The College Board warned Thursday that the growing gap between the United States and other countries threatens to undermine American economic competitiveness according to a recent New York Times article.  The United States used to lead the world in the number of 25- to 34-year-olds with college degrees. Now it ranks 12th among 36 developed nations. “The growing education deficit is no less a threat to our nation’s long-term well-being than the current fiscal crisis,” Gaston Caperton, the president of the College Board, warned at a meeting on Capitol Hill of education leaders and policy makers. For those of us concerned with finding solutions to the graduation gap, it is encouraging to see how much attention is being paid to this issue.  To read the full article click here.

The problem for the community college and university presidents we are talking to is how to make progress on this seemingly intractable problem.  The answers are emerging as we combine our RTG (Retention-To-Graduation) methodology with the wisdom and energy of these higher education professionals.  We are in the early stages of implementation but the response has been enthusiastic. As the data emerges, we will keep you posted.