Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Jamie Merisotis @jamiemerisotis.bsky.social · 12d

Quote of the Day: “The U.S. is an example of frogs in the boiling water when it comes to talent.”

www.nytimes.com/2025/09/25/p...

Quote of the Day: Students Are Ill Prepared for College and Beyond

www.nytimes.com

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Jamie Merisotis @jamiemerisotis.bsky.social · 13d

“A.I. can do the first draft of the memo or solve the math equation. It is the worker who needs to understand what they are reading, be able to ensure it is accurate and decide what to do next.”

www.nytimes.com/2025/09/25/u...?

What Declines in Reading and Math Mean for the U.S. Work Force

www.nytimes.com

Jamie Merisotis @jamiemerisotis.bsky.social · Sep 3

This piece from the @chronphilanthropy.bsky.social does an excellent job of telling the story of the @luminafoundation.bsky.social approach to philanthropy - with a laser-like focus on catalyzing the nation toward a quantitative, time-limited goal www.philanthropy.com/article/this...

This Foundation Measures Its Impact by One Number. Is That a Model for Success?

The Lumina Foundation threw virtually all its resources at changing one metric. Now, with its holy grail in sight, it’s making the goal even harder to reach.

www.philanthropy.com

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Jamie Merisotis @jamiemerisotis.bsky.social · Aug 27

washingtonmonthly.com/2025/08/24/f...

“The Sunshine State’s universities are in the top tier of the @washingtonmonthly.com ’s rankings thanks to strong public governance. That same centralized system gives Ron DeSantis the power to impose his conservative ideology in the classroom”

How Florida Universities Became World-Class

Florida's universities are in the top tier of the Washington Monthly’s rankings thanks to strong public governance.

washingtonmonthly.com

Jamie Merisotis @jamiemerisotis.bsky.social · Aug 25

First time I can recall seeing something like this in @nytimes.com - ever www.nytimes.com/2025/08/25/u...?

The Typical College Student Is Not Who You Think It Is

www.nytimes.com

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Jamie Merisotis @jamiemerisotis.bsky.social · Jul 17

www.luminafoundation.org/news-and-vie...

Is America falling back in love with higher ed, or are we measuring the wrong things?

Something strange is happening in America: confidence in higher education is creeping back up. And not just among the usual suspects. Republicans, independents, people with and without degrees, Black ...

www.luminafoundation.org

Jamie Merisotis @jamiemerisotis.bsky.social · Jul 10

Check out the important new work @luminafoundation.bsky.social is doing under the FutureReady States initiative, which supports 12 states in aligning education & workforce systems to identify, improve, and scale credentials of value www.luminafoundation.org/news-and-vie...

Lumina Foundation launches FutureReady States to better gauge workforce credential value

Twelve states will identify and support training policies that deliver real economic value for taxpayers and individuals.

www.luminafoundation.org

Jamie Merisotis @jamiemerisotis.bsky.social · Jul 8

washingtonmonthly.com/2025/07/07/h...

Excellent @washmonthly.com piece about the impact of Americorps on rural communities - and as a way to reduce polarization

How AmeriCorps Kept Young Talent in Rural Communities | Washington Monthly

Trump's cuts to the federal service program eliminated thousands of positions that provided career pathways in small towns across America.

washingtonmonthly.com

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Jamie Merisotis @jamiemerisotis.bsky.social · May 22

www.gettingsmart.com/podcast/jami...

Human work in the age of AI

Jamie Merisotis on Human Work in the Age of AI

Explore AI's impact on work and education with Jamie Merisotis on the Getting Smart Podcast. Understand how credentialing drives economic prosperity.

www.gettingsmart.com

Jamie Merisotis @jamiemerisotis.bsky.social · May 12

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4jk...

Degrees of Impact: Redefining the Value of Higher Ed | ASU+GSV Summit 2025

YouTube video by Global Silicon Valley

www.youtube.com

Jamie Merisotis @jamiemerisotis.bsky.social · May 12

www.forbes.com/sites/jamiem...

What Will Make College Truly Affordable?

College costs have been a problem for decades. To fix the complex issue of college affordability, higher education leaders need to fundamentally rethink the system.

www.forbes.com

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Jamie Merisotis @jamiemerisotis.bsky.social · Apr 29

Thinking a lot about that old saying, “The days are long, but the years are short.” In 2025, I think it should be “The days are long, but the year is even longer.”

Reposted by Jamie Merisotis

Georgetown CEW @georgetowncew.bsky.social · Apr 25

Education can safeguard #democracy from the threat of #authoritarianism. Bachelor’s degree holders were less inclined to express authoritarian preferences than those with no more than a high school diploma. bit.ly/32tzWon

#AcademicSky

The Role of Education in Taming Authoritarian Attitudes - CEW Georgetown

Postsecondary education can play a critical role in protecting democratic republics against the threat of authoritarianism.

bit.ly

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Jamie Merisotis @jamiemerisotis.bsky.social · Apr 19

US philanthropists warn against capitulating to Trump

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

US philanthropists warn against capitulating to Trump: ‘We need to step up’

Foundation leaders say charitable organisations could be next in the firing line – but must ‘stand together’ to resist

www.theguardian.com

Jamie Merisotis @jamiemerisotis.bsky.social · Apr 14

www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...

