Nearly half the students at Colorado Mesa University are the first in their family to go to college.

While applying to colleges last year, Hamza Parker became a casualty of one of the more tangible aspects of the conservative Supreme Court’s landmark decision to end affirmative action in college admissions: sudden cutbacks in race-based scholarships. Parker’s college advisor, Atnre Alleyne, had steered him toward a host of campuses that once provided generous scholarships for Black students, including the College of Wooster in Ohio. Without one, Parker could not afford to leave his Delaware home for college. Alleyne knew that the court’s decision would have unforeseen consequences for the Black and Hispanic students he works with at his nonprofit…

Education Design Lab is helping develop and launch RuralTogether, a national community of practice supporting rural students and improving postsecondary pathways. We are seeking professionals and educ...