National Higher Education Summit Spotlights Student Equity and Opportunity

Highlights from Under Secretary of Education Ted Mitchell
In his remarks, the under secretary of education called having the best educated workforce in the world the “bold, north star goal for the Department of Education” and asserted that having a post-secondary credential is of paramount importance. Some other points from his remarks:

• The K-12 education of most children of color in this country represents a moral problem.
• Education creates a “broad pathway to a healthy democracy.”
• We must increase college access, affordability, and completion.
• High-quality preschool is critical. African American and Hispanic children are lagging behind whites in this area.
• The department is working with states to eliminate zero-tolerance policies.
• Only 1 person in 7 in the lowest earning quartile completes college.
• Investing in education, including in Pell grants for the incarcerated, is an investment in America’s democracy and economy.
• The PLUS program [that wreaked such havoc on HBCUs] is now better: more accessible on the front end and more sustainable on the back end.

Click here for more information about the National Higher Education Summit.