The first words I uttered after successfully defending my dissertation were, “Wow, what a ride. From Head Start to Ph.D.!” Saying them reminded me where it all began: sitting cross-legged with a picture book at the Westside Head Start Center, just a few blocks from my childhood home in Jackson, Mississippi.
I don’t remember every detail from those early years, but I remember the feeling: I was happy at Head Start. I remember the books, the music, the joy. That five-minute bus ride from our house to the Westside Center turned out to be the shortest distance between potential and achievement.
And my story is not unique. Every year, hundreds of thousands of children — kids whose names we may never know, though our futures depend on them — walk through Head Start’s doors. Like me, they find structure, literacy, curiosity and belonging.
For many families, Head Start is the first place outside the home where a child’s potential is nurtured and celebrated. Yet, this program that builds futures and strengthens families is now under threat, and it’s imperative that we protect it.
Years later, while training for high school cross-country meets, I’d run past the park next to the center and pause, flooded with memories. Head Start laid the foundation for everything that followed. It gave me structure, sparked my curiosity and built my early literacy skills. It even fed my short-lived obsession with chocolate milk.
More than that, Head Start made me feel seen and valued.
There’s a clear, unbroken line between the early lessons I learned at Head Start and the doctoral dissertation I defended decades later. Head Start didn’t just teach me my ABCs — it taught me that learning could be joyful, that I was capable and that I belonged in a classroom.
That belief carried me through elementary school, Yale and George Washington University and to a Ph.D. in public policy and public administration. Now, as part of my research at the Urban Institute, I’m working to expand access to high-quality early learning, because I know firsthand what a difference it makes.
Research backs up what my story shows: Investments in Head Start and high-quality early childhood education change lives by improving health and educational achievement in later years, and benefit the economy. Yet today there is growing skepticism about the value of Head Start, reflecting an ongoing reluctance to give early childhood education the respect it deserves.
If Head Start funding is cut, thousands of children — especially from communities like mine in Jackson, where families worked hard but opportunities were limited — could lose access to a program that helps level the playing field. These are the children of young parents and single parents, of working families who may not have many other options but still dare to dream big for their kids.
And that is why I am worried. Funding for Head Start has been under threat. Although President Donald Trump’s proposed fiscal 2026 budget would maintain Head Start funding at its current $12.3 billion, Project 2025, the influential conservative policy document, calls for eliminating the program. The administration recently announced that Head Start would no longer enroll undocumented children, which a group of Democratic attorneys general say will force some programs to close.
I feel compelled to speak out because, for our family, Head Start wasn’t just a preschool — it was the beginning of everything. For me, it meant a future I never could have imagined. For my mother, Head Start meant peace of mind — knowing her son was in a nurturing, educational environment during the critical developmental years. My mother, Nicole, brought character, heart and an unwavering belief in my potential — and Head Start helped carry that forward.
My mother was just 18 when she enrolled me in Head Start. “A young mother with big dreams and limited resources,” she recounted to me recently, adding that she had “showed up to an open house with a baby in my arms and hope in my heart.”
Soon afterward, Mrs. Helen Robinson, who was in charge of the Head Start in Jackson, entered our lives. She visited our home regularly, bringing books, activities and reassurance. A little yellow school bus picked me up each morning.
Head Start didn’t just support me, though. It also supported my mother and gave her tips and confidence. She took me to the library regularly and made sure I was always surrounded by books and learning materials that would challenge and inspire me.
It helped my mother and countless others like her gain insight into child development, early learning and what it means to advocate for their children’s future.
Twenty-five years after those early mornings when I climbed onto the Head Start bus, we both still think about how different our lives might have been without that opportunity. Head Start stood beside us, and that support changed our lives.
As we debate national priorities, we must ask ourselves: Can we afford to dismantle a program that builds futures, strengthens families and delivers proven returns?
My family provides living proof of Head Start’s power.
This isn’t just our story. It is the story of millions of others and could be the story of millions more if we choose to protect and invest in what works.
Travis Reginal holds a doctorate in public policy and public administration and is a graduate of the Head Start program, Yale University and George Washington University. He is a former Urban Institute researcher.
The Hechinger Report provides in-depth, fact-based, unbiased reporting on education that is free to all readers. But that doesn’t mean it’s free to produce. Our work keeps educators and the public informed about pressing issues at schools and on campuses throughout the country. We tell the whole story, even when the details are inconvenient. Help us keep doing that.
In the 1980s, a public interest law group sued the state of New Jersey, saying that the way it funded education left its low-income, urban school districts at a disadvantage compared to wealthier, suburban districts.
The lawsuit, Abbott v. Burke, yielded a number of different decisions, including a requirement that the state offer free, full-day, high-quality preschool for children ages 3 and 4 in 31 school districts.
This new school year marks the 26th since the program was created. Researchers have found that children who attend the preschool program are better prepared for school later on, but enrollment has been dwindling. And with New Jersey leaders now focused on bringing preschool to all districts, supporters worry that the early learning program focused on children in low-income areas may not get the attention it needs.
Park perk for kids
Did you know every fourth grader and their family can get free admission to national parks, monuments and forests? The Sierra Club’s Outdoors for All program launched in 2015 and offers free passes each school year. Vouchers for students can be downloaded through the program’s official website.
This story about free preschool was produced by The Hechinger Report, a nonprofit, independent news organization focused on inequality and innovation in education. Sign up for the early childhood newsletter.
The Hechinger Report provides in-depth, fact-based, unbiased reporting on education that is free to all readers. But that doesn’t mean it’s free to produce. Our work keeps educators and the public informed about pressing issues at schools and on campuses throughout the country. We tell the whole story, even when the details are inconvenient. Help us keep doing that.
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In June, Ohio became the second stateto regulate how colleges can use third-party vendors to help launch and operate their online degree programs.
Under a new law, both public and private colleges in Ohio must disclose on their websites for their online programs when they are using vendors to help run those offerings.Staff who work for these vendors, known as online program managers, must also identify themselves when talking to students. And it requires colleges to report OPM contracts annually to the state’s higher education chancellor.
