Ewa Obatuase

Cutting Barriers: Addressing the Challenges of Parenting Students in Cosmetology Programs Parenting students are often overlooked in postsecondary education. Here’s how cosmetology programs can improve how they support them.

➡️ Check out my new piece that discusses the unique challenges parenting students experience and how beauty schools can support their success: www.newamerica.org/education-po...

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Despite their overwhelming presence in the industry, parenting students are often overlooked and offered little support toward their cosmetology licensing journey, but it doesn't have to remain that way.

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Today is the last day of #StudentParentMonth, a month to celebrate and reflect upon the roughly one in five students in America’s postsecondary education system who are caring for children.

Did you know that in beauty schools, that number jumps to one in three?
#edusky

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Earnings Threshold 101 video

Students go to college to boost their earnings. But what happens when schools fall short? Our latest animated video explains the new earnings threshold and why it matters. 🎥

🚨Another neg reg session is coming up this fall, and we’re pushing for short-term credentials that help students succeed. Too many programs fail to deliver, so we need guardrails to ensure short-term Pell only goes to programs that truly work.

Trump “Chipping Away” at DACA and Other Protections Dreamers and their advocates say the Trump administration has launched a multifront attack on DACA and benefits historically extended to noncitizens.

"When are we going to draw a line and fight back and stand up for academic freedom and stand up for what these institutions have pledged, which is to educate everyone and to ensure that everyone has access to an equitable education?” –– Gaby Pacheco 🔥
#edusky

www.insidehighered.com/news/governm...

Immigration Enforcement on Campuses: What You Need To Know - Presidents' Alliance This FAQ provides answers to common questions related to federal immigration enforcement on campuses. It outlines institutional obligations in the event of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (IC...

As we head back to school, higher education institutions should prepare to support immigrant students and community members on campus. Check out the @presalliance.bsky.social guide, Immigration Enforcement on Campuses: What You Need To Know, to learn more. www.presidentsalliance.org/immigration-...

Why Gen Z Needs More Than Trump’s ‘Make America Skilled Again’ Empty Promises Trump promised to “Make America Skilled Again,” but slashed funding and student debt relief. Now Gen Z is pushing back and building a better future.

While we wait for Congress, Gen Z is getting to work! Check out my latest piece for @newamerica.org The Thread! www.newamerica.org/the-thread/g...

An Educator’s Checklist for Supporting Immigrant Students in Schools Schools should be safe spaces for all students. Federal law protects the right to a free public education for all students regardless of citizenship

Schools should be safe spaces for all students, regardless of immigration status.

Together with the @neatoday.bsky.social, @aft.org, @nilc.org, and other partners, TCF offers this guide for educators and other concerned advocates to protect newcomer students: go.tcf.org/checklist

"Varying Degrees" lead author Sophie Nguyen presents data insights from this year's report at New America's summer ice cream social event on July 30, 2025

Before we scoop out ice cream, researcher and report author Sophie Nguyen dives into important new data insights from the latest edition of #VaryingDegrees.

🎓 The top-line takeaway?? Even with rising costs and growing skepticism, most Americans still believe in the promise of #HigherEd.

Grant Applications for Campus Childcare Put on Hold Funding applications for programs that support low-income and adult learners typically open in May and close by the end of July. This year they have yet to be announced.

Great reporting from @jessicablake.bsky.social childcare on campus is a vital support for parenting students and this administration should be using those funds now, as Congress intended, not holding on to them.
www.insidehighered.com/news/governm...

Video: We Get There Together For too long, immigration has been used as an issue to divide working people and protect the interests of corporations, billionaires, and politicians who profit from fear and division. Our new video, ...

Across the U.S., people can't afford to pay rent, buy groceries, or see a doctor. And yet, Congress just gave ICE a budget bigger than most militaries.

-How’d we get here?
-Who benefits from keeping us divided?

A better future is still possible. Watch, learn & share ⬇️
www.nilc.org/articles/vid...

See How Much Federal Money Trump Is Holding Back From Your District Hundreds of districts will lose more than $1 million each, according to a new analysis.

Yesterday, I shared my @educationwork.newamerica.org team's district impact analysis of the $6+ billion that the Trump admin is refusing to disburse to schools (link in 2nd post). Now, @edweek.org has published our funding figures for ALL districts in the US for which we have data. Search for yours↓

We want ICE out of our Hospitals.

Ousted from Opportunity: Eviction's Adverse Impact on Parenting College Students New America partnered with the Eviction Lab to understand how eviction affects parents who are attending college while caring for children—and found it likely leads to severe negative consequences.

New brief from my colleague @econroy.bsky.social reveals how eviction has lasting, devastating effects on parenting college students—and their children. #edusky

💡 www.newamerica.org/education-po...

🆘 Congress’s big reconciliation bill puts vital programs like Medicaid and SNAP at risk, threatening the well-being of millions across the U.S.

@NewAmerica.org’s Family Economic Security and Well-Being programs consider the far-reaching consequences.

🔗 go.newamerica.org/family-feder...

