In Crain's Chicago, Opinion: Chicago's quiet college success story

Most headlines about higher education today paint a dismal picture: enrollment cliffs, rising costs, federal attacks and growing skepticism about the value of a degree. But in Chicago, a quieter story has been unfolding — one of steady, remarkable progress in redefining what’s possible for public school students and whom college is for.

At the University of Chicago’s To & Through Project, we’ve spent a decade tracking how Chicago Public Schools and their partners support students on the path to and through college. Our latest annual report reveals the results: 84% of CPS students are graduating high school, 66% are immediately enrolling in college, and in 2024, a record 7,368 CPS alumni from a single cohort (the class of 2018) had earned college degrees or certificates six years post-high school — the most we’ve ever seen.

I believe we can get there. Across Chicago, I see the work already happening. CPS is leading the way, continuing to strengthen advising practices while expanding support for alumni as they transition to their chosen postsecondary pathways. City Colleges of Chicago is working to address students’ basic needs, helping some of our city’s most vulnerable students focus on their education rather than where their next meal is coming from. Innovative nonprofit programs like Hope Chicago and Chi-Rise are working to remove the financial barriers of college pathways. New partnerships like the Chicago Roadmap and the CPS College Compact are working to connect CPS students to local universities and drive collaboration across K-12 and higher education systems to support students. These efforts, combined with Illinois’s emergence as one of the most pro-college states in the country, give me genuine hope.

The data in Chicago tells us progress is possible with our collective and intentional work. So let’s continue to do what Chicago does: believe in the brilliance of our young people, look hard data in the face, make bold plans and work together to expand what’s possible for young people and our city as a whole.

Excerpt above and to read the full story, click here (paywall): Chicago’s quiet college success story: opinion | Crain’s Chicago Business