FPWA Educational Equity Dual Enrollment Sign-on Letter

February ___, 2025

The Honorable Kathy Hochul NY Senate Majority Leader Sen. Andrea Stewart-Cousins NY Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie

Dear Governor Hochul, Senate Majority Leader Sen. Stewart-Cousins, and Assembly Speaker Heastie,

As a coalition of faith-based, community, and social justice organizations across New York State who are committed to building an equitable pipeline to higher education and high wage jobs for students from underserved communities, we are calling on the State to adopt a robust, equity-focused Preschool-to-Workforce (P20W) statewide longitudinal data system that provides holistic connection across agencies, and to support higher rates of college attainment for students of color facing systemic barriers by providing increased support to the dual enrollment program. These educational initiatives will help transform the lives of students and their families by building economic security for our state’s most vulnerable.

It is predicted that by 2027 nearly 70% of all jobs – including most high-wage jobs – will require some form of postsecondary credentials; however, postsecondary achievement among students in marginalized communities is declining. Research has long shown that Black and Latino students and students from high poverty areas disproportionately face systemic barriers to equitable educational attainment, which, in turn, result in compounding barriers in the workforce including wage suppression and limited career growth. As the only state without a dedicated funding stream for dual enrollment, our state must act boldly this year in addressing this educational inequity issue. We believe that NY must make a minimum investment of at least $20M in its highly coveted dual enrollment program this year in order to address this educational equity issue.

NY Public Schools’ dual enrollment programs —which allow high school students to take college courses and earn college credits while still in high school — have an established track record of significantly improving postsecondary achievement for students with higher-than-average systemic barriers. Dual enrollment is a pathway to building educational equity and economic security for those most in need. However, while the program is widespread across NYC with over 400 high schools and 20,000 students participating annually, enrollment does not mirror the diversity of the city’s public school system. Several groups of students — Black and Latino students, English language learner students, students from high poverty neighborhoods, and male students — are underrepresented. This disparity also extends beyond the borders of New York and is national in scope, making income inequality directly linked to unequal education.

Even the program’s primary eligibility requirements – standardized test scores and GPA – often fail to capture the diverse strengths and potential of these students, thereby perpetuating cycles of exclusion and marginalization. Moreover, the financial burden of dual enrollment programs can be a significant barrier for low-income students and their families, further exacerbating the equity gap. At the postsecondary level, inequitable funding models fail to incentivize access and success for target populations. Traditional enrollment and performance-based funding formulas often overlook the unique challenges and additional support needs of underrepresented and historically underserved students, perpetuating achievement gaps and limiting economic mobility. Without adequate funding support for tuition, books, fees, supplies, meals, and transportation, these opportunities remain out of reach for many deserving students.

To address and overcome systemic inequities in Education and related outcomes, it is imperative that New York State take budget, legislative, and policy action this session to:

Broaden eligibility requirements for dual enrollment programs to include course completion, teacher recommendations, portfolio projects, and internships.
Increase funding support to cover the full costs of dual enrollment for low-income students, including tuition, books, fees, supplies, meals, and transportation.
Implement equity-focused enrollment funding models that consider total student headcount and provide additional weight to underrepresented and historically underserved students.
Adopt equity-focused performance funding models that include additional weights for the outcomes of underrepresented and historically underserved students, incorporating value metrics and thresholds such as minimum earnings benchmarks.
Adopt and adequately fund statewide longitudinal data systems, a critical educational equity tool in identifying points in the Preschool-to Education and Career Pipeline where disparities emerge or widen, allowing for future targeted interventions and policy change.

NY must lead the way in raising the bar to educational opportunity and access so that children and young people of color and young people from high poverty neighborhoods —and by direct extension their families and communities—can experience unhindered economic opportunity, growth, and security.

Sincerely,

cc: Sen. Mayer, Sen. Liu, and Assemblymember Benedetto

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