TxCAN Blog

September 2023

Ensuring Equal Opportunity in Texas Education: The Impact of Affirmative Action Bans

Resources to Kick Off A Successful Year for the Class of 2024

Learn from Bill DeBaun, Senior Director of Data and Strategic Initiatives at the National College Attainment Network, as he shares resources to help you and your colleagues start off the school year!

Online TASFA Coming Soon!

In addition to the paper TASFA, the new Online TASFA application will be available to submit 100% electronically in the coming financial aid cycle. Read this blog to learn more about the Online TASFA and be better prepared to support students in completing the application.

How Should I Apply: Early Action, Early Decision or Regular Decision?

Every fall, high school students across Texas who are looking to apply to college face a big decision: Do they apply early action, early decision, or regular decision? In this blog, TxCAN will explore the key differences between each option to help you and your students make an informed decision.

August 2023

What You Need to Know: 2024-2025 FAFSA Changes and How to Prepare

Big changes are coming to the FAFSA next year! In this blog, TxCAN highlights some of the FAFSA changes for the 2024-2025 cycle and how practitioners can begin to prepare.

August 2023

Digital SAT Launching Spring 2024

Starting in the Spring of 2024 the SAT will be delivered digitally. Check out what you need to know and how you can prepare students for this transition.

Empowering Implementation of Best Practices with the HB 3 Dashboard

Ready to learn more about the HB 3 Dashboard? In this blog, Ben Mackey of the Texas Impact Network highlights how the dashboard can be used as a vital resource for systems and stakeholders across the state.

Summer Steps for Financial Aid

Recent graduates may face challenges with their financial aid packages after high school graduation. In this blog, TxCAN will highlight some of the ways you can provide support and knowledge to students and their families and help avoid summer melt. Thank you to our partner uAspire for hosting this webinar and sharing these resources with our community.

May 2023

Summer Transition Engagement

Summer Transition (also known as Summer Melt) has been used by college admission practitioners to refer to the phenomenon when college-intending students fail to enroll at a post-secondary institution in the fall after high school graduation. In this blog, TxCAN will highlight some of the ways you can implement a summer counseling initiative in your community to address this phenomenon.

April 2023

TxCAN Inaugural Pitch Competition – Submit an Effective Practice!

TxCAN will be hosting an Inaugural Pitch Competition during NCAN this fall and you can be a part of it! Learn more about the pitch competition and how you can help the advancement of postsecondary success for students in Texas.

April 2023

Tackling Financial Aid Verification

In this blog, TxCAN shares highlights from uAspire’s FAFSA Completion and Verification Training. This blog includes useful resources for practitioners assisting students with financial aid verification.

April 2023

Planning A Successful Decision Day Event

It’s that time of year when students will be celebrating their commitment to continuing their education. TxCAN shares some Decision Day resources and tips for a successful event!

April 2023

Award Letters Are Arriving; Do Your Students Understand Them?

Learn from Bill DeBaun, Senior Director of Data and Strategic Initiatives at the National College Attainment Network, as he shares information, tools, and resources that can help practitioners, students, and families understand their financial aid award letters

March 2023

How TxCAN is Supporting College Access in Texas

Texas College Access Network (TxCAN) is a critical component of the Educate Texas’ portfolio of programs. Read about TxCAN’s transition from a convenor to an action network focused on increasing college access in Texas and learn about the three priorities they are focusing on to achieve this goal.

March 2023

Crucial Next Steps for Class of 2023

In this blog, TxCAN shares matriculation next steps for counselors, advisors, and teachers to share with seniors. These steps are crucial for seniors’ postsecondary enrollment.

February 2023

Don’t Reinvent the Wheel: Learn from Other Schools’ Success Stories

Learn from Bill DeBaun, Senior Director of Data and Strategic Initiatives at the National College Attainment Network, as he shares different examples of successful college and career advising efforts from across the country.

February 2023

College Admissions Testing Updates and Resources

With testing season approaching, TxCAN shares test-optional updates and college admissions test resources to support both practitioners and students this testing season.

