures of success. This report shows which states are leading the way and where we need to see more progress," said Matt Gandal, President and CEO, Education Strategy Group.

In K-12, the report examined state measurement practices with respect to two types of metrics: 1) College and Career Readiness Metrics, which are captured during a students' K-12 experience and are intended to capture students' preparation for life after high school, and 2) Postsecondary Outcomes, which are captured after students leave the K-12 system and measure students' progress and success in postsecondary education, military, and the workforce.

Key findings are as follows:

While there are significant efforts to prioritize College and Career Readiness Metrics, very few states are prioritizing the use of Postsecondary Outcomes in accountability or funding incentives. Specifically, all states publicly report on College and Career Readiness metrics or Postsecondary Outcomes, and nearly all states include College and Career Readiness metrics in federal or state accountability.
However, fewer than 10 states include Postsecondary Outcomes in K-12 accountability. Funding incentives are emerging as a promising lever to increase K-12's focus on postsecondary success, including Postsecondary Outcomes, but they are new to the K-12 sector and still relatively rare.

In higher education, the report identifies two major sub-types of Postsecondary Outcomes: (1) College Success Outcomes and (2) Workforce Outcomes. College Success Outcomes are indicators of students' progress and attainment in postsecondary education. They include gateway course completion, credit accumulation, persistence, transfers to four-year colleges, degrees and credentials awarded, and graduation rates. Some states include related measures like time to degree and student debt. Workforce Outcomes measure how students fare once they leave the postsecondary education system. They include employment and job placement rates, fields of employment, earnings, and return on investment in postsecondary education. Based on a national scan conducted to identify trends and promising practices in how states use data to incentivize public colleges and universities to prioritize students' long-term outcomes, the report found that:

The use of College Success Outcomes in public reporting was nearly universal, and that Workforce Outcomes were far more commonly included in no-stakes public reporting than in formula-based funding incentives.
About half of states use some form of funding incentives, but the metrics used and the weights associated with them vary widely.

Recommendations for State Leaders

In addition, the report recommends that state leaders and policymakers designing next-generation measurement and accountability systems should observe the following principles of effective and equitable incentive systems:

Make Long-Term Success Metrics a Priority in K-12. Every state should report on both College and Career Readiness Metrics and Postsecondary Outcomes— including enrollment and persistence in postsecondary education, job placement, and wages — and incorporate them into K-12 accountability.
Make Long-Term Success Metrics a Priority in Higher Education. There are many approaches to measuring the economic "value" of postsecondary education, and every state should adopt an approach aligned to its goals and available data. Measures of value should include economic mobility or whether students are able to "move up" the economic ladder. In addition to economic value, states should also consider other measures of postsecondary value for the student and the community. Results should be publicly reported at the state level, by institutional type, and by institution.

About American Student Assistance^® (ASA)

American Student Assistance^® (ASA) is a national nonprofit changing the way kids learn about careers and prepare for their futures through equitable access to career readiness information and experiences. ASA helps middle and high school students to know themselves—their strengths and their interests—and understand their education and career options so that they can make informed decisions. ASA fulfills its mission–in schools and beyond the classroom–by providing free digital experiences, including Futurescape^®, Next Voice™, and EvolveMe^®, directly to millions of students, and through advocacy, impact investing, thought leadership, and philanthropic support for educators, intermediaries, and others. ASA fosters a generation of confident, crisis-proof young people who are ready for whatever path comes next after high school. To learn more about ASA, visit www.asa.org/about-asa.

About Education Strategy Group

Education Strategy Group (ESG) works with America's education, business, and civic leaders to expand economic opportunity and mobility by increasing educational attainment. We are driven by the conviction that a robust education system aligned with workforce demands leads to a stronger, more equitable society. Learn more about ESG's work at www.edstrategy.org.

SOURCE American Student Assistance (ASA)