Racial/Ethnic Inequities Persist in the Engineering Workforce: Of the nearly 1.7 million engineers working in the U.S. in 2019, only 3% were Black women or Latinas, compared to 81% of workers who were White or Asian and 84% of workers who were men, according to a new report from Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce. Though the number of Black and Latinx students who graduated with a bachelor’s degree in engineering significantly increased between 1990 and 2019, the pace is not fast enough to make significant gains until well into the future, according to the authors. The researchers recommend closing these opportunity gaps by improving recruitment for Black and Latinx students into engineering majors, providing wraparound supports to enable these students to finish their degrees, and addressing the pay inequities between White and Asian engineers and Black and Latinx engineers in the workforce.
Positive Outcomes for Massachusetts Community College Students: Findings from a new report on labor market returns for students who attended a Massachusetts' community college show graduates who earned a two-year degree had 31% higher earnings than those who only graduated from high school. The findings also showed that students who obtained a community college certificate had earnings that were 26% higher than those who only graduated high school. Other positive findings demonstrate that women who complete an associate degree are 18% more likely to be employed compared to those who didn’t attend community college, and men are 12% more likely to be employed, and these employment gains are similar for those obtaining certificates.
Advocacy Resource for Recruiting CTE Learners: Advance CTE recently published a report on how to effectively frame CTE to prospective learners and their parents/guardians. The frameworks provided in the report are based on focus groups and online surveys from middle school and high school families. The researchers provide insights on the value families place on education, identify the aspects of CTE that resonate the most, and describe how to tailor the message to each learner to help close equity gaps.
Findings from Ohio’s Stackable Credentialing Offerings: A report from researchers at the RAND Corporation and the Ohio Department of Education examines the success of stackable credential offerings in Ohio between 2005 and 2019. The study investigated stackable credentials in health care, manufacturing and engineering technology, and information technology. Some of the researchers' key findings include:
- The number of individuals earning certificates increased over time.
- Most learners who earned stackable credentials also earned degrees.
- The majority of stackable credentials were earned in community colleges.
- Earnings increased for learners who stacked credentials, especially for those in health care.
Inequitable Impacts of COVID-19: The Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights recently released a report on the inequitable impacts of COVID-19 on underserved communities in both secondary and postsecondary education. The report highlights how the pandemic deepened the disparities between students, especially for students of color, multilingual learners, students with disabilities, and LGBTQ+ students, and how the pandemic had a significant negative impact on learning.
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