Our Focus Areas in 2025
Reconnecting Black and Latino Rural Residents with Postsecondary Education and Training
This year our primary project centers on addressing the barriers to postsecondary attainment for rural Black and Latino learners with some college credits and no credentials. Through our forthcoming Rural Reconnect Initiative, we aim to:
- Elevate evidence-based student success programs at rural Minority-Serving Institutions (MSIs), including Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs), Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), and Predominantly Black Institutions (PBIs) in the South and Southwest.
- Understand the unique barriers to re-enrollment and completion, such as financial constraints, limited student support structures for returning students, and academic/workforce alignment.
- Develop data-driven recommendations for policymakers and institutions to increase rural student re-enrollment, retention, and success.
A variety of partners with subject matter expertise will guide this initiative through the Rural Reconnect Advisory Group. Their leadership on this project will help TICAS develop tools and recommendations for institutional leaders and policymakers to use to ensure students from rural communities receive the support they need to complete their degrees.
National Scan of College Completion Strategies
Building on our work in Comprehensive Approaches to Student Success (CASS), we are conducting a nationwide review of states that have developed holistic models to support and enable postsecondary education institutions to close equity gaps in college completion. This scan will:
- Identify states that have set college completion goals and further study exemplary system-level strategies to build a more robust evidence base about different approaches to improve student outcomes at scale.
- Highlight elements of holistic approaches to college completion, such as the necessary policies, practices, and funding for systems and institutions to best support student success.
- Inform policymakers and practitioners about best practices to ensure students not only enroll in college, but they have access to comprehensive student supports and graduate with a credential of value.
Explore our Interactive CASS Map to see where CASS programs are making an impact!
Federal Policy Advocacy for College Completion
At the federal level, TICAS is advocating for stronger college completion investments and policies to support students and institutions. Our 2025 Policy Agenda prioritizes:
- Expanding the Postsecondary Student Success Grant (PSSG) Program to provide higher education institutions with funding to develop, implement, and scale evidence-based student success strategies.
- Strengthening the Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) program to help low-income, first-generation, and students of color afford non-tuition costs like textbooks, food, transportation, and housing—key barriers to completion.
- Increasing support for federal TRIO programs that provide academic advising, career guidance, and holistic supports that help students stay on track to graduate.
- Providing greater access to CASS models, which provide integrated academic, financial, and personal supports proven to increase completion rates, especially for community college and underrepresented students.
- Re-engaging the nearly 37 million Americans adults with some college and no credential through targeted financial aid, advising, and institutional policies designed to bring students back and help them complete their degrees.
Read our 2025 TICAS Federal Policy Agenda to see how we are working to advance college completion at the national level.
Stay Connected
Our work is strengthened through strategic partnerships and shared advocacy with organizations across the country. If you would like to receive information about our work and events, partner with us on a shared goal, or share your resources and events with us, please contact Dr. Crespin-Trujillo at [email protected] or Angelica Gutierrez at [email protected].
For more information on College Completion visit our webpage.
To stay updated, fill out the email contact form at the bottom of this page.
