MHEC News January 2022
MHEC News summarizes key developments in policy and research, convenings, programs, contracts, articles of interest, and updates for members of the Midwestern Higher Education Compact. We welcome your feedback and suggestions.
MHEC's Annual Report is Now Available
Despite challenging times, MHEC accomplished a great deal over the past year. We are grateful for the support and resiliency of our community of commissioners, committee members, regional supporters, and national partners. You can read more about our accomplishments in the 2020-2021 Annual Report to the Member States. We look forward to continuing our work with you to strengthen postsecondary education and competitiveness of our region.
POLICY & RESEARCH
Interactive Dashboard Highlights College Affordability by Race/Ethnicity
MHEC’s Interactive Dashboard now provides the latest data on the percentage of family income needed to pay the net price of full-time enrollment at public two- and four-year institutions by race and ethnicity. The average net price refers to the total cost of attendance (tuition and fees, books, supplies, and room and board) after deducting the average institutional, local, state, and federal grant aid. Based on the median income for families in each racial and ethnic group, the figure below shows that college attendance in the Midwest requires a greater share of family income for American Indian, Black, and Hispanic students (among others) than for Asian and White students. MHEC’s Interactive Dashboard provides additional ways to visualize this data using bar charts, line graphs, maps, and tables. Selected college affordability indicators are also available for MHEC states in the report, Higher Education in Focus.
The figure indicates college attendance in the Midwest requires a greater share of family income for American Indian, Black, and Hispanic students (among others) than for Asian and White students.
Source: NCES IPEDS. (2019). Net Price. U.S. Census Bureau. (2019). American Community Survey One-Year Public Use Microdata Sample.
Credential Transparency Action Team Works on Cybersecurity Pathways
The Midwest Credential Transparency Alliance (MCTA) Action Team will meet January 21 to focus on career pathways in the cybersecurity field. This working group is identifying industry certifications and competency frameworks to connect credentials across postsecondary institutions in the Midwest. If you are interested in this convening, please contact Jeff Grann.
On February 10, the MCTA will hold its quarterly meeting. MHEC staff will provide highlights of the past year’s work as well as discuss efforts for 2022. The focus will be micro-credentials and certificates. To participate and stay informed, please sign up for the MCTA list server. Visit the MCTA webpage for resources and additional background information.
Recent Legislation Affecting Military-Connected Students
December 2021 was a busy month for Congress. President Joe Biden signed two bills into laws affecting military-connected students and postsecondary institutions.
The Responsible Education Mitigating Options and Technical Extensions Act (Public Law No:117-76), also known as the REMOTE Act, has three key components for military-connected students and a change of wording that allows institutions to recruit foreign students.
- Extending the remote learning waivers for student veterans through the spring 2022 term with an end date of June 1, 2022
- Providing student veterans with continued housing benefits despite participating in remote learning, which has been extended until June 1, 2022
- Ensuring U.S. universities have the necessary flexibility to recruit foreign students
The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2022 (Public Law No: 117-81), among other things, addressed military-connected students’ and postsecondary institutions’ concerns regarding the efficacy of the Army’s Tuition Assistance Program known as Army IgnitED. The NDAA states that within 60 days of its enactment the Secretary of the Army must submit a report to congressional defense committees on the status of Army IgnitED. Specific questions that will need to be answered are:
- Date the program be fully functional;
- Estimated date when military-connected students will be reimbursed for out-of-pocket expenses due to delays and errors; and
- Estimated date when postsecondary institutions will be reimbursed for costs typically provided through the Tuition Assistance Program but delayed due to processing delays and errors.
MHEC will host a webinar to cover these two laws as well as other topics related to military-connected students. Stay tuned for more information.
CONVENINGS
WEBINAR SERIES Security Services: Improving Your Cybersecurity Posture
January 26, 2022
11:00 a.m. CT
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Ransomware attacks have been around for decades, affecting organizations of all sizes and threatening many industries including higher education. Ransomware groups are becoming relentless in their tactics and have adopted practices like encrypting backup files before encrypting live systems, making it even harder for organizations to avoid paying the ransom. How do you avoid these types of attacks in the education sector and how much cybersecurity do you needs? Guest presenter Ron Pelletier, founder and chief customer officer at Pondurance, will cover cybercriminal motivations and common cyberattacks, how to formulate your cybersecurity program, and the importance of performing risk analysis
Save-the-dates for the additional webinars being offered for IT professionals, risk managers, chief information officers, and others interested in best practices in cybersecurity:
- February 14, 11:00 a.m. CT, Educator's Guide to Outsmarting the Puppet Master
- March 16, 11:00 a.m. CT, Ransomware Threat Briefing/ State of the Threat Landscape
- April 12, 11:00 a.m. CT, Building a Culture of Information Security
- May 3, 11:00 a.m. CT, Security Awareness Training
MHEC implemented a request for proposal process to establish a portfolio of contracts for security services (Security Threat Intelligence Products and Services, Security Information and Event Management, Managed Security Services, Security Consulting Services, and Security Awareness Training). Questions about the contracts or this webinar series may be directed to Deb Kidwell.
