Lori Severens

1 in 5 Student Parent Podcast
The 1 in 5 podcast vividly profiles students who are parents pursuing their education while raising a family and working. Today, more than one in five college students (22%) are parents. The experiences of students who are parents should not be unfamiliar or unheard, especially on college campuses. They’re in classrooms and clubs, working jobs and managing finances just like their peers.
BlogDecember 1, 2022
Poverty is the result of poor policy choices. These choices reflect our national values and decide who deserves access to opportunity to achieve their dreams and who does not. This flawed mindset has led to persistent inequities and a hollowing of our shared humanity. Change is possible. The choice is ours.
Ascend FellowshipJanuary 21, 2022
A new report released today by Ascend at the Aspen Institute (Ascend) takes stock of the two-generation (2Gen) field. It analyzes what has been accomplished, the lessons learned, and the opportunities ahead with unprecedented federal expenditures in social policy. The report comes at a time when Americans are more fully recognizing that a system that tolerates social, racial, gender, and economic inequities is on unstable ground — and we are reckoning anew with the history of racism, sexism, and economic exploitation that built them into the foundation of our nation.
BlogJune 7, 2021
Six public entities were selected as strategic partners and field innovators to work with Ascend and achieve a shared goal of promoting postsecondary completion for parents by increasing access to supports and public benefits.
Aspen Postsecondary Success for ParentsMarch 9, 2021
Contact: Alexis Williams Ascend at the Aspen Institute alexis.williams@aspeninstitute.org  Ascend at the Aspen Institute and Lantigua Williams & Co. Debut a 15-episode Series on Student Parents Pursuing Postsecondary Credentials   Undergraduate student parents and supporters share the challenges, triumphs, and unique needs of the more than one in five college students who are parents,   Washington, DC (February 9, 2021) – Today, Ascend at the Aspen Institute launched 1 in 5, a captivating podcast that …

ANNOUNCING: “1 in 5,” Ascend’s New Student Parent Podcast Produced by Lantigua Williams & Co. Read More »

Aspen Postsecondary Success for ParentsFebruary 9, 2021
In the last year, families have endured and adapted to myriad unknowns, and too often they’ve had to figure it out without basic support and resources. Yet, as new research conducted by Ascend at the Aspen Institute (Ascend) and the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) discovered, there is widespread support across political ideologies for solutions that …

Centering Families in Policy Solutions in 2021 and Beyond: What Parents Know Read More »

BlogFebruary 8, 2021