How Institutions Can Increase Social Mobility for Key Populations through Strategic Data Use

Postsecondary attainment remains one of the most secure pathways to financial stability. Yet, there are significant disparities in students’ career and economic outcomes based on race and ethnicity. High-quality disaggregated data is one of the most critical tools institutions have to illuminate these disparities, create targeted intervention, and drive evidence-based decision-making. Unfortunately, many institutions still face barriers to establishing a strong culture of data use, such as departmental data silos and unclear data sharing guidelines.

The Higher Ed Equity Network’s new case study, How Institutions Can Increase Social Mobility for Key Populations through Strategic Data Use, aims to bring awareness to these barriers. This case study also highlights lessons from the field gleaned from interviews with leaders at Minority-Serving Institutions including Florida A&M University, Fort Lewis College, University of Illinois Chicago, and Rutgers University-Newark — institutions that succeed in creating economic opportunity and social mobility for their students, including those historically underrepresented in higher education. The research offers clear roles for stakeholders at the federal, state, and local level to support institutions in closing economic disparities.

This case study led by the Higher Ed Equity Network’s Date Use to Improve Career Outcomes Task Group in collaboration with the Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP), the Center on Education and the Workforce, HCM Strategists, and the American Institutes for Research. IHEPs Director of Research and Policy, Diane Cheng, explains the key findings of the case study in this short video: