Browsing by Author "Johnson, Hans"
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- Defunding Higher Education What Are the Effects on College Enrollment?Johnson, Hans (Public Policy Institute of California, 2012-05-01)California’s financial commitment to higher education has been compromised by fiscal crises and competing state priorities. Despite large increases in the demand for higher education, state general fund spending in this area has declined notably over the past ten years. California now spends more on corrections than on its public universities. This report examines the effects of this disinvestment on the enrollment rates of recent high school graduates at the University of California (UC), the California State University (CSU), and the California Community Colleges.
- Higher Education in California: Expanding College AccessJackson, Jacob; Bohn, Sarah; Johnson, Hans (Public Policy Institute of California, 2017-09-01)More California high school graduates are academically ready for college than ever before. More are applying to and enrolling in college, and both the University of California (UC) and the California State University (CSU) are expanding access: for example, UC has pledged to enroll 10,000 more freshmen and transfer students between 2016 and 2018. But many qualified applicants are being turned away, and this is a source of concern. A 2016 PPIC Statewide Survey found that more than three-fourths of Californians are concerned about access to the UC system. Expanding access to college benefits both individuals and the state as a whole. The economic returns to a postsecondary degree are at their highest level in decades, even as more Californians are attending college; and workers with postsecondary degrees will continue to play a crucial role in the state’s economic growth. Expanding access can also ensure that our system of higher education offers opportunities to students who have traditionally been underrepresented in postsecondary institutions, including those from low-income families and California’s Latino and African American populations.
- Higher Education in California: Increasing Equity and DiversityRodriguez, Olga; Cuellar Mejia, Marisol; Johnson, Hans (Public Policy Institute of California, 2017-09-01)A solid majority of California’s future college-age population will come from groups that have been historically underrepresented in higher education—including Latinos and African Americans, and those who are low income or the first in their families to go to college. PPIC research has shown that this demographic shift could be a major contributor to the state’s future workforce skills gap. To avoid or at least minimize this gap, California needs to increase the number of underrepresented students who graduate from college. It has been well documented that expanding access to college can promote upward social and economic mobility
- Higher Education in California: New Goals for the Master PlanJohnson, Hans (Public Policy Institute of California, 2010-04-23)Fifty years ago, state policymakers and higher education officials adopted California’s Master Plan for Higher Education. This plan still largely defines policies concerning the state’s public higher education systems: the California community colleges (CCC), the California State University (CSU) system, and the University of California (UC) system. Most would agree that the Master Plan has served California and its students well for many decades. Since updating key components of the Master Plan is a crucial part of the effort to close the education skills gap, this report proposes three strategic modifications to the plan.
- Making College Possible for Low-Income StudentsJohnson, Hans (Public Policy Institute of California, 2014-10-01)In this study, the authors examine the role of grant and scholarship aid in California in making college more accessible and in helping students complete college. Among other findings, the authors find that for many low-income students, college would not be possible without grant and scholarship aid, which has helped offset increases in tuition. In addition, they state that an important role of aid is that it can induce students to attend four-year colleges rather than community colleges. Students are much more likely to earn a degree if they first enroll at a four-year college.
- Reforming English Pathways at California’s Community CollegesCuellar Mejia, Marisol; Rodriguez, Olga; Johnson, Hans (Public Policy Institute of California, 2018-02-01)California’s community colleges are in the midst of numerous reforms to improve developmental (also known as remedial or basic skills) education. Developmental education is supposed to help prepare students for college work, but it has long been an obstacle to student success: most students in developmental courses never go on to complete a college-level course in English or math. In this report, the authors focus on reforms to developmental English pathways at California’s community colleges. They examine different approaches to reform and their prevalence, and present new evidence on the effectiveness of one of the most common reforms, one-semester acceleration.