News
MCAN shares the latest data, research, and resources from the field so that educators, leaders, and partners are empowered with knowledge that is relevant to their work.
News
Press Releases
All Areas of Work
Michigan College Access Network honors 9 higher education champions at College Access Impact Awards
November 4, 2026
Michigan College Access Network recognized nine individuals and organizations advancing postsecondary access and success across the state during its College Access Impact Awards ceremony yesterday evening. This year's College Access Impact Awards introduced seven redesigned categories celebrating work at every stage of a student's journey...
High School Innovation
Michigan Students Receive More Than 25,000 College Admission Offers Through MI College Match
October 7, 2026
Statewide direct-admission initiative has generated more than $1 billion in scholarship opportunities, with additional offers still expected.
Advising and Coaching
MCAN celebrates AmeriCorps service, welcomes new college advisers and coaches
September 21, 2026
Last week, Michigan College Access Network celebrated the impact of AmeriCorps members serving high school and college students across Michigan and welcomed a new cohort of advisers and coaches with a dinner and networking reception in Lansing.
Blogs
All Areas of Work
15 Years Forward: The Archive
August 20, 2026
Over the past year, we’ve had the opportunity to celebrate the people, partnerships, milestones, and moments that have shaped Michigan College Access Network over the past 15 years. We’re grateful to everyone who has been part of this journey and helped make MCAN what it is today. As we close out the anniversary, we wanted to make it easy to revisit some of the content we shared throughout the year.
High School Innovation
Skilled and Educated: How David Urlaub is Connecting Career Preparation with Lifelong Learning
August 11, 2026
For 20 years, David Urlaub has helped students at the Bay-Arenac ISD Career Center imagine what life after high school could look like. As a student counselor and the center’s lead SkillsUSA adviser, Urlaub works closely with 11th- and 12th-grade students as they explore careers, build technical skills, and consider the education they’ll need to reach their goals. His work is rooted in a simple belief: students shouldn’t have to choose between becoming skilled and becoming educated.
All Areas of Work
Bridging Policy and Possibility: How Bipartisan Collaboration is Advancing College Access in Michigan
May 15, 2026
For former Republican state representative Ben Frederick, the connection between policy, opportunity, and economic growth has never been partisan — it’s personal. His journey from a college degree to the Michigan House to nonprofit advocacy on behalf of his hometown hospital reflects a consistent theme: expanding access to opportunity through thoughtful, human-centered policy.
In the News
Higher Education Innovation
Michigan’s free community college shuts out rural universities. They want in
October 28, 2026
Bridge Michigan
Northern Michigan University, Lake Superior State University and Michigan Technological University have for decades granted scores of associate degrees and skills certificates to students. Ferris State University, in rural west Michigan about a two-hour roundtrip drive from the nearest community college, has also offered associate degrees and certificates in addition to bachelor’s degrees since the early 1950s. The four are the only ones of the state’s 15 public universities to offer associate degrees. They are lobbying lawmakers to include them in the state’s free tuition program for students at two-year colleges, the Community College Guarantee.
All Areas of Work
To fix Michigan schools, experts urge better reading skills, less politics
October 23, 2026
Bridge Michigan
If Michigan wants to improve its education system, it must double down on efforts to improve literacy, train more students for the workforce and encourage people to volunteer with their schools. That’s according to four education experts who spoke Wednesday on a panel titled “The Talent Pipeline: Balancing Early Literacy with Postsecondary Goals” at Bridge Michigan’s inaugural Issues Summit at Marygrove Conservancy.
High School Innovation
Michigan boosts dual enrollment funding to increase college access
October 16, 2026
MLive
The Detroit Regional Chamber’s Detroit Drives Degrees Community College Collaborative, or D3C3, brings together community colleges, employers and K-12 schools to help more students enroll in college, complete credentials and move into in-demand careers.