The law, part of a larger state budget bill, additionally prohibits OPMs from making decisions about or disbursing student financial aid.
“Ohio’s law is a step in the right direction,” said Amber Villalobos, a fellow at The Century Foundation, a left-leaning think tank. “It’s great to see transparency laws because students will know who’s running their program, who’s teaching their programs.”
The new law is the latest sign that states may take on a greater role in regulating OPM contracts, heeding calls by consumer advocates for stronger government oversight.
However, Villalobos said Ohio lawmakers could have improved the legislation by barring colleges from entering agreements that give OPMs a cut of tuition revenue for each student they recruit into an online program. Minnesota, the first state to pass a law regulating OPMs in 2024, prohibited its public colleges from striking tuition-share deals with these companies if they provide marketing or recruiting services.
U.S. law bars colleges that receive federal funding from giving incentive-based compensation to companies that recruit students into their programs. However, in 2011, federal guidance created an exception for colleges that enter tuition-share agreements with OPMs for recruiting services — but only if they are part of a larger bundle of services, such as curricular design and help with clinical placements.
But these deals have led to OPMs using misleading recruitment and marketing practices to enroll students and fill seats, Villalobos said.
“When tuition-sharing is used for marketing or recruiting purposes we’ve seen issues like predatory recruitment,” she said.
OPMs under scrutiny
OPMs help colleges quickly set up and market online programs, said Phil Hill, an ed tech consultant. That’s important since launching a successful online program catering to nontraditional working adults can be challenging for colleges that typically enroll 18- to 24-year-olds, Hill said.
“It gives them a way to operate in the online space based on what students expect, but do it right away,” Hill said.
However, OPM contracts have been subject to lawsuits and federal scrutiny in recent years.
In Ohio, for instance, legislators passed the new state law following Eastern Gateway Community College’s closure in 2024 after it offered tuition-free online college programs with an OPM.
After the college began working with the for-profit company Student Resource Center, its enrollment soared from just 3,182 students in fall 2014 to 45,173 enrollees by the fall 2021, according to federal data. Former employees of the college accused the relationship of turning the college into an education mill, Inside Higher Ed reported at the time.
By early 2022, the rapid enrollment growth and the college’s relationship with the Student Resource Center had attracted the attention of the U.S. Department of Education.
The federal agency alleged that year that the college’s free college initiative illegally charged students with Pell Grants more than those without. In response, the Education Department placed the college on Heightened Cash Monitoring 2 status, which forced the institution to pay its students’ federal financial aid out of pocket before seeking reimbursement from the agency.
In 2023, Eastern Gateway reached a deal with the Education Department to end its free college program.Its board of trustees voted to shutter the institution the following year.
Ohio likely had “the worst example of an OPM contract harming students, harming an institution of any state in the country,” said Hill. Legislators were “reacting to that situation and the collapse of that school.”
Colleges nationwide have also faced scrutiny over their OPM relationships.
In 2023, the University of Southern California also winded down its partnership with an OPM on most online degrees they ran together.The move came after a 2023 class-action lawsuit accused USC of misrepresenting an online social work master’s degree program developed with the OPM as the same as its campus-based one.
In January, the Biden administration’s Education Department issued guidance informing colleges that they could lose access to federal financial aid or face penalties if OPMs misrepresent themselves to students. That includes OPM employees implying they work for colleges or representing a virtual program as equivalent to an institution’s campus-based version when they have material differences.
Pros and cons of Ohio’s law
Adam Kissel, a visiting fellow at The Heritage Foundation, a right-wing think tank, criticized Ohio’s new law on the conservative Minding the Campus website in June. Despite being watered-down after it was first introduced in the Ohio House, the bill essentially “required a warning label when a college had an OPM partnership,” Kissel wrote.
However, higher education experts said students will benefit from the disclosures and reporting standards in Ohio’s law.
A 2022 U.S. Government Accountability Office report found that at least 550 colleges worked with OPMs to support at least 2,900 education programs. However, the office couldn’t determine the exact number of OPM arrangements due to a lack of comprehensive data.
“Without any real tracking, any real reporting or accountability systems in place, I think that some states just don’t know how large of a scale the OPMs may be operating at in their state,” said Villalobos. “In some cases, that may be a reason we don’t see states taking action.”
Yet Stephanie Hall, a higher education policy expert, said the Ohio law could have been improved if it had banned institutions from paying companies that provide recruiting services on a commission basis, referring to tuition-share agreements.
“This practice has long been banned in the context of typical, on-campus admissions, but for some reason online students are not afforded the same consideration and protection,” Hall, a former senior director of higher ed policy at the liberal think tank Center for American Progress, said in an email.
Additionally, how Ohio enforces the law’s prohibitions on OPMs controlling or influencing financial aid decisions will be key, said Hall.
OPMs in some arrangements provide input on whether the program’s tuition price is competitive, which Hall argues influences pricing, she said.
Some colleges, through such contracts, also agree to offer promotions such as special scholarships or discounts, which the OPM markets or uses to persuade prospective students to enroll, Hall said.
The availability of financial aid including those scholarships and discounts, for example, is often discussed as OPMs field questions from prospective students about the program and its price on behalf of its college client, she said.
“These activities bring the OPM close enough to financial aid decisions to warrant oversight,” Hall said.
Many contracts between OPMs and colleges include a clause stating that the OPM is not a financial aid servicer — but those clauses are meaningless if regulators don’t verify them, Hall said.
The state’s higher education chancellor’s office should thoroughly review how OPMs are involved in pricing, discounts, scholarships and enrollment strategies, instead of just ensuring that such clauses are in their contracts, she said.
The reforms Hall and others are calling for have merit, said Hill. Transparency about contracts, particularly in public education, is a good thing, he said.
But Hill cautioned against characterizing all OPMs as predators.
“I would argue that without this model, a lot of nonprofit colleges and universities just wouldn’t be able to make an online offering that grows at all,” he said.
The Health and Human Services Department has terminated the Minority Biomedical Research Support program, which provided colleges and universities grants to increase the number of minority faculty, students and investigators conducting biomedical research.