Ousted from Opportunity: Eviction's Adverse Impact on Parenting College Students New America partnered with the Eviction Lab to understand how eviction affects parents who are attending college while caring for children—and found it likely leads to severe negative consequences.

ICYDK: ☝🏽 out of every 🖐🏽 undergrads is pursuing #HigherEd while also parenting a child.

In new research conducted by our policy expert @econroy.bsky.social and partners from the @evictionlab.bsky.social, our latest brief details the many parenting students who are also facing threats of eviction.

Quiz: What Does DOGE Know About You? The Department of Government Efficiency has unauthorized access to millions of Americans’ data. Take New America’s quiz to see how much of your data is at risk.

DOGE has bypassed long-standing privacy safeguards. Recently, #SCOTUS allowed #DOGE to access Americans’ Social Security data. This is not okay.

Take the Open Technology Institute's quiz to see what other elements of your sensitive information are exposed. #HandsOffMyData

OPINION: Clamping down on good, publicly available higher education data will send our system into a dark spiral Cuts to the Department of Education, including positions that involve data collection and analysis, threaten our domestic progress and could trigger a decline in the very qualities that have made Amer...

Great piece from @mitzkow.bsky.social on @hechingerreport.org on the need for publicly available highered data:
"Good data helps policymakers direct resources toward schools that drive economic impact, turning education dollars into long-term growth." #edusky hechingerreport.org/opinion-clam...

This assault is not only on @padilla.senate.gov, but on freedom of speech and expression in our country.

These actions taken by Trump’s DHS communicates a message to all Americans that none of us is safe.

Immigration expert: DACA shows why giving people that certainty, that legal status, that ability to work and live your life with a little bit more certainty is absolutely critical for them—and critical for our entire country.

Thirteen years ago, DACA changed lives. It gave hundreds of thousands of young people the chance to work, study, and live without fear. It is long past time for Congress to step up and provide a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers.

State Legislative Toolkit for Protecting Students from Online Program Managers (OPMs) in Higher Education This legislative toolkit arms state advocates with policy background, talking points, and other resources on online program managers.

Without the right oversight, predatory OPMs can mislead students and drive down academic quality.

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Here, our #HigherEd investigator @jbeowulf.bsky.social puts student protections first in a new legislative toolkit designed for state policymakers and other advocates tackling these challenges.

The House Reconciliation Bill Will Harm Student Parents Parenting students are struggling to succeed in college, by cutting vital support, congressional republican's reconciliation bill will make it harder.

ICYMI: The budget bill recently passed by a razor-thin House Republican majority would slash safety net programs and federal #StudentAid.

🚨 Here, our #HigherEd experts @ewaspeaks.bsky.social and @richardodavisjr.bsky.social explain how these alarming cuts will hit parenting students hardest.

Trump Finds a New Way to Attack Education: Cutting Aid for Students Who Are Parents The Trump administration proposed eliminating CCAMPIS, a vital child care program for lower-income parenting students.

‪"Without CCAMPIS, many student [parents] will have to drop out of school"

Check out this very important piece from @jesswash.bsky.social about the Trump administration's proposed elimination of CCAMPIS: Child Care Access Means Parents in School.

#edusky

theintercept.com/2025/05/28/t...

Promising Partners: Community Colleges and Child Care Resource & Referral Networks Child Care Resource and Referral Networks are a promising partner to help community colleges address child care challenges for student parents.

I wrote here about how community colleges and child care resource and referral networks can partner - and why they should.

Appreciate any help sharing out with folks that support student parents or help families with child care options.

www.newamerica.org/education-po...

Hungry for Help: How Food Insecurity Affects College Students’ Mental Health Food insecurity and mental health are deeply connected. This Mental Health and CalFresh Awareness Month, learn how hunger harms college student well-being.

"Fixing food insecurity on campus is more than a hunger issue—it’s a mental health imperative."

This new piece from Michelson 20MM Foundation highlights how addressing food insecurity on campus also helps support students' mental health.

#edusky

20mm.org/news/food-in...

The House Reconciliation Bill Will Harm Student Parents Parenting students are struggling to succeed in college, by cutting vital support, congressional republican's reconciliation bill will make it harder

The massive proposed cuts to higher ed and safety net programs will fall especially hard on parenting students.

New analysis from @ewaspeaks.bsky.social and @richardodavisjr.bsky.social on the New America @educationwork.newamerica.org parenting students team.

www.newamerica.org/education-po...

A federal program helped student-parents thrive. Now it's on life support - The Hechinger Report More than 1 in 5 college students is a parent, but a lack of child care holds many back

Take a minute to read this new piece from Lilah Burke at @hechingerreport.org that quotes my amazing colleagues @econroy.bsky.social and @richardodavisjr.bsky.social on the need for CCAMPIS: "Child Care Access Means Parents in School."

#edusky

hechingerreport.org/a-federal-pr...

Tomorrow, SCOTUS will hear arguments in a case regarding the nationwide injunction on the unconstitutional effort to end birthright citizenship.

@fwd.us President Todd Schulte explains what’s at stake, what the Constitution says, and why protecting birthright citizenship matters for all Americans: