Posted on February 24, 2011

National Competition Launched to Increase Graduation Rates

Complete College America, a nonprofit in Washington, D.C., that works to significantly increase the number of Americans with a college degree or credential of value, has announced the launch of a $10 million competition designed to boost college completion rates and close education-attainment gaps.

Launched with support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Completion Innovation Competition will invite governors from all fifty states to submit proposals related to innovative strategies for improving college completion rates in their states. Ten winners will receive $1 million each to implement their proposals over eighteen months.

Through the program, Complete College America aims to help states implement reforms in key areas, including adopting funding for performance; transforming remediation efforts so that they move students into first-year, full-credit classes as quickly as possible; and deploying transformative technology to customize, accelerate, and support student learning.

In America, roughly 50 percent of the full-time students who pursue a four-year degree complete it, while only two in ten pursuing an associate degree full-time graduate in three years. Part-time students fare even worse. "Simply doing more of the same will not achieve the gains necessary to significantly raise student achievement and ensure America's competitiveness," said Complete College America president Stan Jones.