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Mile Markers

A bimonthly newsletter about the role of colleges in rural America, including profiles of people and places worth getting to know a little better. Written by Open Campus staff reporter Emily Lytle.

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Posted inMile Markers

For many rural students, higher ed means part-time education

By Nick FouriezosApril 7, 2022April 14, 2022

Yet many colleges still focus on degree programs that can take years of full-time study, a serious time hurdle for working adults.

Posted inMile Markers

Musk’s Big Bet

By Nick FouriezosMarch 22, 2022March 22, 2022

Takeaways from a week in the Rio Grande Valley, exploring the promise and the peril for local residents of the billionaire’s rocket ship to Mars.

Posted inMile Markers

Burger refills and broadband access

By Nick FouriezosMarch 8, 2022March 9, 2022

Digital testing offers some promise for rural students, but there are hidden rules — and continued broadband challenges — that hamper access.

Posted inMile Markers

Can esports put rural colleges on the map?

By Nick FouriezosFebruary 23, 2022February 23, 2022

They represent an intriguing outreach opportunity for increasingly cash-strapped colleges in more remote parts of the country.

Posted inMile Markers

A new compass for supporting rural

By Nick FouriezosFebruary 8, 2022February 10, 2022

Why the Alliance for Research on Regional Colleges’ new metric to identify rural-serving institutions matters

Posted inMile Markers

A Kentucky college’s lesson in equity

By Nick FouriezosJanuary 26, 2022January 27, 2022

Berea College provides an example of how federal GEAR UP money can shift aspirations and outcomes in rural communities. It’s also a glimpse into what is about to be lost in Maine and six other states that recently lost those funds.

Posted inMile Markers

A rural town with two HBCUs and no movie theater

By Nick FouriezosJanuary 11, 2022January 11, 2022

Those two universities present tremendous opportunities for rural Orangeburg, S.C., but the city has long let the area around them deteriorate. A new project brings hope of making this into more of a college town that serves its students.

Posted inMile Markers

Does axing testing hurt rural colleges?

By Nick FouriezosDecember 21, 2021December 21, 2021

East Georgia State College suffered the worst enrollment decline in the state. Test exemptions, officials there say, created a ripple effect that changed where students went.

Posted inMile Markers

What’s in a name?

By Nick FouriezosDecember 7, 2021December 15, 2021

Rural. It’s our favorite national calling card. Beloved by politicians in jean-jacketed commercials. CEOs drumming up common man bona fides. Ice cream ads that melt with nostalgia. But what does it actually mean? And how does it matter?

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