City of Arlington Partners with National League of Cities to Address Basic Needs of Local Postsecondary Students
The City of Arlington is proud to join a new peer-learning cohort led by the National League of Cities (NLC) to remove barriers to basic needs that often prevent college students from successfully completing postsecondary degrees, certificates or other credentials needed to gain access to rewarding careers. Arlington joins 12 other cities from across the nation to engage in monthly peer-to-peer virtual learning opportunities and receive tailored technical assistance from NLC’s staff and national content experts to help advance the City’s efforts in supporting local students.
A postsecondary credential leading to career pathways that pay a living wage is essential in today’s economy. Georgetown University’s Center on Education and the Workforce found in 2016 that Americans with some type of postsecondary credential earn 25% more on average over their lifetimes than those with only a high school degree or less. Moreover, individuals with some college education captured all but 100,000 of the 11.6 million net new jobs created during the 2010-2016 economic recovery.
“As high levels of educational attainment are directly linked to a city’s economic vitality and well-being, there is a great incentive for municipal leaders to support and promote postsecondary credential attainment, said Audrey Hutchinson, Director of Education and Expanded Learning at the National League of Cities. “The National League of Cities is proud to work with the City of Arlington in addressing the basic needs of postsecondary students in Arlington.
The City of Arlington team and its partners are Dr. Victoria Farrar-Myers, Arlington City Councilwoman; Jennifer Wichmann, Arlington deputy city manager; Lisa Nagy, vice president for student affairs at The University of Texas at Arlington; Bill Coppola, president of Tarrant County College Southeast; Deborah Coppola, Arlington Charities executive director; and Regina Williams, vice president of community investment and the Arlington regional director for United Way Arlington.
This cohort program runs from September 2020 through September 2021 with additional support through 2022 and is generously supported by ECMC Foundation.
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