In a notice published Monday in the Federal Register, HHS secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said the cancellation is to comply with two anti–diversity, equity and inclusion executive orders President Trump signed in January on his first two days back in office, plus the 2023 U.S. Supreme Court decision banning affirmative action in college admissions decisions. The change is effective Sept. 25.
“The MBRS program prioritizes racial classifications in awarding federal funding,” including by relying on “‘minority student enrollment’ to determine applicant eligibility,” Kennedy wrote. And, though the Supreme Court ruling focused on university admissions, Kennedy wrote that “the principles identified in Students for Fair Admissions also apply to the federal government and require repeal of the MBRS program.”
STAT reported the move earlier. Rochelle Newman, a University of Maryland psychologist who used the grant to pay undergraduate researchers and train them, told STAT that “cutting of these programs means that an entire generation of students will end up being lost to science.”
Organization recognized for excellence in high-impact tutoring design and student achievement gains
PHILADELPHIA, Aug. 25, 2025 –Catapult Learning, a division of FullBloom that provides academic intervention programs for students and professional development solutions for teachers in K-12 schools, today announced it earned the Tutoring Program Design Badge from the National Student Support Accelerator (NSSA) at Stanford University. The designation, valid for three years, recognizes tutoring providers that demonstrate high-quality, research-aligned program design.
The recognition comes at a time when the need for high-impact tutoring (HIT) has never been greater. As schools nationwide work to close learning gaps that widened during the COVID-19 pandemic and accelerate recovery, Catapult Learning stands out for its nearly 50-year legacy of delivering effective academic support to students who need it most.
“Catapult Learning is honored to receive this prestigious national recognition from the NSSA at Stanford University,” said Rob Klapper, president at Catapult Learning. “We are excited to be recognized for our high-impact tutoring program design and will continue to uphold the highest standards of excellence as we support learners across the country.”
Each year, Catapult Learning’s programs support more than 150,000+ students with nearly four million in-person tutoring sessions, in partnership with 2,100 schools and districts nationwide. Its tutors, many of whom hold four-year degrees, are highly trained professionals who are supported with ongoing coaching and professional development.
Recent data from Catapult Learning’s HIT programs show strong academic gains across both math and reading subject areas:
8 out of every 10 math students increased their pre/post score
9 out of every 10 reading students increased their pre/post score
These results come from programs that have also earned a Tier 2 evidence designation under the Every Student Succeeds Act, affirming their alignment with rigorous research standards.
The Badge was awarded following a rigorous, evidence-based review conducted by an independent panel of education experts. The NSSA evaluated multiple components of Catapult Learning’s program – including instructional design, tutor training and support, and the use of data to inform instruction – against its Tutoring Quality Standards.
“This designation underscores the strength and intentionality behind our high-impact tutoring model,” said Devon Wible, vice president of teaching and learning at Catapult Learning. “This achievement reflects our deep commitment to providing high-quality, research-based tutoring that drives meaningful outcomes for learners.”
Tutoring is available in person, virtually, or in hybrid formats, and can be scheduled before, during, or after school, including weekends. Sessions are held a minimum of three times per week, with flexible options tailored to the needs of each school or district. Catapult Learning provides all necessary materials for both students and tutors.
Catapult Learning, a division of FullBloom, provides academic intervention programs for students and professional development solutions for teachers in K-12 schools, executed by a team of experienced coaches. Our professional development services strengthen the capacity of teachers and leaders to raise and sustain student achievement. Our academic intervention programs support struggling learners with instruction tailored to the unique needs of each student. Across the country, Catapult Learning partners with 500+ school districts to produce positive outcomes that promote academic and professional growth. Catapult Learning is accredited by Cognia and has earned its 2022 System of Distinction honor.
Continuing-education programs are one way for colleges and universities to provide targeted offerings and credentialing opportunities for alumni, adults in the region lacking postsecondary education and the local workforce. They also provide flexible support offerings, recognizing the competing identities and responsibilities adult learners hold.
The School of Continuing and Professional Studies at Washington University in St. Louis houses certificate programs, undergraduate and graduate degrees, prison education initiatives, and lifelong learning courses for adults in retirement.
In the most recent episode of Voices of Student Success, host Ashley Mowreader speaks with Sean Armstrong, dean of the School of Continuing and Professional Studies, to talk about the program’s goals and ways the school uplifts adult learners of all types.
An edited version of the podcast appears below.
Q: Most people know WashU; it’s a pretty well-known institution in the U.S. But what is CAPS and what is the mission, and [who are] some of the students that you’re serving?
Sean Armstrong, dean of the school of continuing and professional education at Washington University in St. Louis
Washington University in St. Louis
A: Let me start with definitions. First, Washington University in St. Louis, we’ll call WashU. Continuing and Professional Studies, we’ll call CAPS. Nontraditional or adult learners, we call modern learners here—those for whom school is not their only priority. And then noncredit, we call professional credit because we don’t like “nons.” I think calling anything a “non” is just a negative, and it seems to say it doesn’t matter. So those are the terms that we use.
The program itself is an opportunity for modern learners to access Washington University in a way that they may not have been able to before. This university started out close to 100 years ago, and it was kind of a niche type of school, accessible to certain individuals but not broadly accessible. So our goal is to make this school broadly accessible. Many of our programs are based on regional workforce needs and, of course, [are for] those who find themselves in the category of some college, no degree, and they would like to return and complete their degree.
Q: Can you talk a little bit more about the students who enroll? When it comes to demographics or general trends that you see among the people who enroll in CAPS, what are those?
A: Over 80 percent of our students are employed full-time; I think over 50 percent have multiple jobs. Over 90 percent have families, whether that means they have children or they’re caring for an adult, a parent or older age demographic. I would say 80 percent of our students fall in the 25 to 49 age range. We do have some that are younger, and of course, we have some that are older, but [most] fall squarely in that range. Many of them are looking to find a way back because they want to advance or shift gears and enter another career. The bedrocks [of industry] here in St. Louis are health care, emerging technologies like data, and leadership and management.
