The Hunt Institute

Investing in postsecondary success means addressing the barriers that exist outside the classroom.
California Assemblymember Mike Fong, a member of The Hunt Institute’s Hunt-Kean Leadership Fellows (Cohort 12), for his leadership in securing a landmark $350 million allocation for affordable student housing.
Included in the state's Veterans and Affordable Housing Bond Act of 2026, this strategic funding will directly support the development of affordable, on-campus housing across both the University of California (UC) and California State University (CSU) systems.
As Assemblymember Fong noted, housing insecurity, skyrocketing costs, and grueling commutes severely compromise student retention and academic performance. This initiative removes one of the most persistent obstacles to completed degrees.
At The Hunt Institute, our Hunt-Kean Leadership Fellows program equips state leaders with the data, resources, and bipartisan networks to create transformative education policies. Assemblymember Fong’s legislative efforts exemplify how this Fellowship can drive student success.
Read more about the proposal from ColoradoBoulevard.net: https://buff.ly/a1MZNmp
Learn more about the Hunt-Kean Leadership Fellows: https://buff.ly/9Qnwfwt

Fong Announces $350 Million for Affordable Student Housing in State Bond Proposal Assemblymember Mike Fong (D–Alhambra) announced that his efforts to expand affordable student housing have secured $350 million in funding included in the Veterans and Affordable

There are roughly 65 million adult learners across the U.S. trying to tell higher education institutions and policymakers the exact same thing: "We need systems built for our reality, not traditional models."

A recent Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL) feature highlights 10 critical things adult learners want us to understand, ranging from the necessity of flexible scheduling to the life-changing impact of Credit for Prior Learning (CPL).

But for a massive subsection of this group, student parents, the barriers are doubled. As highlighted in The Hunt Institute's recent Student Parents Issue Brief, a lack of clear child care infrastructure often hinders educational progress before it even begins. When institutions ignore basic needs like accessible child care and on-campus support, adult learners are forced to choose between caregiving and their careers. To truly support the adult workforce, we must integrate flexible learning models with strong child care infrastructure.

Dive into our North Carolina Student Parents Issue Brief: https://buff.ly/5hQdQ9R
Read the full article from CAEL: https://buff.ly/kmZ79Qo

Issue Brief: North Carolina Student Parents · The Hunt Institute Read the One Pager version here.   Student parents represent a significant and largely untapped segment of North Carolina’s workforce pipeline. An estimated 1.2 million North Carolinians under age 65 have some college experience but no degree, and a substantial portion are parents whose family re...