Generation Next addresses significant disparities in postsecondary enrollment, persistence, and completion rates for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) students. To address these disparities, we have partnered with comprehensive postsecondary transitions and persistence approaches that incorporate academic, social, personal, and institutional factors as key drivers of student success.

 

Belonging as a Shield and Weapon
At the 2025 National Conference on Race & Ethnicity (NCORE), the impact of our multi-year partnership with Minneapolis College and Saint Paul College became visible. Students from programs including Bridging the Equity Gap (BTEG) and the Identity, Leadership, Excellence, Accountability, and Dedication program (iLEAD) shared that their persistence was driven by a transformative sense of belonging. By moving away from “fixing students” and toward “transforming institutions,” our partners are proving that when we align data-driven insights with identity affirmation, students
no longer feel that they must navigate the system alone.

 

Why We Must Act Now
Using the Minnesota Statewide Longitudinal Education Data System (SLEDS) and institutional data, we track the transition from high school to career. The numbers reveal a stark “persistence gap” that requires immediate, systemic intervention. Our research highlights three critical levers for success:

• The Dual Credit Advantage: Participation in college coursework during high school is a strong predictor of postsecondary credential completion. However, Black and American Indian males currently face the highest disciplinary rates and lowest enrollment in advanced coursework.
• The Developmental Trap: Asian, Black, Hispanic/Latino, and white students placed into non-credit developmental courses in postsecondary are significantly less likely to complete a degree.
• The Belief Gap: At our 2025 Practitioners’ Forum, Dr. Calvin Hadley of Howard University identified the belief gap as the disparity between a student’s potential and the expectations held by institutional actors. This “soft bigotry of low expectations” is a primary structural barrier to persistence.

 

Responding to What Students Need Now
Our coalition has shifted toward a dual-strategy approach: addressing institutional culture and scaling Relational Support Models inspired by
the City University of New York (CUNY) Accelerated Study in Associate Programs (ASAP) and #DegreesNYC frameworks.

• Scaling High-Touch Support: We are moving toward “warm handoffs,” prioritizing qualitative advisor communication over simple GPA data. This ensures that a student’s career aspirations and personal challenges are understood as they transition between semesters or institutions.
• Institutional Readiness: Success is driven by institutional factors rather than just individual student “grit.” This includes increasing intentionality in hiring Black and Brown educators and providing implicit bias training to dismantle the barriers that lead to student attrition