Q: I like the focus that you placed on career. One, these students are already working—they know what it’s like to be in the workforce and be employed—compared to maybe some of our traditional undergraduate students. But two, they have a very clear career goal, and they’re looking to do something different with their lives.
I wonder if you can talk about that paradigm where it’s not that they need a job, it’s that they want a different job, or that they’re looking to do something maybe tangential or in a higher-paid role.
A: I think being aspirational doesn’t stop when you’re 22 years old. That’s why we have lifelong learning, and our role is to meet people where they are and to create pathways that lead them to their goals.
We call ourselves partners in student success. We don’t see ourselves as necessarily the educator or the school; we want to be a partner. We want to talk about what your goals are, what your motivations are, and then try to use the resources within the university and within the community to build that pathway to where you want to go.
Q: I just want to say it’s been great listening to the word choice that you all are using, like a “partner,” a “modern learner” and not using “noncredit.” Is that an institutional initiative or is that something you’re passionate about, the idea of using asset-based language?
A: I am super passionate about it. I think the institution has adopted it as well. I can’t say what the language was before I arrived, but I’ve been using a lot of it here.
A lot of it has been to change the perception of the students who enroll within CAPS and the perception of the individuals in our community who are coming to us. I don’t want anybody to be viewed in a negative light, one, and I don’t think there needs to be a comparison between learners, right? They’re all learners, they all have aspirations and we’re all here to support them. I think of all of this as “We are all in this.”
Q: Let’s talk about some of the programs. What’s the most popular degree offering that you all have, or nondegree offering?
A: The bachelor of science in integrated studies is a degree program that has many different areas of study and certificate options. That is a popular program because this is really dedicated as a some college, no degree type of program. We accept up to 85 transfer credit hours in this program, which is super generous. It’s not something I want to change, and hope I don’t have to, for various reasons, but it allows us to really be open to students.
WashU is a writing school. It is a school that wants you to be able to communicate clearly, either through writing or speaking. And so our writing and communication courses, there is an assessment that we do to see where individuals are, and then to help them build the skill to be able to be successful in our courses. So that’s a really popular one.
Our certificates, you know, I try to put my finger on which ones [are popular], because I think our certificate enrollments have doubled in the last year, and we’re trying to understand why.
Our certificates serve two purposes. One, they’re skill-based, so they’re an opportunity for someone to learn a skill within a year and then have that credential and move on. But they’re also stackable to a bachelor’s degree, so if somebody has some college, no degree, or maybe they have an A.A. [associate of arts] degree, they want to earn their certificate because they’re not feeling too confident about entering into a bachelor’s degree program, this is a really good way for them to be able to do that. We’ll begin to uncover this year as to why that’s so popular, but it’s been going gangbusters.
And then I have to tell you about our “heart” programs. We market them as our community programs, but they’re programs that are central to our heart. They’re our prison education program, our English language program, our master of arts in teaching and learning, and our OSHA Lifelong Learning Institute program.
The four of those are really community-based. Prison education, we offer face-to-face degree programs in two prisons in Missouri and re-entry support for individuals who are returning home. In our English language program, we offer opportunities for individuals who are international students to communicate clearly, present clearly. But we also had an opportunity to turn that program towards the community, for individuals who lack the English skills to be a good fit for a job—you have to communicate clearly on any job. So we had individuals who were here that had medical degrees and wanted to work in the medical field, and so we’re helping them to be able to bridge that gap.
I mentioned our master of arts in teaching and learning; teaching is just necessary. So we’re trying to do all that we can to be helpful, especially here in the St. Louis region. And then our OSHA Lifelong Learning Program offers opportunities for individuals who are over 50 to continue learning for the rest of their lives.
Q: That’s awesome. I have a personal passion for lifelong learner classes because they’re so niche and there are so many different ways to engage the community there.
You talked a little about the community engagement piece of CAPS, but I wonder if we can dig into that a bit more. You know, WashU has historically been very selective in who it admits and how it relates to the St. Louis community as a whole. How does this further that town-and-gown relationship and encourage St. Louisans to see themselves as part of WashU?
A: Our focus is on the region and on individuals who really don’t have the option of being a residential student. They have to be either part-time, some of them are three-quarter time, but they cannot live on campus. That’s not an option, because they just have other things going on. And so that’s our niche. That’s kind of the gap that we’ve been able to fill.
I am happy to say that WashU has been very supportive, very enthusiastic about that population of students. Again, we don’t compare. I think the WashU residential students are probably some of the brightest students I’ve met in my career, probably top 1 or 2 percent from around the world. And I’m not trying to say our students are not, but you know that they’re not 18, either.
They’re 30 years old with two children and other obligations. Household operations is a real thing, trying to figure out what needs to get paid and what doesn’t. That’s not to say our residential students don’t have those types of concerns, but for our [CAPS] students, it is something that can sometimes challenge how they appear in our setting.
Q: There was a study by Trellis Strategies that found a majority of community college students or those enrolled part-time were more likely to consider themselves workers who are students and not necessarily students who are workers. It sounds like that’s the population you’re talking about, where their education is important to them, but there are other things that are ranking towards the top first.
You serve a variety of adults in a variety of different contexts. What is that like for you, as the dean of a school like this, to wear all these hats and engage with all these different types of programs and support mechanisms to encourage student success?
A: I’ve always liked the full-spectrum model of adult education. We’ve seen bits and pieces—the community college, of course, has a piece. Typically, school districts will have a piece, universities will have a piece. I’ve always liked, “OK, there’s really no job too small if there’s a need in the region. So let’s attack all of it.”
I think that vision starts with me, and of course, I’m kind of the mad scientist sometimes, but the support and the passion for the individuals that I work with are really what makes this happen. It’s interesting because we were talking the other day in a leadership team meeting, and I said, “I think one of the questions I am going to ask in interviews from now on is, ‘How does it make you feel to help somebody? Does it make you feel good, or is it just you’ve checked the box?’” And I think, for the most part, in our organization, it makes people feel good to do this type of work.
