Objectives

Objectives of College Ready New England include:

Regional Collaboration & Engagement

• Foster regionwide collaboration and alignment along the P-16 continuum to facilitate student transitions from one level to another, within each state and across the six states;

• Establish a shared sense of responsibility among major stakeholders throughout New England for more effectively providing students with accessible, affordable and attainable postsecondary education;

• Engage leaders of business and education, as well as elected officials at local, state and federal levels, in deliberations and efforts to address the barriers within the college pipeline faced by many New England students—and to promote incentives to succeed;

• Undertake cross-state initiatives to promote students’ postsecondary aspirations, such as universal PSAT participation in the 10th grade;

• Share resources, best practices, policy and program innovations and expertise among the six states.

Leadership & Advocacy

• Establish a collective voice to provide policy leadership and promote increased accountability at local, state, regional and federal levels regarding K-16 integration and postsecondary preparation, access, attainment and affordability;

• Speak with a united and authoritative voice to leaders at the local, state and federal levels, advocating policy change to ensure postsecondary success for all students.

Programs & Policy

• Leverage the best practices and resources of the Pathways to College Network to enhance college readiness across the six New England states;

• Promote research- and evidence-based programs and policies to increase the readiness of all New England students to successfully pursue postsecondary education;

• Increase the postsecondary aspirations, access and attainment of the region’s low-income and minority populations;

• Increase the postsecondary aspirations, access and attainment of the region’s males, including African-American and Hispanic males, for whom participation rates are low;

• Strengthen the rigor of college preparation through improved teacher preparation and ongoing professional development in mathematics, science, foreign languages and other critical areas;

• Develop regional teacher accreditation options/agreements and expand teachers’ subject-specific accreditation alternatives, particularly in mathematics, science and other critical disciplines.
  

Affordability

• Establish financial aid policies and outreach programs that build students’ commitment to pursuing postsecondary study;

• Advocate for greater state support of higher education, including financial aid and state grant and scholarship programs, both need- and merit-based;

• Reduce financial barriers that limit the participation and attainment of low-income students.

Data & Accountability

• Develop data systems that link K-12, higher education and the workforce within states and across the region, increasing P-16 alignment and addressing economic development goals;

• Provide advocacy and research on behalf of the New England states in national discussions about unit record data systems, student clearinghouses and the use of K-20 identification systems;

• Collect, analyze and share performance and tracking data to support continuous improvement and inform decisions at all levels of policymaking.