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EDUCATION PHILANTHROPY DIVISION OF ASCENDIUM EDUCATION GROUP

Remove Structural Barriers to Success

Our philanthropy focuses on reducing or eliminating institutional and systemic barriers for underrepresented postsecondary education learners so they can achieve their academic and career goals.

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How We See the Problem

Today’s learners often aren’t well served by the educational systems that were built years ago for more traditional students. Now students are often older, more diverse, working one or more jobs, raising families, and struggling to make ends meet.

Colleges and universities are complex, and often don’t have a student-centric approach to course offerings or availability, advising and other institutional policies. The problem shows in the equity gaps in completion rates: just 11% of low-income students graduate with a bachelor’s degree. Almost 6 times as many students — 58% overall — from higher-income households graduate.

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Ascendium's Approach

An investment priority to…

Engage diverse change agents in institutional transformation

Means we support…

  • Developing learner-centered, postsecondary leaders in numerous roles, from front line staff to institutional researchers to senior leadership and boards

Which will lead to…

  • Leadership development prioritizing learner success and institutional change
  • Institutions and systems better understanding financial impacts of learner success reforms

An investment priority to…

Support the adoption of institutional and system practices that set up learners for success

Means we support…

  • Amplifying knowledge sharing by supporting communities of practice
  • Investing in high-quality research to test emerging ideas
  • Scaling effective institutional practices that ensure learners complete degrees or credentials without excess credits
  • Expanding data infrastructure and information sharing between institutions and systems

Which will lead to…

  • Institutions adopting developmental education reforms at scale
  • Institutions ensuring more learners can enroll in and complete gateway courses in their first year
  • Institutions prioritizing course availability so learners can enroll in courses that they need, when they need them
  • Institutions providing strong advising for course selection, progress and intervention

An investment priority to…

Support the implementation of learner-centered policies at the institution, system and state levels

Means we support…

  • Aligning policies and practices to maximize the efficacy of learner success reforms

Which will lead to…

  • Institutions and systems ensuring that policies do not impede learner progress
  • Understanding the policy structures that lead to the greatest return on investment for learners

Grants to Remove Structural Barriers to Success

To learn about our approach to grantmaking (Exploration, Validation, Scaling), visit our How We Fund page.

2017-2019 College Completion Grant

Exploration
North Dakota State University|$200,000|1/2017 - 11/2019
This grant supports efforts at 14 two- and four-year colleges in Arkansas, Minnesota, North Dakota, Ohio and Wisconsin to identify students nearing completion but at-risk of dropping out and apply appropriate interventions to help them overcome their obstacles.

2017-2019 College Completion Grant

Exploration
Cardinal Stritch University|$200,000|1/2017 - 11/2019
This grant supports efforts at 14 two- and four-year colleges in Arkansas, Minnesota, North Dakota, Ohio and Wisconsin to identify students nearing completion but at-risk of dropping out and apply appropriate interventions to help them overcome their obstacles.

2017-2019 College Completion Grant

Exploration
Saint Paul College|$200,000|1/2017 - 11/2019
This grant supports efforts at 14 two- and four-year colleges in Arkansas, Minnesota, North Dakota, Ohio and Wisconsin to identify students nearing completion but at-risk of dropping out and apply appropriate interventions to help them overcome their obstacles.

2017-2019 College Completion Grant

Exploration
University of Arkansas-Fort Smith|$199,880|1/2017 - 11/2019
This grant supports efforts at 14 two- and four-year colleges in Arkansas, Minnesota, North Dakota, Ohio and Wisconsin to identify students nearing completion but at-risk of dropping out and apply appropriate interventions to help them overcome their obstacles.

2017-2019 College Completion Grant

Exploration
University of Arkansas Community College at Batesville|$198,968|1/2017 - 11/2019
This grant supports efforts at 14 two- and four-year colleges in Arkansas, Minnesota, North Dakota, Ohio and Wisconsin to identify students nearing completion but at-risk of dropping out and apply appropriate interventions to help them overcome their obstacles.

2017-2019 College Completion Grant

Exploration
Northcentral Technical College|$181,449|1/2017 - 11/2019
This grant supports efforts at 14 two- and four-year colleges in Arkansas, Minnesota, North Dakota, Ohio and Wisconsin to identify students nearing completion but at-risk of dropping out and apply appropriate interventions to help them overcome their obstacles.

2017-2019 College Completion Grant

Exploration
Lorain County Community College|$106,540|1/2017 - 11/2019
This grant supports efforts at 14 two- and four-year colleges in Arkansas, Minnesota, North Dakota, Ohio and Wisconsin to identify students nearing completion but at-risk of dropping out and apply appropriate interventions to help them overcome their obstacles.

2017-2019 College Completion Grant

Exploration
North Central State College|$175,008|1/2017 - 11/2019
This grant supports efforts at 14 two- and four-year colleges in Arkansas, Minnesota, North Dakota, Ohio and Wisconsin to identify students nearing completion but at-risk of dropping out and apply appropriate interventions to help them overcome their obstacles.

2017-2019 College Completion Grant

Exploration
Columbus State Community College|$128,526|1/2017 - 11/2019
This grant supports efforts at 14 two- and four-year colleges in Arkansas, Minnesota, North Dakota, Ohio and Wisconsin to identify students nearing completion but at-risk of dropping out and apply appropriate interventions to help them overcome their obstacles.

2017-2019 College Completion Grant

Exploration
Kent State University-Kent|$200,000|1/2017 - 11/2019
This grant supports efforts at 14 two- and four-year colleges in Arkansas, Minnesota, North Dakota, Ohio and Wisconsin to identify students nearing completion but at-risk of dropping out and apply appropriate interventions to help them overcome their obstacles.
View All Ascendium Grants

Latest News

July 22, 2021

Rural community colleges respond to health crisis, a look at non-traditional models for students transitioning from training to the workforce and more

  • Resources Help Rural Community Colleges in Aftermath of COVID-19 Health Crisis
  • An Interest in Innovation: New Grants Explore Non-Traditional Models
  • Keith Witham Named Ascendium’s New Deputy Director - Education Grantmaking
Read More
July 21, 2021

Keith Witham Named Ascendium’s New Deputy Director - Education Grantmaking

Ascendium welcomes Keith Witham as our new Deputy Director - Education Grantmaking. He will provide day-to-day supervision and support to program officers across Ascendium’s four focus areas to maximize the impact of investments that support learners from low-income backgrounds.

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Resources

How Ohio Community Colleges Are Using Guided Pathways to Personalize Student Support

This report, supported by Ascendium, examines innovative ways Ohio community colleges are providing personalized student supports within the guided pathways model. The report finds that personalizing universal supports has the potential to increase equity by better recognizing and meeting the needs of underrepresented students, a step towards reducing structural barriers to their success.

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Convening: Mapping the Future of Technology in Prison Higher Education (Videos)

These videos are presentations from a virtual convening in February 2021 of more than 100 attendees who explored the future of technology in postsecondary education in prison. The convening was produced by Open Campus Media with support from Ascendium. Participants included representatives of universities, advocacy groups, funders and state corrections systems.

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Sue
Cui

Senior Program Officer,
Remove Structural Barriers to Success

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