Q: Absolutely. What are some of the challenges in the work that you do?
A: Time is our biggest challenge. There are things that people needed yesterday, and we’re just unable to create a program as quickly as the need arises or has arisen. There are people who are finding out about us and wish they had known about us a year ago, and so we’re behind the gun on that. But really, it’s time for us. I think we are ready to do, as I think my daughter would say, we’re ready to do the most in any given circumstance.
Q: One initiative that we didn’t talk too much about that I want to highlight is Extend(Ed) and this idea of equipping professionals to advance in their career. Can you talk a little bit about that initiative and how it works?
A: Sure. Extend(Ed) is the professional credits—the noncredit space is what it’s typically called, but we call it professional credits. I call it creative solutions for workforce needs. It’s a model that I see us offering 100-plus short-term courses or programs in within the next, I’d say, 18 months.
We’re looking at synchronous opportunities, asynchronous opportunities, and they’ll be online mostly. I think there’ll be some that’ll be based on an employer’s needs. We’re working with a few employers on creating programs that they asked for. And they’ll be co-created, which is key, because I never want somebody to leave and say, “We didn’t really get what we wanted.” It was like, “Oh, we discussed this.”
So we’ll be on-site delivering that particular program. Extend(Ed) allows us to be really creative and really responsive to the needs of industry or even community organizations. And they’re affordable. We’re trying to make them as affordable as possible.
Q: Who are the faculty in this work?
A: They’re subject-matter experts, so they are working in the field. They’re doing the work on a day-to-day basis, so they’re able to link what students are learning in the text with real life and what they’re doing at work, and I think our students really appreciate that.
We’ve had students who have enrolled with us, who were our residential students, who also appreciate the perspective of the faculty that teach for us, and also the students and their real-world experiences also. It creates a different dimension of diversity, I think, within the classroom, and maybe an elevated level of conversation when you’re talking about, “I do this on a daily basis.”
One question I like to ask students—our students in particular—is “Is there anything that you learned in the classroom last week that you were able to apply recently?” And they all say yes, and they’ll say, “this thing,” so it’s pretty cool.
Q: What’s next for CAPS? What are some of your goals for this upcoming academic year?
A: I mentioned one with Extend(Ed). I think we want to deepen partnerships. Partnerships are central to what I do. It’s in my background; a really deep knowledge of how to create partnerships has been what my career has been all about for the past 25 years, and so I want to continue to do that in St. Louis. And then we always strive to improve student success and student service. So that’s another area that we’d like to ensure that we keep top of mind.
Q: Are your student support services similar to those for residential students or how do they look different?
A: It’s slightly different. Our model is based on the coaching model, and so there is more of the directive “Here are the courses that you will need to take in order to graduate.” But where the traditional student affairs or student support for a residential student would be based on a living and learning community, ours is more based on the how-to.
Our students are more confronted with, “I don’t know if this is the right time to go back, but I need to.” And then there might be some impostor syndrome also. So we’re focused on how to be successful—What was your motivation for doing all of this?—and then reminding students of that motivation as we guide them along that path.
Q: I wonder if you have any advice or insight for others who work in this space, either in higher education broadly or in continuing education spaces, encouragement on how to do this work well or a lesson you’ve learned doing this work.
A: One lesson that I’ve learned is to talk to all of your surrounding organizations to understand what their role is in the space. When we talk about some college, no degree [students], the first thing I say is “There’s no competition among us, because that population is so large that if we ran at double our capacity, we wouldn’t be able to meet the need.” So it might be better for us to look at what we all are doing. If we want to establish swim lanes, we can. If there are ways that we can collaborate, we should. And that would be the one advice that I’d give people who are, depending on the population, some college, no degree is definitely one of those, but really to partner with one another, collaborate on student success.
Cynt Marshall The Dallas Mavericks and Paul Quinn College have announced a partnership that establishes the nation’s first NBA team-sponsored sports management major at a historically Black college or university. The innovative “Mavs Sports Management Major” officially launched Friday with an opening convocation featuring former Mavericks CEO Cynt Marshall as the keynote speaker.
The program, formally titled “Leadership, Innovation, Sports Management, Technology, Entrepreneurship, and Networking” (LISTEN), represents a significant investment in diversifying the sports industry pipeline while addressing educational equity in higher education.
Paul Quinn College, Dallas’s only HBCU, will integrate the new major into its existing curriculum structure, with students receiving comprehensive support that includes Target-sponsored care packages containing dorm essentials and other student necessities.
The program distinguishes itself through extensive real-world application opportunities. Students will engage with Mavericks executives through weekly guest lectures and participate in hands-on projects addressing actual business challenges facing the organization. The curriculum includes case study analysis, creative brief development, and student-led presentations proposing solutions to current Mavericks business scenarios.
Beyond classroom learning, the partnership includes campus engagement initiatives with sponsored events throughout the academic year, entrepreneurship support through integration into the Mavs Business Assist program, and a planned residence hall renovation featuring custom Mavericks-designed murals.
The collaboration aligns with the Mavericks’ “Take ACTION!” initiative, which specifically targets racial inequities and promotes sustainable change in North Texas. Sports management and administration have long struggled with representation issues, particularly in executive and leadership positions.
According to industry data, while Black athletes comprise significant portions of professional sports rosters, representation drops dramatically in front office and management roles. This program aims to address that pipeline gap by providing structured pathways from education to industry entry.
Mentorship is a learning-centered, leadership-driven experience that nurtures the next generation of researchers and clinicians in academia (Rabeeah et al 2022). Faculty mentors in allied health science programs play a crucial role in shaping their mentees’ professional growth and long-term career fulfillment. Mentor-mentee relationships may be faculty and student, or seasoned faculty and junior faculty.
