Here are three reports you should know about this month.

1. The number of first-time associate-degree earners has decreased from 2012-13 to 2018-19, due mainly to a drop among older students earning a two-year degree, according to figures from the National Student Clearinghouse (NSC) Research Center. During that seven-year period, the number of first-time associate-degree earners dipped from 806,721 to 770,484, though there was a 1.4 percent increase from 2017-18 to 2018-19. For college-age students younger than 25 earning an associate degree as their first credential, the number rose over the span, from 397,031 to 477,813. Among adult learners, the figures dropped each year over the period studied, with decreases growing among older students. The age group comprising 40 to 49 years of age saw a drop from 76,522 to 43,026 over the seven-year period.
2. Two-year college athletes are more likely to experience food insecurity and homelessness than athletes at four-year colleges and universities, according to a new survey from The Hope Center for College, Community, and Justice at Temple University. More than 3,506 student-athletes participated in the survey, including 1,640 from two-year colleges. Nearly 40 percent of two-year college athletes said they faced food insecurity in the prior month, with nearly one-quarter experiencing high food insecurity. And 20 percent of the surveyed two-year college athletes said they experienced homelessness. When looking at student athletes in the workforce, two-year college athletes surveyd were more likely to work 21 to 30 hours and more than 30 hours a week than athletes at Divisions I, II and III institutions.
3. In November, the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) convened the meeting on undergraduate research experiences (UREs). The meeting was held with support from the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Advanced Technological Education program. A new report highlights the promising practices discussed during the meeting. It includes recommendations from strategic working groups centered around scaling and sustaining URES, sustaining partnerships for UREs, equitable access to UREs in STEM and measuring the impact of UREs.