February 2023

My HBCU Story- Prairie View A&M University First-Year Student

Guest author Jabaurie Caraway, a first-year student at Prairie View A&M University, shares his aspirations and dreams and reflects on his decision to attend an HBCU.

February 2023

My HBCU Story- Freedom to Think

Guest author Kenya Wilson, Director of College and Career Readiness at Educate Texas, reflects on her post-secondary journey and the impact of HBCUs in her personal and professional life.

January 2023

The Texas Financial Aid Requirement: Implementation and Successes

Texas is in its second year of implementation of the financial aid requirement for all high school seniors. What does this mean? How have we done as a state and what successes and challenges are we hearing across the state? Below you will find answers to these questions and more.

December 2022

Financial Aid Priority Deadline: What is it and How to Reengage Students?

The Financial Aid Priority Deadline is approaching. Below we share possible student scenarios and solutions that can assist you in strategically encouraging all your students to meet this critical deadline.

November 2022

Application Season: Resources for All

College application season is upon us and TxCAN shares resources to make this season a little bit easier. Make sure to share, save, and bookmark!

October 2022

FAFSA Season Opens October 1 – Here’s How to Prepare

October marks the beginning of FAFSA season. Learn from Caroline Doglio, Program Associate at the National College Attainment Network (NCAN), as she shares financial aid resources from NCAN.

September 2022

Financial Aid Updates You Should Know About

Financial aid season is right around the corner. In this blog, TxCAN shares FAFSA and TASFA updates shared by UAspire and Texas OnCourse in their most recent financial aid trainings.

September 2022

Celebrating Texas’ Hispanic Serving Institutions

Read about Texas’ Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs) for Hispanic Heritage Month!

August 2022

Tools, Tips, and Resources for the New Year

School is in Session, and it is time to get to work! In this blog, TxCAN shares some tech tools, tricks, and resources that can make the lives of practitioners a little bit easier this year.

August 2022

Key Questions to Ask Before the School Year Starts

August is a time for rest and relaxation, but also readiness. Learn from Bill DeBaun, Senior Director of Data and Strategic Initiatives at the National College Attainment Network, as he shares four questions to ponder and prepare as you turn toward the start of the 2022-23 academic year and some key resources to help answer those questions.

July 2022

A New Way to Look at First Generation Students

We tend to assume that all first-generation students fit the same mold, but in a study conducted by the National Science Foundation we have found that is not always the case. This post will showcase how the National Science Foundation defines the varying levels of first-generationness and how the differentiation can be used to enhance college advising practices. Read to learn how you can intentionally plan out your college access activities this year to support all levels of first-generation students.

July 2022

Use Fit and Match to Increase Students’ Success

Learn from Bill DeBaun, Senior Director of Data and Strategic Initiatives at the National College Attainment Network as he shares how you can dive into the concepts of “fit” and “match” and share resources for districts, schools, and community organizations who want to increase or improve how they put these concepts to work for students.

June 2022

Solidify K12-Higher Ed Connections to Firm Up Students’ Next Steps

Learn from Bill DeBaun, Senior Director of Data and Strategic Initiatives at the National College Attainment Network as he shares how you can build and strengthen K-12 and higher education connections this summer.

May 2022

Summer Transitions

Even after acceptance letters have been received and college decisions have been made, there is plenty left to do before the first day of classes in the Fall. To shed more light on this transition, Future Focused TX invited guest speaker Ann Marano to share more about summer transitions and ways college access professionals can keep students engaged.

May 2022

Advising Students: Aspiring College Athletes

Working with students who aspire to be college student-athletes can be uncharted territory for many college access professionals. Outlined below is a list of need-to-know information along with resources to help you best serve your students.

April 2022

Digital TASFA Launching Fall 2022

Beginning in October 2022, the TASFA application will be available to complete and submit 100% online.

March 2022

Advising Students: Balancing Financial Obligations & Educational Aspirations

Students, for a variety of reasons, may need to seek employment during or before starting college. This post will provide some resources on how to best advise these students as they seek to balance their dreams as well as their financial obligations.