When reflecting on your prior experiences as a mentor or a mentee, ask yourself these questions:
1. Was it a positive experience?
2. Did you experience disparities based on your gender or race as a mentor or mentee?
3. Did you feel you had adequate training to be a mentor, or did your mentor demonstrate they had the skills to support you as a mentee? and
4. How were the mentors and mentees matched?
Many more questions need to be asked to ensure the mentor-mentee relationship and interactions are sufficient for exponential career growth. However, cultivating a positive experience for the mentee, ensuring there are no barriers (i.e., gender or race) for a unique experience, mentor training, and appropriate pairing of mentors and mentees are overarching considerations supported by evidence. (Rabeeah Z, 2022, Stenfors-Hayes T 2011, Mascarenhas F 2019, Bartle et al. 2020, Hill et al 2022, Frei et al 2010)
Problem
Concurrently, established formal mentorship programs are lacking in allied health science education programs for both students and junior faculty. Having formal mentorship programs for faculty to obtain training for mentorship roles and guidelines to support both junior faculty and students is essential for foundational success in academia. (Reibel & Arnett 2025, Mascarenhas F 2019) As a result of the lack of faculty mentors, students may not be getting exposure to avenues beyond clinical practice. This has been identified in dental hygiene education. (Reibel & Arnett 2025) It is suspected that allied health science programs, in general, have similar barriers to developing, implementing, and evaluating research mentorship programs. The goal of this article is to provide a blueprint for allied health programs to establish a framework for initiating a formal mentorship program.
Solution
To develop and implement a formal mentoring program, you need institutional ‘buy-in,’ strategic planning, faculty and students for piloting the program, an assessment metric(s), and a review of the outcomes process to make recommendations to modify the mentorship program. All these aspects depend on institutional support. The first step would be to identify the need for a mentorship program supported by evidence. The next step would be to align a mentorship program with the institution’s strategic plan.
Strategic Planning
Strategic planning is essential for building coalitions among deans, department chairs, program directors, and mentors. It is the deliberate process of setting goals, identifying resources, and establishing priorities. Beginning with a vision and mission statement may serve as the foundation to set goals to execute and then position a mentor program to identify resources, priorities and specific groups or individuals in a coalition of champions.
To build a diverse wide network of champions to support a variety of perspectives, it is important to identify individuals and groups who can contribute a range of resources, are versatile, and have the ability to pivot when changes need to occur. However, it is equally important that the determined coalition of champions are in alignment with the vision and the mission of the mentorship program. A mentorship program coalition of champions may support inclusive and sustainable programing and increase the reach of available resources. Further a mentorship coalition is especially relevant to match appropriate mentors and mentees and provide a unique mentor experience for the mentee for lifelong learning and professional development.
The next aspect of strategic planning is the development and implementation of a pilot program. A mentorship pilot program is needed on a small scale to determine feasibility. Mentorship pilot programs are required to collect outcomes to evaluate for expansion and improvements. Additionally, if funding is required to sustain or build the mentorship program for expansion, these primary outcomes are needed to secure internal or external grant funding.
Allied health science programs may find available resources for a mentorship program through their human resource department, professional organizations, or government agencies. One example of a successful student research mentorship program was published in the Journal of Dental Hygiene in 2025. (Reibel & Arnett 2025) This student research mentorship program partnered with the Writing Enrichment Curriculum to develop assignments and rubrics to improve student writing. (Reibel & Arnett 2025) This student research mentorship program not only implemented standardized assignments and grading rubrics across the curriculum but also resulted in eight student-led peer-reviewed publications between the years 2019-2023. (Reibel & Arnett 2025) Although the strategic plan and resources provided in this publication are specific to an allied oral health science program, (Reibel & Arnett 2025) the information is transferable to any allied health science program for students and can be modified for a faculty mentorship focus.
Conclusion
This blueprint is applicable to formal mentorship for faculty and students. The main framework is transferable and can be modified to match your institution’s strategic plan and goals. It is important to be aware of key components to ensure a humanistic mentor and mentee experience is cultivated. Strategic planning is necessary for developing, implementing, and evaluating a mentorship program. A coalition of champions who share the values of the vision and mission of a formal mentorship program contributes to the overall mentorship program and evaluation of metrics for future modifications and longevity.
Michelle Arnett currently serves as a Tenured Associate Professor in the Department of Primary Dental Care, Division of Dental Hygiene (DH) at the University of Minnesota (UMN) School of Dentistry (SOD). Arnett has 10 years of experience in academics and research at the University of Michigan SOD and the UMN SOD, in addition to 21 years of clinical practice experience. Her areas of research focus are motivational interviewing and periodontology. Arnett has published over 50 peer-review articles and two textbook chapters. Of those 50, 29 are specific her research niche in motivational interviewing and periodontology. The remaining 21 peer-reviewed publications focus on her teaching, student mentee research projects, and faculty and students’ wellness. Arnett has given over 60 presentations; 20 were invited national and international events. In 2023, Arnett received the American Dental Education Association (ADEA) President Centennial Awards for Oral Health Education. This was a one-time award at ADEA’s centennial celebration for an allied dental faculty who has made and continues to make a significant and positive impact on oral health education. Arnett has taught Communications, Periodontology, Leadership, and the Dental Hygiene Care Process: Clinical Application III and IV in the UMN undergraduate DH program and Instructional Strategies, Thesis I and II, and Capstone I-IV in the UMN graduate DH program. Her professional memberships include Sigma Phi Alpha-Nu Chapter, American Dental Hygienists’ Association (ADHA), and the ADEA.
References
Bartle, Emma K., Brandon J. Crivello, Jeri L. Bullock, and Ezinne I. Ogbureke. “Mentorship availability and needs for junior faculty members at the United States and Australian dental schools.” European Journal of Dental Education 24, no. 4 (2020): 790-798.
Frei, Esther, Martina Stamm, and Barbara Buddeberg-Fischer. “Mentoring programs for medical students-a review of the PubMed literature 2000-2008.” BMC medical education 10 (2010): 1-14.
Hill, Sarah EM, Wendy L. Ward, A. Seay, and J. Buzenski. “The nature and evolution of the mentoring relationship in academic health centers.” Journal of clinical psychology in medical settings 29, no. 3
Mascarenhas, Faye, Janice Townsend, Paul Caballero, Qingzhao Yu, and Paul L. Fidel Jr. “Student and faculty perspectives of a faculty‐student mentoring programme in a dental school.” European Journal of Dental Education 23, no. 2 (2019): 184-189.
