Undersecretary Mitchell Touts Innovation in Farewell Address
By Brittany Hackett, Communications Staff
Undersecretary of Education Ted Mitchell in his farewell address on Thursday encouraged the exploration of new and innovative education and business models that will better address the needs of what he dubbed the “New Normal” college students.
Speaking at Northeastern University, Mitchell touted progress in college completion rates over the last eight years, noting that one million more black and Hispanic students are enrolled in postsecondary education today than in 2008. Other achievements include record numbers of Pell Grant recipients; a decline in student loan defaults; and increases in the size and diversity of graduating classes.
However, it remains a “crucial challenge … to keep extending the quality of higher education – for all Americans – in a world in which all really needs to mean all,” Mitchell said. And while students are expected to work hard to achieve their academic goals, “we shouldn’t make it harder than it needs to be,” he said.
Instead, higher education needs to be “easier, cheaper, and quicker, while ensuring quality,” Mitchell said “But federal student aid is not – and cannot be – the sole solution to making college more affordable,” he noted, calling for greater state investment in higher education in addition to federal support.
“Looking ahead, the future of higher education will likely include new education and business models of today’s institutions, and the emergence of new educational providers of high-quality learning,” Mitchell said. “To meet the needs of our students, we’ll need to develop institutions, systems, and infrastructure to support new ways of teaching, learning, and assessment.”
During his address, Mitchell announced a new higher education supplemental plan to the Department of Education’s (ED) National Education Technology Plan, which “suggest[s] ways technology can serve increasing numbers of diverse learners who come to us with a wide range of educational goals and personal contexts.”
Indeed, much of Mitchell’s address focused on innovation as a way forward for higher education, a theme he has frequently touted during his tenure as undersecretary.
“We must ‘make room’ for new Americans, for vulnerable Americans, first generation students, immigrants, and older adults … for the New Normal college student,” he said.
Mitchell has served as undersecretary since May 2014 and, as a political appointee, will leave his position at the end of the Obama administration’s term next week.
Publication Date: 1/13/2017
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