Interim Charge 1: Texas Senate Committee on Higher Education

October 30, 2020

Erin Davis Valdez

Erin Davis Valdez is an education policy director at the Texas Public Policy Foundation. She has been passionate about the transformational power of education all her life, having been given the gift of being homeschooled. She taught for over a decade in Austin-area schools and served as an assistant principal at a charter school in Lewisville. These experiences have given her the opportunity to see first-hand how students can thrive when they have excellent options.

Interim Charge 1 reads:

Adult Learner Students: Examine existing innovative programs in higher education institutions that assist non- traditional students in completing a degree or credential, including first-time adult learners, re-enrolling students, first-generation students, working adults, and at-risk students. Provide recommendations on methods the state can use to partner with higher education institutions to expand successful programs throughout the state.

Non-traditional students, in particular, could benefit from three reforms to the higher education system:

Returned-value funding model.
Competency-based education (CBE).
Community and technical colleges can play a vitally important role in helping adult learners discover and cultivate their gifts and talents.

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Erin Davis Valdez

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