THE CARNEGIE POSTSECONDARY COMMISSION - CURRENT STATE OF K-12 TO POSTSECONDARY PATHWAYS - WINTER 2025

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by James

Higher education remains a key driver of social and economic mobility, yet access and completion are increasingly constrained by declining enrollments, rising postsecondary costs, and worsening public confidence. The paper highlights pathway programs that better connect high school to college and careers, improving persistence and degree completion while creating more seamless transitions across systems. It presents promising program examples and argues for strong policy actions at both state and federal levels to support vertical integration, local implementation, and data-driven improvement.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages17

Reading Time43 min

AccessFree to download

Executive Summary

Introduction From Timothy Knowles

Current State of K-12 to Postsecondary Pathways

Policies, Practice and Interventions Behind Successful K-12 to Postsecondary Pathways

Postsecondary Pathways

Policy at the Federal and State Levels

Conclusion

THE CARNEGIE POSTSECONDARY COMMISSION CURRENT STATE OF K-12 TO POSTSECONDARY PATHWAYS WINTER 2025 © 2025 Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. All rights reserved. TABLE OF CONTENTS Executive Summary 1 Introduction From Timothy Knowles 2 Current State of K-12 to Postsecondary Pathways 4 Policies, Practice and Interventions Behind Successful K-12 to 6 Postsecondary Pathways Vertical Integration With K-12 Systems 6 Securing Broad-Based Support 8 Data-Driven Improvement 8 Building Awareness and Outreach 10 Strategic Financial Investments in Pathways Success 11 Keeping It Local 12 Policy at the Federal and State Levels 14 Conclusion 15 © 2025 Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. All rights reserved. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Higher education remains a pivotal driver of social and economic mobility, with college graduates earning significantly more over their lifetimes compared to their peers without a degree. However, the benefits of higher education remain out of reach for an increasing number of students, as enrollments decline and stopout rates climb. In recent years, pathway programs have emerged as a crucial tool—not only boosting enrollment but also ensuring students persist to degree completion. These programs can create more seamless transitions between high school, college and the workforce. This paper showcases several promising pathway programs that aim to better integrate K-12 education, postsecondary education and the workforce. By spotlighting these success stories, this paper provides a trajectory for colleges and universities committed to blurring the divides between K-12, postsecondary and work and improve outcomes for learners. This paper also advocates for the robust policy interventionsat both state and federal levels to support such initiatives. Current State of K-12 to Postsecondary Pathways 1 © 2025 Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. All rights reserved. INTRODUCTION FROM TIMOTHY KNOWLES Over the past two decades, the higher education landscape has changed dramatically, with a growing number of colleges and universities facing existential threats. The pressure is being driven by several factors: FALLING ENROLLMENTS While enrollment in four-year universities has trended up modestly since the pandemic, the number of students going to college has been falling for more than a decade. This drop portends significant, longer-term declinesin the number of college-age students—a phenomenon some observers characterize asa “demographic cliff.” ESCALATING COSTS The average cost of a college credit has risen significantly over the last several decades, from less than $200 per credit in the 1980s to more than $600 today, adjusted for inflation. These increases don’t include the costs of housing, food or fees, nor do they account for the significant decrease in per-pupil state investment in higher education over the last 30 years. Taken together, students and families are bearing substantially more of the costs of postsecondary learning than in the past. PUBLIC PERCEPTION There have also been profound shifts in public perception about the value of higher education, evident across multiple demographics. According to Gallup, Americans’ confidence in higher education fell to 36% in 2023, substantially lower than in 2015 (57%) and 2018 (48%). Current State of K-12 to Postsecondary Pathways 2 © 2025 Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. All rights reserved. FAILURE RATES Even when students do matriculate to college, nearly 40% do not finish. Today, the ranks of working-age Americans with no credentials to show for the time and money they spent on college has grown to nearly 37 million. These numbers remain particularly stark for underrepresented learners and students from low-income backgrounds, who continue to graduate at substantially lower rates than their middle-income, white and Asian peers.

FAQs

为什么需要K-12到后续高等教育与就业的路径衔接？

因为在入学下降、辍学率上升以及高昂成本和公众信任下滑的背景下，路径项目可提升入学并帮助学生坚持完成学位，从而形成更顺畅的衔接。

论文关注的“路径项目”主要解决哪些问题？

论文强调通过更紧密整合K-12教育、后续高等教育与劳动力市场，改善学生从高中到大学再到就业的连续性，并提升学习者结果。

论文提出哪些政策层面的支持建议？

论文呼吁在州与联邦层面采取有力政策干预，支持相关举措的实施，并推动数据驱动改进、广泛支持与本地化落地。

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by James