WEBINAR: Graduate Credit Quest – Here to help you meet accreditation requirements
February 8, 2022
1:00 p.m. CT
MHEC staff will present Graduate Credit Quest, a searchable database of graduate courses offered by Midwestern universities for high school teachers. Learn about multistate efforts underway to increase access to graduate courses for high school teachers who wish to meet the Higher Learning Commission's requirements for high school concurrent enrollment instructors. The website provides tools for:
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- Universities that wish to offer these courses to a wider pool of high school teachers;
- High school teachers seeking such courses; and
- Institutional concurrent enrollment coordinators with whom high school teachers are collaborating to chart the path toward instructor qualification compliance.
Inquiries can be directed to gcq@mhec.org.
Upcoming Open Educational Resources Events Available
As part of the continued work with Open Educational Resources (OER) and MHEC state action teams, the following events are sponsored by MHEC:
- Kansas OER Virtual Summit (February 16-17)
Open Your Mind to OER - Minnesota and Wisconsin "E"ffordability Summit (February 22-24)
READI (Reaching Equity, Accessibility, Diversity, and Inclusion), Set, Open! - Iowa OER Virtual Summit (March 1-3)
OER Superheroes
Other Regional OER Opportunities
Equity in Open Webinar Series (January 26, February 1 & 10)
WICHE and OpenStax
OER and Dual Enrollment Conference (February 24)
SREB
COMMISSIONER NEWS
MHEC Staff to Visit Member States During Legislative Season Susan Heegaard, MHEC president, will be joined by executive officers and MHEC staff at upcoming state visits with state higher education, legislative, and executive branch leadership. Visits begin with South Dakota on January 24-25, where she will testify before the Joint Committee on Appropriations. Additional visits have been scheduled for Missouri on February 7-8, and Indiana on February 15-16.
Enhancing the Midwest Student Exchange Program: Learning from our sister compacts MHEC will host three webinars for commissioners as MHEC staff and the Midwest Student Exchange Program (MSEP) Council continue to explore various student exchange and reciprocity programs across the U.S. Findings and recommendations for enhancing MSEP will be shared at the MSEP Council this spring and at MHEC's June Executive Committee Meeting. Commissioners are encouraged to participate in these webinars with the New England Board of Higher Education, the Southern Regional Educational Board, and the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education in order to learn and share policies and approaches to student exchange programs. Questions may be directed to Sara Appel.
ARTICLES AND RESOURCES OF INTEREST
New $14.2 Billion Broadband Assistance Program to Bring Internet Access to More Kansas Families
13WIBW | January 20, 2022
The FAFSA Simplification Act
Congressional Research Service | January 19, 2022
Supervisors Will Give Danville Telecom $355,000 for Broadband Access Expansion
The Hawk Eye | January 18, 2022
51st Annual Survey Report on State-Sponsored Student Financial Aid
National Association of State Student Grant and Aid Programs | January 14, 2022
Fall’s Final Enrollment Count Is In. Colleges Lost More Than 475,000 Students.
The Chronicle of Higher Education | January 13, 2022
House Votes to Expand GI Bill Eligibility for National Guard, Reserves
Military.com | January 12, 2022
Conversations on Credential As You Go
The evolllution | January 11, 2022
4 Education Policy Tools to Use in 2022
Education Commission of the States EdNote|January 11, 2022
Fewer High School Graduates Go Straight to College
Inside Higher Ed | January 10, 2022
Growing ‘Maze’ of Education Credentials Confuses Job Seekers, Employers
The Seattle Times | January 5, 2022
The Still-Evolving Future of University Credentials
EdSurge | December 21, 2021
High School Benchmarks
National Student Clearinghouse Research Center | December 1, 2022