What Comes After D.E.I.?

Colleges around the country, in the face of legal and political backlash to their diversity programs, are pivoting to an alternative framework known as pluralism, Emma Green reports.

www.newyorker.com

Jamie Merisotis @jamiemerisotis.bsky.social · Apr 1

‘Education should remain accessible, valuable, and align with today’s workforce needs’ www.workingnation.com/podcast-lumi...

'Education should remain accessible, valuable, and align with today's workforce needs'

Work in Progress: Lumina Foundation's Jamie Merisotis discusses how a postsecondary degree or credential of value can lead to a good career.

www.workingnation.com

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Jamie Merisotis @jamiemerisotis.bsky.social · Mar 6

The Lumina Foundation's Ambitious but Attainable Goal for American Postsecondary Education washingtonmonthly.com/2025/03/05/t...

The Lumina Foundation's Ambitious but Attainable Goal for American Postsecondary Education | Washington Monthly

Its aim is that by 2040, 75 percent of adults in the U.S. labor force will have college degrees or other valuable credentials.

washingtonmonthly.com

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Jamie Merisotis @jamiemerisotis.bsky.social · Mar 4

Learning matters more than ever. But the world has changed, and we need a bold new national goal: By 2040, 75 percent of adults in the U.S. labor force will have a college degree or other credential of value leading to economic prosperity. www.luminafoundation.org/news-and-vie...

A bold vision for a prosperous future

Seventeen years ago, Lumina Foundation set an ambitious goal: By 2025, 60 percent of working-age adults in the United States would have a degree, certificate, or industry-recognized certification. At ...

www.luminafoundation.org

Jamie Merisotis @jamiemerisotis.bsky.social · Feb 13

“Civics knowledge matters...Those who do not understand the rights protected by the Constitution can neither cherish nor invoke them.” - Kathleen Hall Jamieson
www.forbes.com/sites/jamiem...

Boosting Civics Lessons Helps Strengthen Civil Discourse—And Democracy

We disagree so much in this country that it’s heartening to find an idea that nearly everybody supports—at least generally.

www.forbes.com

Jamie Merisotis @jamiemerisotis.bsky.social · Jan 31

Here's some higher ed news that not enough people have noticed: Post-high school educational attainment has increased in the last 15 years. A lot. The country is better off for it. www.luminafoundation.org/news-and-vie...

Reflecting on 15 years: We are a Stronger Nation

Today, nearly 55 percent of working-age adults in the United States hold a degree or credential beyond high school—a milestone highlighted in the most recent 2023 data from A Stronger Nation, Lumina F...

www.luminafoundation.org

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Jamie Merisotis @jamiemerisotis.bsky.social · Jan 16

Gen Z has been shaped by an unprecedented combination of challenges. Yet they continue to be optimistic, even about higher education. We owe it to Gen Z to build a better higher ed system — not just for their benefit, but for everyone.

www.forbes.com/sites/jamiem...

Gen Z Students Are Optimistic About Higher Ed — Let’s Prove Them Right

Gen Z students want educational options that are affordable, economically valuable, and flexible. Here's how higher ed can support their ambitions.

www.forbes.com

Jamie Merisotis @jamiemerisotis.bsky.social · Dec 17

Pleased to be serving on the Bipartisan Policy Center's new Commission on the American Workforce, under the leadership of former Governors Bill Haslam & Deval Patrick, with BPC President/CEO Margaret Spellings driving the work & outcomes. This is urgent, important work bipartisanpolicy.org/caw/

Commission on the American Workforce | Bipartisan Policy Center

BPC’s Commission on the American Workforce is a bold initiative that will meet throughout 2025 and develop a national, bipartisan strategy to strengthen the…

bipartisanpolicy.org

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Jamie Merisotis @jamiemerisotis.bsky.social · Nov 22

In a time of high anxiety/uncertainty, higher ed needs to show what it is FOR. How does it matter to individual & shared prosperity? America needs more and better talent, and higher ed must play a key role by changing how it's financed, structured & delivered www.luminafoundation.org/news-and-vie...

Progress in a time of disruption: The urgency of reimagining higher ed

Higher education has an opportunity to use this moment of extreme stress to pursue genuine, urgently-needed systemic change.

www.luminafoundation.org

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Jamie Merisotis @jamiemerisotis.bsky.social · Nov 18

www.washingtonpost.com/education/20... Exciting to see some institutions of higher ed thriving even as others struggle. What can the rest of higher ed learn from HBCUs?

‘This is a good fit’: Inside enrollment gains at historically Black colleges

Some HBCUs are seeing record enrollment growth while the rest of higher education contends with low head counts.

www.washingtonpost.com

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Jamie Merisotis @jamiemerisotis.bsky.social · Nov 15

southerneducation.org/what-we-do/m...

“The data clearly show disparities in outcomes for Black students’
graduation rates, test scores, course completion, and many other measures, when compared with national averages
and other student groups…”

Miles To Go: The State of Education for Black Students in America

The Southern Education Foundation’s forthcoming report, Miles to Go: The State of Black Education in America, will present an overview of education data on Black students in the United States, includi...

southerneducation.org

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