Rabeeah, Zainulabdeen, Jocelid G. Carreno, Janet S. Kinney, and Marita R. Inglehart. “Career motivation and satisfaction of dental hygiene students in associate versus bachelor degree programs: A national survey.” Journal of Dental Education 86, no. 6 (2022): 649-660.
Reibel, Y.G., Jiang, Z., Arnett, M.C. “Mentor Like Minnesota: Outcomes of an undergraduate research mentorship program.” Journal of Dental Hygiene (Online) 99, no. 2 (2025): 48-54.
Stenfors‐Hayes, T., L. E. Lindgren, and S. Tranaeus. “Perspectives on being a mentor for undergraduate dental students.” European Journal of Dental Education 15, no. 3 (2011): 153-158.
Mentorship is a learning-centered, leadership-driven experience that nurtures the next generation of researchers and clinicians in academia (Rabeeah et al 2022). Faculty mentors in allied health science programs play a crucial role in shaping their mentees’ professional growth and long-term career fulfillment. Mentor-mentee relationships may be faculty and student, or seasoned faculty and junior faculty.
When reflecting on your prior experiences as a mentor or a mentee, ask yourself these questions:
1. Was it a positive experience?
2. Did you experience disparities based on your gender or race as a mentor or mentee?
3. Did you feel you had adequate training to be a mentor, or did your mentor demonstrate they had the skills to support you as a mentee? and
4. How were the mentors and mentees matched?
Many more questions need to be asked to ensure the mentor-mentee relationship and interactions are sufficient for exponential career growth. However, cultivating a positive experience for the mentee, ensuring there are no barriers (i.e., gender or race) for a unique experience, mentor training, and appropriate pairing of mentors and mentees are overarching considerations supported by evidence. (Rabeeah Z, 2022, Stenfors-Hayes T 2011, Mascarenhas F 2019, Bartle et al. 2020, Hill et al 2022, Frei et al 2010)
Problem
Concurrently, established formal mentorship programs are lacking in allied health science education programs for both students and junior faculty. Having formal mentorship programs for faculty to obtain training for mentorship roles and guidelines to support both junior faculty and students is essential for foundational success in academia. (Reibel & Arnett 2025, Mascarenhas F 2019) As a result of the lack of faculty mentors, students may not be getting exposure to avenues beyond clinical practice. This has been identified in dental hygiene education. (Reibel & Arnett 2025) It is suspected that allied health science programs, in general, have similar barriers to developing, implementing, and evaluating research mentorship programs. The goal of this article is to provide a blueprint for allied health programs to establish a framework for initiating a formal mentorship program.
Solution
To develop and implement a formal mentoring program, you need institutional ‘buy-in,’ strategic planning, faculty and students for piloting the program, an assessment metric(s), and a review of the outcomes process to make recommendations to modify the mentorship program. All these aspects depend on institutional support. The first step would be to identify the need for a mentorship program supported by evidence. The next step would be to align a mentorship program with the institution’s strategic plan.
Strategic Planning
Strategic planning is essential for building coalitions among deans, department chairs, program directors, and mentors. It is the deliberate process of setting goals, identifying resources, and establishing priorities. Beginning with a vision and mission statement may serve as the foundation to set goals to execute and then position a mentor program to identify resources, priorities and specific groups or individuals in a coalition of champions.
To build a diverse wide network of champions to support a variety of perspectives, it is important to identify individuals and groups who can contribute a range of resources, are versatile, and have the ability to pivot when changes need to occur. However, it is equally important that the determined coalition of champions are in alignment with the vision and the mission of the mentorship program. A mentorship program coalition of champions may support inclusive and sustainable programing and increase the reach of available resources. Further a mentorship coalition is especially relevant to match appropriate mentors and mentees and provide a unique mentor experience for the mentee for lifelong learning and professional development.
The next aspect of strategic planning is the development and implementation of a pilot program. A mentorship pilot program is needed on a small scale to determine feasibility. Mentorship pilot programs are required to collect outcomes to evaluate for expansion and improvements. Additionally, if funding is required to sustain or build the mentorship program for expansion, these primary outcomes are needed to secure internal or external grant funding.
Allied health science programs may find available resources for a mentorship program through their human resource department, professional organizations, or government agencies. One example of a successful student research mentorship program was published in the Journal of Dental Hygiene in 2025. (Reibel & Arnett 2025) This student research mentorship program partnered with the Writing Enrichment Curriculum to develop assignments and rubrics to improve student writing. (Reibel & Arnett 2025) This student research mentorship program not only implemented standardized assignments and grading rubrics across the curriculum but also resulted in eight student-led peer-reviewed publications between the years 2019-2023. (Reibel & Arnett 2025) Although the strategic plan and resources provided in this publication are specific to an allied oral health science program, (Reibel & Arnett 2025) the information is transferable to any allied health science program for students and can be modified for a faculty mentorship focus.
Conclusion
This blueprint is applicable to formal mentorship for faculty and students. The main framework is transferable and can be modified to match your institution’s strategic plan and goals. It is important to be aware of key components to ensure a humanistic mentor and mentee experience is cultivated. Strategic planning is necessary for developing, implementing, and evaluating a mentorship program. A coalition of champions who share the values of the vision and mission of a formal mentorship program contributes to the overall mentorship program and evaluation of metrics for future modifications and longevity.
