EVERY FIFTEEN DAYS
Updates From the Office of Higher Education Twice a Month

New MN Future Together Grants to Provide Tuition-Free Pathways for High Need Careers

The Office of Higher Education (OHE) has announced new Minnesota Future Together Grants, which will support students pursuing degrees in high need career areas. The $35 million investment is part of Governor Walz's allocation of American Rescue Plan funds, and seeks to increase the number of qualified workers for careers in the following areas: health care, business, STEM, industry and technology, education, and public service.

The grants will create tuition-free pathways for eligible students at any Tribal College or public institution in Minnesota. For spring 2022, Tribal Colleges and public institutions will be able to opt-in to offering the grants for students, with statewide rollout starting in fall 2022. Eligibility will be determined each semester, based on a student's financial aid profile, with grants ranging from $100-15,400. Exact amount awarded is based on cost of education after other need-based aid like Pell and Minnesota State Grants have been applied. Grants will be awarded as long as funds are available, with the program expected to end in 2024.

Minnesota Statewide Longitudinal Education Data System Tracing Pathways Dashboard

In partnership with the University of Minnesota Center for Applied Research and Educational Improvement, OHE has published a new dashboard using data from the Minnesota Statewide Longitudinal Education Data System to explore Minnesota students’ pathways to a family-sustaining hourly wage.

Earning a family-sustaining hourly wage is an important indicator of an individual’s economic well-being and is closely linked to education and workforce training. This new dashboard can be used to examine the educational pathways that Minnesota students take to earning a family-sustaining hourly wage and whether or not those educational pathways lead Minnesota students to earn a family-sustaining hourly wage 10 years after entering 9th grade.

New Podcast Episodes

The seventh and eighth episodes of our podcast, Life After Now, have been released. In episode 7, Liz Bolsoni talks to Jeremiah Harris, the director of GEAR UP Minneapolis. And in episode 8, she chats with Jodi Furman. Jodi is the founder of Enlightened Admissions, a consulting company that helps students navigate the college admissions process.

Listen on: Apple, Spotify, Google, Stitcher, Anchor, Breaker, and Pocket Casts.