Utah Valley University's high return on investment for students of all backgrounds earning national salutes
But what Jackson needed were those educational opportunities that can be challenging to find for so-called 'First Gens.'
Jackson is a first generation immigrant and a first generation college student. She's also a young mother and a new homeowner — busy tackling the day-to-day tasks of caring for a couple of small children and helping to support a household.
Utah Valley University, said Jackson, is her ongoing source for those essential educational and mentoring opportunities.
'Anyone who wants to go to UVU has the same opportunities available to them. They make it really accessible for everyone,' she told the Deseret News.
The institutional opportunities being offered to Jackson and many of her classmates have earned UVU — the state's largest university by enrollment — an 'Opportunity College and University' designation by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education.
The designation highlights UVU as 'a model for studying how campuses can create and support student success by providing more access to more people in their communities and fostering high earnings post-graduation,' according to a university release.
The UVU designation is part of a newly introduced Student Access and Earnings Classification, published this month by the Carnegie Foundation and the American Council on Education.
The new classification assesses how well institutions create opportunities for student success by measuring whether they enroll students who reflect the communities they serve and by comparing the graduates' earnings to their peers in the same areas.
Only 16% of the nation's colleges and universities received a similar 'Opportunity College and University' designation.
'As an open-access institution, UVU encourages students to 'Come as you are' and provides a high-quality education with seamless pathways to a degree, whether through vocational/community college offerings or four-year and master's programs,' said UVU Acting President Jim Mortensen in the release.
'This innovative model has resulted in strong job placement and competitive wages for our graduates, who consistently earn above the national median."
'This Carnegie Classification affirms that our student programs truly make a difference in fostering career success.'
UVU reports almost 75% of its graduates securing 'high-wage, high-demand' jobs with 4- or 5-star ratings by the Utah Department of Workforce Services in a variety of fields — including nursing, elementary education, engineering, computer science, finance and marriage and family therapy.
UVU leaders also point to the school's comprehensive approach to student support services as key to fostering an opportunity-rich campus.
The school's Student Success Center, for example, offers students of all backgrounds academic advising, tutoring, mentorship and wellness programs.
Meanwhile, the First-Generation Student Success Center and UVU's GEAR UP resource assistance program offer admissions-to-graduation guidance for students such as Jackson.
A Mexico City native, Jackson and her family moved to Provo when she was a little girl.
After graduating from Provo High School, she discovered a path to higher education via UVU's GEAR UP program. She began attending school, married and expected to follow a linear student path to Graduation Day.
But life intervened.
Family challenges and pregnancy prompted Jackson to step away from school.
But when she and her husband later found out they were expecting their second child, 'I decided I needed to be a good influence for my children and teach them the importance of education — so I re-enrolled at UVU.'
Excited to be back in class and pursuing educational goals, Jackson said she's been 'all in' during her second stint at the Orem school. She participated in the school's 'Presidential 100' program — enjoying the mentorship of UVU President Astrid Tuminez and others on campus.
Jackson remembers Tuminez encouraging her to chase and capture dreams.
'President Tuminez said, 'Go write down your dreams and start working on them. You really can accomplish these things.''
That sort of campus leadership and support has proven pivotal for Jackson and her family in purchasing their first home — and she's a year away from graduating with an accounting degree. She has her post-graduation eye on entrepreneurship.
Jackson added she has never felt unseen at UVU, despite the school's massive student body of almost 50,000.
'They do a wonderful job of connecting with everyone, individually,' she said.
Inside Higher Ed recently highlighted UVU's classification as an 'Opportunity University,' noting the school's commitment to first generation students and non-traditional students.
Kyle Reyes, vice president for institutional advancement at Utah Valley, said he attributes the university's high 'Return on Investment' for students to the institution's long-term investment in student success initiatives — and an unwillingness to deviate from its original mission as a broad-access institution.
Some of those efforts, Inside Higher Ed noted, have included partnerships with K-12 schools; helping students fill out federal financial aid applications; offering scholarships; academic advising; a food pantry; low-cost, on-campus childcare; student research opportunities; paid internships; and completion grants for returning students.
Recognition as an affordable pathway to economic stability through the new classification system is both 'validating' for Utah Valley and a 'game-changer' for all of higher education, Reyes told Inside Higher Ed.
