More than 4 million postsecondary students are parents. While student parents are highly motivated and just as academically capable as their nonparenting peers, they are less likely to graduate from college and take longer to complete. Higher non-tuition costs for expenses like child care and housing, lack of support for basic needs, and systems and policies that weren’t built with student parents in mind can all stand as barriers in their postsecondary education journey.

New America’s student parent team conducts research, policy analysis, and advocacy to improve outcomes for parenting students. Our goal is to advance policy solutions that support student parents in higher education. We work towards this by elevating public awareness of student parents, bringing new organizations and stakeholders into the field, and connecting research, data, and promising practices to advocacy.

The Shangri La Series convenes practitioners, policymakers, technologists, and scholars from around the globe to chart a practical agenda for AI governance and deployment among middle powers. Through the series, participants are empowered to prepare their countries and communities to tackle the challenges of AI head on. 

Much of the global AI conversation has centered on “digital empires:” the United States, China, and the EU. While these actors are undeniably important, a majority of real-world AI use and experimentation is taking place outside of these superpowers. Middle-income countries—from India to Brazil and from Indonesia to Rwanda—are seeking their own pathways, as sites of innovation; experimentation, and cost effective, high-impact deployment. By bridging silos across these regions and different sectors, The Shangri La Series grounds global AI so that people, regardless of where they live, benefit from the technology.

RethinkAI brings together disparate partners to harness artificial intelligence for stronger communities. We work with governments, researchers, community organizations, and the public to drive artificial intelligence solutions that tackle persistent problems, shape policies that reflect community needs, and strengthen the relationship between public institutions and the people they serve. To accomplish this, RethinkAI mobilizes technical and local expertise to support pilots, activates regional and national networks, and provides tools and methods so that civic AI can address challenges such as affordable housing, environmental justice, and community safety.

Power Reimagined examines how the global energy transition is reshaping economic and geopolitical power. The initiative examines the intersection of climate change, industrial transformation, and financial systems to ensure a fair, equitable, and sustainable transition to clean energy. Focusing on climate finance, critical minerals, technology transfers, and industrial policy, we amplify Global South perspectives to inform policies that prevent power from concentrating in a few dominant actors. Through research, advocacy, and high-level dialogue, we seek to align climate ambition with climate justice worldwide.

Expanding youth apprenticeship is a strategy for building a more inclusive economy by connecting the learning needs of students with the talent needs of industry. The Partnership to Advance Youth Apprenticeship (PAYA) is a multi-year, collaborative initiative that supports states and cities in their efforts to expand access to high-quality apprenticeship opportunities as a mainstream postsecondary option for high school-age youth.

The Partnership convenes and mobilizes the expertise, experience, and collective networks of national, state, and regional partners to:

• Support place-based partnerships to employ their first apprentices by awarding select grants with customized coaching, technical assistance, and a peer learning community with fellow grantees;
• Facilitate learning, innovation, and wide-scale adoption of best practices through the PAYA Network, a learning community of over 90 youth apprenticeship partnerships; and
• Strengthen the case and evidence base for youth apprenticeship to raise awareness and to mobilize policy, action and investment.

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