Education &Training

Education Data Show Gender Gap in Career Preparation
by National Coalition of Women and Girls in Education and the National Coalition on Women, Jobs and Job Training (March 2013)

This report was prepared as a summary of an analysis by the Institute for Women’s Policy Research, the National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity, the National Women’s Law Center, and Wider Opportunities for Women, under the auspices of the National Coalition of Women and Girls in Education and the National Coalition on Women, Jobs and Job Training.

Community College Partnerships for Student and Career Success: Program Profile of Carreras en Salud
by Jane Henrici, Ph.D. (June 2012)

Postsecondary students with children often need an array of supports to succeed in their studies, which can require significant coordination among new and existing services (Conway, Blair, and Helmer 2012; Henrici n.d.; Miller, Gault, and Thorman 2011). Such supports might include financial aid, academic and career counseling, job placement assistance, transportation, housing, child care, and classes in English-as-a-Second Language. To more effectively provide an expanded range of student resources, community colleges often partner with local nonprofits, private businesses and foundations, and government institutions (Altstadt 2011; Bragg et al. 2007; Bray, Painter, and Rosen 2011; Conway, Blair, and Helmer 2012; Leutz 2007; Singh 2007; Wilson 2010). This fact sheet describes Carreras en Salud (“Careers in Health”), a career pathway program that scholars and advocates have elevated as a promising model for providing comprehensive supports through multiple partnerships with city colleges in Chicago.

Gender Segregation in Fields of Study at Community Colleges and Implications for Future Earnings
by Layla Moughari, Rhiana Gunn-Wright, and Barbara Gault, Ph.D. (May 2012)

Postsecondary education yields myriad benefits, including increased earnings potential, higher lifetime wages, and access to quality jobs. But postsecondary degrees are not all equalin the benefits they bring to students and women tend to obtain degrees in fields with lower earnings. Women with associate degrees earn approximately 75 percent of what men with associate degrees earn (U.S. Department of Commerce and the Executive Office of the President, 2011). This wage gap occurs in part because women with AA degrees—like women at all degree levels—often work in lower-paid, female-dominated occupations (Hegewisch, et al. 2010).

Tools for Student Parent Success: Varieties of Campus Child Care
by Todd Boressoff (March 2012)

This toolkit is the first in a series by the Institute for Women’s Policy Research (IWPR). It introduces the wide variety of child care services that exist at institutions of higher learning. Rather than an exhaustive study of campus child care programs, it is an introduction to possible options. It is for those seeking to provide quality child care at colleges or universities and for those considering how to expand or rethink existing services.

Increasing Opportunities for Low-Income Women and Student Parents in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math at Community Colleges
by Cynthia B. Costello, Ph.D (March 2012)

Drawing on a literature and program review, analysis of publicly available data, and consultations with experts in the field, this report examines opportunities for women and student parents to pursue and succeed in STEM fields at community colleges.

Low Literacy Means Lower Earnings, Especially for Women
by Jennifer Herard, Kevin Miller, Ph.D., Jane Henrici, Ph.D., and Barbara Gault, Ph.D. (February 2012)

Appropriate literacy levels are crucial for both men and women seeking education and employment opportunities, but low literacy skills disproportionally hurt women’s chances of earning a sustaining wage.

Implications for Low-Income Student Parents of House Bill H.R. 1, Proposed Continuing Resolution for FY 2011 Appropriations
by Tiffany Boiman (March 2011)

With the ongoing debate in Congress over how to fund the remainder of the 2011 Fiscal Year, considerable uncertainty exists surrounding the funding picture for many federal programs going forward. This is no less true for the diverse roster of student financial aid, child care, and other education and training programs and initiatives that support low-income student parents as they strive to enter and complete postsecondary programs.

Improving Child Care Access to Promote Postsecondary Success Among Low-Income Parents
by Kevin Miller, Ph.D., Barbara Gault, Ph.D., and Abby Thorman, Ph.D. (March 2011)

This report examines the role of child care as a crucial support for parents who pursue postsecondary education.

Student Parents Face Significant Challenges to Postsecondary Success
by Kevin Miller, Ph.D. (November 2010)

Child Care at College Campuses: a Critical Resource for Student Parents
by Kevin Miller, Ph.D. (October 2010)

Testimony of Kevin Miller, Ph.D.,Institute for Women’s Policy Research, before the Committee on Higher Education of the New York City Council

Child Care Support for Student Parents in Community College Is Crucial for Success, but Supply and Funding Are Inadequate
by Kevin Miller, PhD (May 2010)

Of the over 6 million students earning college credit at community colleges, 1.7 million (27 percent) are parents.1 Of those, about 1 million (16 percent) are single parents, more than twice the proportion at 4-year institutions. Three-quarters of single parents in college are women.2

Pedagogical Methods for Improving Women’s Participation and Success in Engineering Education
by Lynette Osborne, Ph.D., Kevin Miller, Ph.D., and Robin Farabee-Siers (October 2008)

The field of engineering has been slow to open to women. While women received 55 percent of social science Bachelor’s degrees and 62 percent of biological science Bachelor’s degrees awarded in 2003, only 20 percent of engineering Bachelor’s degrees were awarded to women. The same year, women made up 43 percent of the workforce among social scientists and 43 percent among biological scientists but made up only 11 percent of the engineering workforce (National Science Foundation, 2007).

Resilient and Reaching for More: Challenges and Benefits of Higher Education for Welfare Participants and Their Children
by Avis A. Jones-DeWeever, PhD and Barbara Gault, PhD (February 2008)

Education and Job Training Build Strong Families
by Deanna Lyter (March 2002)

More than 11.5 million children live in poverty (US DOC 2001a) and likely will experience first-hand what research tells us – that poverty has long-lasting negative effects (McLeod and Shanahan 1996; McLoyd 1998; Reynolds and Ross 1998; Vandivere et al. 2000). Growing up in poverty, particularly if it is persistent: