Giving Compass' Take:

• During a meeting hosted by the Education Writers Association last week, education leaders noted three major changes that need to happen in higher education.

• Which of the three changes will impact students the most? How can donors support innovation and change in higher education?

• Here are five ideas for change in higher education. 

Colleges across the nation are in a period of immense change.

For one, who is going to college is shifting. Student populations are more diverse than ever, and a growing number of working adults are enrolling in postsecondary education. As the market pushes back on rising tuition, colleges are feeling the pressure to respond to a wider range of student needs while still striving to improve their outcomes.

The format of education is also undergoing a transformation. Automation of the workplace is requiring workers to upskill or reskill more quickly, ushering in a need for more efficient and accessible ways to earn credentials.

Higher education leaders and experts addressed those trends last week at a meeting with journalists in Baltimore, hosted by the Education Writers Association. Here's what they said colleges should do better to educate and welcome students.

  1. Address a racist past: A growing number of campuses are tearing down their Confederate monuments or adding information to the sites to put them into context. Meanwhile, more universities are working together to examine their legacies of slavery and to better highlight the contributions of minority students and academics.
  2. Reform remedial education: Remedial education has come under fire in recent years as a growing body of evidence suggests it doesn't help students progress and can often burn through their financial aid. As such, more colleges are rethinking their approach to remedial courses or are abandoning them altogether.
  3. Improve the credential marketplace: The number of credentials is continuing to grow, but there is little information to help students navigate the vast marketplace.

Read the full article about changes higher education leaders need to make by Natalie Schwartz at Education Dive.