Fresh From the UIA (Student success)

PORTLAND, Ore. – March 3, 2016 – The University Innovation Alliance (UIA) today announced an additional $3.85 million in new funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Ford Foundation, and USA Funds to support its work to improve college completion rates.

“This additional support highlights the philanthropic community’s enthusiasm for effective collaboration among colleges and universities to share and scale student success innovation,” said UIA Vice Chair and Georgia State University President Mark Becker.

For low income and first generation students, cost is often a barrier to college, but deeply entrenched cultural elements of the university experience can act as obstacles as well. How are innovative higher ed leaders shaking things up and which new values are they embracing?

The University Innovation Alliance launched one year ago this month, and the progress in our first year has surpassed our expectations. We’ve sparked a national conversation challenging the existing values system in higher education. We’ve advanced new ways to incentivize collaboration and reward institutions for innovation that demonstrably improves outcomes for all students. And we’ve educated the higher education community, policymakers, and the broader public about the hard work needed to uncover new solutions that advance student opportunity.

Kim A. Wilcox is Chancellor of the University of California, Riverside. Edward J. Ray is President of Oregon State University.

On college and university campuses across the United States, we're surrounded by a resource that leads to discovery, innovation, and growth—yet we don't embrace it at the leadership level. That resource? Failure.