States Leading the Way: How Cross-State Leadership Is Advancing Student Parent Success

This month, Virginia took a meaningful step forward for families.

Both chambers of the Virginia General Assembly passed HB 427, legislation requiring higher education institutions across the state to collect and report student parenting status – an essential move to make student parents visible and ensure they are supported to succeed. In a powerful moment of leadership, Delegate LaVere Bolling stood at the podium with her daughter in her arms as she championed the bill’s passage, bringing the reality of student parenthood directly into the policymaking process.

This win didn’t happen in isolation.

It is part of a growing, cross-state movement – powered by leaders who are working together, sharing strategies, and advancing solutions that strengthen economic mobility for families.

Leadership in Action Across States

In October 2025, Ascend at the Aspen Institute convened leaders from across the country for the Advancing Student Parent Visibility Across States Roundtable. The gathering brought together higher education leaders, advocates, and student parents with a shared goal: accelerate policies that recognize and support student parents.

Leaders from states where similar policies had already passed stepped forward to design and facilitate the conversation – sharing lessons learned, navigating challenges, and equipping peers with practical tools to move policy forward in their own states.

Teams from Maryland, New Mexico, and Virginia left not just inspired, but ready to act.

From Connection to Policy Change

Following the roundtable, state teams continued to collaborate – with ongoing support from Ascend – turning ideas into action.

• Virginia and New Mexico both introduced and unanimously passed legislation to improve data collection on student parents.
• Maryland is advancing similar legislation through its state legislature, building on cross-state collaboration and continued coordination among advocates, higher education leaders, and student parents.

In Maryland, leaders with both professional expertise and lived experience are driving momentum. Ascend Parent Advisor Yoslin Amaya Hernandez co-led the state’s efforts through her role at Wishful Doing. She helped shape the original roundtable, developed testimony toolkits, and submitted written testimony. Additionally, Ascend Fellow Dr. Daria Willis, President of Howard Community College and a former student parent, testified before the Education, Energy, and the Environment Committee. Together, these leaders brought the voice and experience of student parents directly into the legislative process.

Why Data and Leadership Matter

Student parents are often invisible in higher education systems. Without data, institutions and policymakers cannot design effective supports or measure progress.

This legislation changes that.

And just as important, it demonstrates what becomes possible when leaders step into their roles not just as advocates within their own states, but as part of a broader community working toward shared change.

As Julie Ajinkya of HCM Strategists reflected:

“Ascend enabled a diverse group of powerful stakeholders to come together in support of real systems change in Virginia for student parents through legislation that builds institutional data capacity – and set the stage for sustained advocacy efforts that highlighted student parent voices that successfully swayed policymakers.”

Forward With Families : A Model for Civic Leadership

This is Forward With Families in action.

It’s what it looks like to:

• Elevate solutions that are already working;
• Connect and activate leaders across sectors and states;
• Translate lived experience into policy change; and
• Build momentum that extends beyond any one state.

At its core, this work is about civic engagement – leaders stepping forward, communities shaping solutions, and policymakers responding to real family needs.

Progress across these states shows that when leaders are connected, equipped, and activated, states don’t just follow – they lead.