'For so long, the incentives were for exclusion, prestige, lower admission rates and higher test scores — even though on the ground we knew the masses weren't being served by that model,' he said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Bloomberg
6 hours ago
- Bloomberg
BofA's Hartnett Sees Profit-Taking in Stocks After Jackson Hole
The record-breaking rally in US stocks has left them prime for profit taking in the event of dovish signals from the Federal Reserve at the Jackson Hole economic symposium, according to Bank of America Corp. strategists. The team led by Michael Hartnett said investors have flocked into risky assets from equities to cryptocurrencies and corporate bonds on optimism that the central bank will reduce interest rates to shore up a weakening labor market and ease the US debt burden.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Seven Mississippians Awarded Entergy's Community Power Scholarship
Scholarship emphasizes the recipients' commitment to community service, leadership and work experience JACKSON, MS / / August 14, 2025 / Entergy is helping high-school graduates from its four-state service area pursue their college and career dreams with $5,000 scholarships from the company's Community Power Scholarship program. This year, the 2025 scholarship recipients include seven exceptional Mississippi students and children of Entergy employees who have showcased remarkable dedication to their community, school and workplace. The one-time scholarships are available for students applying for accredited vocational-technical schools and two-year or four-year colleges and universities. "These remarkable individuals demonstrate unwavering commitment and effort in shaping a bright future and fostering resilient communities," said Haley Fisackerly, president and CEO of Entergy Mississippi. "The Community Power Scholarships will support them in taking the next steps of their educational journey and deepening their engagement with the community. Giving back is a core value for Entergy, so we applaud these young leaders for their work." The following is a list of the 2025 Entergy Community Power Scholarship recipients from Mississippi and the schools they will be attending: Meredith Hawkins, Jackson - Mississippi State University Alexis Hunter, Jackson - University of Mississippi Grace Gardner, Madison - Colorado State University Madelynn Soucie, Madison - Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College Ryan Wu, Madison - Duke University Alyssa Norsworthy, McComb - Southwest Mississippi Community College Desmond Breland - Delta Technical College The seven Mississippi students join 22 other recipients from across Entergy's four-state service area. For more than 20 years, Entergy's Community Power Scholarship program has provided more than $3.6 million in financial assistance to over 730 children of the company's employees, aiding them in covering their education costs. About Entergy Mississippi Entergy Mississippi, LLC provides electricity to approximately 459,000 customers in 45 counties. Entergy Mississippi is a subsidiary of Entergy Corporation. Entergy produces, transmits and distributes electricity to power life for 3 million customers through our operating companies in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. We're investing for growth and improved reliability and resilience of our energy system while working to keep energy rates affordable for our customers. We're also investing in cleaner energy generation like modern natural gas, nuclear and renewable energy. A nationally recognized leader in sustainability and corporate citizenship, we deliver more than $100 million in economic benefits each year to the communities we serve through philanthropy, volunteerism and advocacy. Entergy is a Fortune 500 company headquartered in New Orleans, Louisiana, and has approximately 12,000 employees. Learn more at and connect with @EntergyMS on social media. Media inquiries:entergymsmedia@ View original content here. View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Entergy Corporation on Contact Info:Spokesperson: Entergy CorporationWebsite: info@ SOURCE: Entergy Corporation View the original press release on ACCESS Newswire
Forbes
2 days ago
- Forbes
Degrees Of Opportunity: Rethinking Value In Higher Ed
Colleges and universities are doing a better job lately explaining the value of their degrees, and increasingly they're getting important help in making that case. The challenge has been that while on average, a bachelor's degree is worth more than $1.2 million in lifetime earnings, the value for any individual graduate depends on multiple factors, including majors, where a person lives, and the cost of those degrees. How can students and families find the best deals in higher education? College rankings of every type have been around for years, and for our money the best include those from Washington Monthly, created two decades ago. The Monthly avoids focusing just on elite schools, but instead prioritizes graduation rates, earnings after graduation compared with the price of degrees, and social mobility. And in a nod to today's chief concerns for families, the magazine includes a "Best Bang for the Buck" category. Opportunity By Design And as the value question becomes more urgent, we're interested in a new take—the idea of "Opportunity Colleges" as recently identified by the American Council on Education (ACE) and the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. Opportunity Colleges were identified as part of a substantial update to the Carnegie Classification system begun in 1973, focusing on whether schools are creating opportunities for students and helping them earn competitive wages. According to ACE and Carnegie, the 479 Opportunity Colleges:'Better Together' at Ball State One example is Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana, known for its Late Night alumnus David Letterman, but also for highly regarded programs in teaching, architecture, and journalism. It is the only public university in Indiana to receive the classification. When he arrived in 2017, Ball State President Geoffrey Mearns brought a 'better together' mantra to campus and began working with local stakeholders, making connections and forging partnerships. 'What's insightful from the Carnegie report and methodology is they're analyzing salary and post-graduate earnings by discipline,' Mearns said in a recent conversation with Lumina Foundation. 'It gives context to why a Ball State graduate's median salary is X and a Purdue graduate's median salary is Y. It's because we're graduating teachers and journalists, and Purdue is graduating engineers.' Career Connections at CMU Another of the schools is Central Michigan University, 60 miles north of the state capital at Lansing. It offers one of Michigan's lowest tuition rates, and nine out of 10 graduates are either employed, pursuing further education, or engaged in volunteer service within six months of graduating. The Opportunity College designation is a nod to its partnerships that over time have nurtured career readiness. 'Workforce is in our DNA,' says CMU President Neil MacKinnon. 'It's always been our mission to produce workforce our region needs.' The Michigan-based W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research found that 67 percent of CMU graduates remain in the state after completing their degree, compared with about 40 percent from the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor. Just over 89 percent of students at CMU are Michigan residents. Hometown Value That idea of retaining talent after graduation is a theme for Opportunity Colleges. At Ball State, Indiana residents account for 85 percent of the student body, and 'student ambassadors' work to encourage students to work in the state after they graduate. The County Ambassador Program allows each of Indiana's 92 counties to designate a student to represent the area and promote its quality of life and job opportunities to others. Ball State is also innovating how to prepare students across Indiana for active citizenship after graduation. For example, through Third Way Civics: Indiana Advances, Ball State will engage with at least a dozen colleges across Indiana in implementing a flexible curriculum that combines historical inquiry, peer discussion, and interdisciplinary learning to promote civic understanding and engagement. Faculty members from any discipline can use Third Way Civics to help foster student learning in a new way—one that relies on students forming their own points of view and considering those of others, not just listening to lectures. These skills will be invaluable once students graduate and build their lives in communities across Indiana. In short, the Opportunity College model reframes what success in higher education should look like: access, affordability, mobility, and meaningful community connection. As more families seek degrees that open real doors without closing others through debt, schools like Ball State and CMU are charting a path forward—showing that the best return on investment isn't always measured in rankings, but in lives transformed.