Michelle Arnett currently serves as a Tenured Associate Professor in the Department of Primary Dental Care, Division of Dental Hygiene (DH) at the University of Minnesota (UMN) School of Dentistry (SOD). Arnett has 10 years of experience in academics and research at the University of Michigan SOD and the UMN SOD, in addition to 21 years of clinical practice experience. Her areas of research focus are motivational interviewing and periodontology. Arnett has published over 50 peer-review articles and two textbook chapters. Of those 50, 29 are specific her research niche in motivational interviewing and periodontology. The remaining 21 peer-reviewed publications focus on her teaching, student mentee research projects, and faculty and students’ wellness. Arnett has given over 60 presentations; 20 were invited national and international events. In 2023, Arnett received the American Dental Education Association (ADEA) President Centennial Awards for Oral Health Education. This was a one-time award at ADEA’s centennial celebration for an allied dental faculty who has made and continues to make a significant and positive impact on oral health education. Arnett has taught Communications, Periodontology, Leadership, and the Dental Hygiene Care Process: Clinical Application III and IV in the UMN undergraduate DH program and Instructional Strategies, Thesis I and II, and Capstone I-IV in the UMN graduate DH program. Her professional memberships include Sigma Phi Alpha-Nu Chapter, American Dental Hygienists’ Association (ADHA), and the ADEA.
References
Bartle, Emma K., Brandon J. Crivello, Jeri L. Bullock, and Ezinne I. Ogbureke. “Mentorship availability and needs for junior faculty members at the United States and Australian dental schools.” European Journal of Dental Education 24, no. 4 (2020): 790-798.
Frei, Esther, Martina Stamm, and Barbara Buddeberg-Fischer. “Mentoring programs for medical students-a review of the PubMed literature 2000-2008.” BMC medical education 10 (2010): 1-14.
Hill, Sarah EM, Wendy L. Ward, A. Seay, and J. Buzenski. “The nature and evolution of the mentoring relationship in academic health centers.” Journal of clinical psychology in medical settings 29, no. 3
Mascarenhas, Faye, Janice Townsend, Paul Caballero, Qingzhao Yu, and Paul L. Fidel Jr. “Student and faculty perspectives of a faculty‐student mentoring programme in a dental school.” European Journal of Dental Education 23, no. 2 (2019): 184-189.
Rabeeah, Zainulabdeen, Jocelid G. Carreno, Janet S. Kinney, and Marita R. Inglehart. “Career motivation and satisfaction of dental hygiene students in associate versus bachelor degree programs: A national survey.” Journal of Dental Education 86, no. 6 (2022): 649-660.
Reibel, Y.G., Jiang, Z., Arnett, M.C. “Mentor Like Minnesota: Outcomes of an undergraduate research mentorship program.” Journal of Dental Hygiene (Online) 99, no. 2 (2025): 48-54.
Stenfors‐Hayes, T., L. E. Lindgren, and S. Tranaeus. “Perspectives on being a mentor for undergraduate dental students.” European Journal of Dental Education 15, no. 3 (2011): 153-158.
North Carolina is taking bold steps to democratize college access with the expansion of its NC College Connect program, which will offer direct admission to more than 62,000 public high school seniors this fall. The initiative represents a significant shift toward equity-focused admissions practices that prioritize accessibility over traditional application barriers.
The program targets students who complete their junior year with a weighted GPA of 2.8 or higher. By eliminating the often overwhelming application process, NC College Connect removes financial and procedural obstacles that disproportionately affect first-generation college students and those from underrepresented communities.
“NC College Connect represents a fundamental shift in how we approach college admissions in North Carolina,” said Peter Hans, President of the University of North Carolina System. The initiative reflects growing national recognition that traditional admissions processes can perpetuate educational inequities.
Maurice “Mo” Green, State Superintendent of Public Instruction, praised the collaborative nature of the effort.
“When our entire education community works together like this, students win. NC College Connect removes barriers and creates clear pathways to college for thousands of our students,” he said.
The program’s inclusive design addresses systemic challenges that have historically limited college access for students from diverse backgrounds. By providing direct admission letters and eliminating complex application requirements, the initiative particularly benefits students who might otherwise be deterred by navigating multiple institutional processes.
Participating institutions span the full spectrum of North Carolina’s higher education landscape, including UNC System universities, independent colleges and universities, and community colleges. This comprehensive approach ensures students have pathways to various types of post-secondary education that align with their academic goals and financial circumstances.
Dr. Jeff Cox, President of the North Carolina Community College System, highlighted the program’s potential to transform access to affordable education.
“By removing barriers and simplifying the process, we’re helping more students access the life-changing opportunities our community colleges provide—close to home and at a price they can afford,” he said.
Community colleges have long served as crucial entry points for students from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds, offering both career preparation and transfer pathways to four-year institutions. The inclusion of community colleges in NC College Connect recognizes their vital role in democratizing higher education access.
The program’s commitment to equity extends beyond admissions to address affordability concerns through targeted financial aid initiatives. The Next NC Scholarship and NC Need-Based Scholarship specifically support students from households earning $80,000 or less, covering tuition and fees at participating institutions.
Additionally, students attending Elizabeth City State University, Fayetteville State University, University of North Carolina at Pembroke, and Western Carolina University benefit from the NC Promise plan’s $500 per semester tuition rate. These historically Black institutions and regional universities serve particularly diverse student populations, making the affordable tuition structure especially impactful for underrepresented students.
Hope Williams, President of North Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities, noted the unique value proposition of smaller institutions: the personalized attention and specialized programs that can be particularly beneficial for students who might struggle in larger university environments.
The program builds on a successful pilot year that served more than 70,000 students, demonstrating the demand for streamlined college access. The expansion indicates that initial outcomes validated the approach’s effectiveness in connecting students with higher education opportunities.
Students can verify their eligibility through the NCCollegeConnect.com portal or by consulting with high school counselors, ensuring multiple touchpoints for information and support. Eligible seniors will receive official admission letters this fall for the 2026-27 academic year, providing ample time for planning and preparation.
NC College Connect positions North Carolina as a leader in reimagining college admissions to prioritize access and equity. As higher education institutions nationwide grapple with declining enrollment and questions about traditional admissions practices, North Carolina’s comprehensive approach offers a replicable model for other states.
The initiative’s success will likely be measured not just in enrollment numbers, but in its ability to diversify the state’s college-going population and create pathways for students who might otherwise forego higher education. By removing procedural barriers and addressing financial constraints, NC College Connect represents a holistic approach to educational equity that extends well beyond the admissions office.