March 2022

College Scorecards

Learn about The College Scorecard and Texas CREWS, both free scorecard tools that easily allow college access professionals, students, and families to look up and compare institutions.

March 2022

Understanding Student Aid Reports and Verification

Student Aid Reports and Financial Aid Verification are key aspects of the financial aid process. uAspire helped to explain key aspects of these processes in their recent training, and a summarized version of their presentation has been brought to you by the TxCAN team.

February 2022

Dr. Kenyatta Lovett: My HBCU Story

Guest author Dr. Kenyatta Lovett reflects on the impact of HBCUs on his professional mission and success, as well as the progress of other Black students.

February 2022

Celebrating Texas’ HBCUs

In honor of Black History Month, we are highlighting Texas’ Historically Black Colleges and Universities and their rich history in providing affordable access to higher education to Texas students. Read to learn more about the nine HBCUs in Texas, and access resources to help make HBCUs another option in a student’s postsecondary plan.

January 2022

Serving and Supporting Undocumented Youth

Guest speaker Ann Marano joined Future Focused TX to discuss ways to serve and support undocumented youth in Texas. Read and obtain key takeaways from her presentation and access resources to support undocumented students in their postsecondary journey.

January 2022

Resource Roadmap to Senior Year

Conversations and planning done during Junior year can have a huge impact on a student’s postsecondary plans and lay the foundation for a great Senior year. Learn about resources available to counselors and advisors that can facilitate these conversations.

January 2022

Getting Interactive with Financial Literacy

Drawing upon the Trellis Student Financial Wellness Survey Results, learn why it is so important to engage with financial literacy to prepare students for access and persistence in postsecondary education.

January 2022

FAFSA/TASFA Completion: Strategies for Success

Learn how Dallas County Promise and RGV Focus support their communities with FAFSA/TASFA completion to achieve numbers far exceeding state and national averages.

December 2021

Practicing Self-Care

Learn about the eight aspects of wellness and the role a self-care action plan can have in the lives of college access professionals.

December 2021

Engaging the Financial Aid Priority Deadline Before the Holidays

Read about four effective ways to relay information about the Texas financial aid priority deadline to students before the holiday break!

December 2021

Expanding Bachelor’s Degrees at Community Colleges

Learn about House Bill 3348 and how it will expand the number of bachelor’s degrees offered at community colleges across Texas.

November 2021

What You Need To Know: TSIA2 Updates & Resources

Learn about the changes made to the TSIA2 and important resources to help students succeed

November 2021

National Apprenticeship Week 2021

Learn about apprenticeships and the work WE CAN TX is doing to help Texas students meet talent and workforce demands of businesses while earning high-demand credentials.

November 2021

What You Need To Know: 22-23 FASFA Updates and Troubleshooting

Catch up on the 22-23 FAFSA changes and ways to troubleshoot common issues that you may come across.

September 2021

TxCAN FAFSA Dashboards

Learn about the TxCAN FAFSA Dashboards and how to compare your FAFSA completion rates to other Educational Service Center regions, counties, school districts, and campuses in Texas.

September 2021

Need To Know: House Bill 3 Financial Aid Graduation Requirement

Learn about the House Bill 3 Financial Aid Application Requirement going into effect in Fall 2021.

September 2021

Project Restore: Addressing Mental Health Concerns Amid Covid-19

Learn about the TEA’s “Project Restore,” a video course on mental health for education workers.

September 2021

Reimagining the Road to Education: A New Project

Learn about the interactive project by Bellwether Education, which aims to illuminate how young people must sometimes navigate college access alone.

September 2021

Closing Learning Gaps with the Acceleration Imperative

Learn about the interactive wiki "The Acceleration Imperative" from CAO Central, a resource for teachers in response to Covid-19.

September 2021

Meeting the Needs of Texas’ Youth Impacted by Covid-19

Learn about databases that counselors can use as tools to address the basic needs of students affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.