Postsecondary Access and Success
Students are still falling from the educational pipeline. Of the students that graduate high school, only 53% enter college directly from high school and only 35% earn a college degree [1]. Lack of academic preparation, low socioeconomic status, fear of the unknown, or perceived inadequacies to attain a college degree are all barriers that can challenge a student’s ability to complete high school and persist to higher education [2]. These barriers also continue to be a factor through postsecondary completion. Aside from its intrinsic value, postsecondary education has become increasingly important for youth as more jobs require some postsecondary education [3]. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce adds that the workforce has changed dramatically, demanding that all students complete high school possessing a core set of academic skills needed for both postsecondary education and high-wage jobs [4]. Thus, policymakers, educators, and researchers must consider the factors that can affect postsecondary access and success in order to reach pragmatic solutions to this continuing problem.
This issue brief discusses a multitude of barriers to postsecondary access as well as the barriers to postsecondary success. While the barriers discussed present a significant obstacle for many students, it is important to understand that each individual can experience multiple and varying barriers throughout life. For the purposes of this issue brief, the term postsecondary refers to the scope of higher education: two- and four-year colleges and universities, technical schools, apprenticeships, and certificate programs.
The Barriers to Postsecondary Access
Disheartening rates of students do not complete high school, and therefore reduce the possibility of achieving a postsecondary degree or certification. Unfortunately, many students drop out prior to completing high school and cite an irrelevant education and a lack of a support system as some of the key factors in their decision to drop out. As Duane Crum of Project Lead the Way explained at a recent AYPF forum, while colleges and universities are aligned with the full spectrum of science and technology in our society, high schools typically expose students to an extremely small portion of that spectrum. The Education Commission of the States cites, among several other factors, that parental income, parental educational attainment, early academic achievement, grade retention, and English language skills are major predictors of student persistence to graduate from high school [5]. These barriers often impact a student’s ability to graduate high school, thus also affecting access to postsecondary education.
Lack of Preparation: The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) estimated that only 74.3% of students in their fourth year of high school graduated with a diploma in the 2003-2004 school year [6]. Looking beyond the graduation rates, current high school education practices do not always address the preparatory needs of students to access postsecondary education. Many high school graduates, high school equivalency completers, and GED recipients leave unprepared for postsecondary education and unprepared for the workplace. According to Jay Greene at the Manhattan Institute, academically, only one-third of those who graduate leave high school qualified to attend four-year colleges [7]. With respect to workforce readiness, The Conference Board, Partnership for 21st Century Skills, Corporate Voices for Working Families, and the Society for Human Resource Management, conducted a recent survey of over 400 employers that showed that new workforce entrants were deficient in the most important employer-identified applied skills such as professionalism, oral and written communication, teamwork and collaboration, critical thinking, and problem solving [8]. Students also often lack the necessary supports that assist them with understanding postsecondary education options and life after high school.
Rising Tuition Costs: Socioeconomic status (SES) has also been widely recognized as a factor influencing a student’s ability to succeed in education. With respect to postsecondary access, those of lower SES as well as middle SES encounter financial barriers in attaining a postsecondary degree or certificate. Costs of postsecondary education are consistently rising and outpacing the rate of inflation [9]. NCES reported that in 2004-2005, two-year and four-year institutions raised tuition costs by 9% and 11% respectively [10]. Costs for a postsecondary education present a financial barrier that students must consider when deciding whether or not to pursue a degree or certification. For students of lower SES, paying for their postsecondary education is difficult since their expected family contribution can only finance a small fraction of full tuition depending on the institution. In 2002, the Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance found that 48% of all college-qualified, low-income students and 43% of students from moderate-income families would not attend four-year colleges because of financial barriers [11]. The report revealed that low-income families of college-qualified high school graduates face an annual unmet need of $3,200 for two-year public colleges, $3,800 for four-year public colleges, and $6,200 at four-year private colleges. Moderate-income families face lower but similar financial barriers of unmet need.
Increasing Financial Aid: Although tuition costs have risen, the amount of financial aid available has also risen. The NCES report suggests that the amount of financial aid available has offset the rise in tuition at two-year and four-year institutions. Despite the rise in financial aid dollars available, a barrier exists within the system when examining the types of aid available. Included in a student’s financial aid package are two different types of aid: loans that require repayment and grants that do not require repayment. While loans provide a way for students to finance a postsecondary education, student loan debt is a daunting future for students of all SES levels. NCES data shows that the percentage of students who took out loans in 1989-90 was highest among students with family incomes in the lowest quartile. In 1999-2000, approximately 50% of students with family incomes in the lowest, lower middle, and upper middle quartiles borrowed money to finance their postsecondary education with the upper middle quartile experiencing the largest percentage change of over 20% in the number of students borrowing from 1989-2000 [12].
Parental Educational Attainment and First-Generation Students: Parental educational attainment can also play a significant role in postsecondary persistence. NCES research has demonstrated that student educational attainment is correlated to parent educational attainment; 36% of students with parents that had less than a high school diploma compared to 82% of students with parents that held a bachelor’s degree or higher enrolled in college immediately after finishing high school [13]. Previous research has also found that first-generation college students were less likely to complete advanced mathematics courses in high school, less likely to take AP courses, and less likely to take college entrance examinations, typical predictors of a student’s ability to succeed in postsecondary education. For the 1995-1996 academic year, 40% of first-generation postsecondary students did not even exceed the core New Basics curriculum consisting of four years of English and three years each of mathematics, science, and social studies [14]. NCES studies show that such students are at a disadvantage when it comes to postsecondary access—a disadvantage that persists even after controlling for other important factors such as educational expectations, academic preparation, support from parents and schools in planning and preparing for college, and family income [15].
Race/Ethnicity: Achievement differences also persist among racial/ethnic student groups. In a recent report published by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), the average math score for White students in 2005 was 30 points higher than Black students and 24 points higher than Hispanic students [16]. NAEP also reports that in reading, the wide achievement gap between White and Black students and White and Hispanic students remains relatively unchanged since 1992. In terms of reading achievement, the average 17-year-old Black or Hispanic student reads at the same level as a 13-year-old White student.
Additional Factors: There are certainly many other factors that prohibit a student from persisting to a postsecondary education such as limited English proficiency, work and family responsibilities, and low educational expectations. These factors present unique barriers that can impact the ability for students to access postsecondary education. For example, as discussed in a recent AYPF forum, immigrants must gain stronger English skills before they are able to enroll and succeed in postsecondary education. In addition, immigrants spend more time meeting family obligations than do their native-born peers, which can also impact a student’s decision to pursue postsecondary education.
The Barriers to Postsecondary Success
Remediation: Greene stated that of those who graduated from high school in 2001, the college readiness rate for White students was 37%; for Asian students, 38%; for Black students, 20%; for Hispanic students, 16%; and for American Indian students, 14% [17]. Research shows that students often lack the fundamental skills to achieve in college. NCES reported that 28% of freshman college students took at least one remedial writing, reading, or mathematics course in the Fall of 2000 [18]. Even when students attend college, many are not prepared to complete college-level coursework. While remediation offers needed instruction, students enrolled in remediation are still less likely to earn a degree or certificate with remedial reading being the most serious barrier to degree or certificate completion [19]. Cliff Adelman’s recent research also reveals that for students who earn less than 20 credits by the end of the first calendar year of enrollment, their ability to complete a degree is negatively impacted [20]. Another concern is that remediation slows academic progress and increases the cost to complete a degree or certificate. In a study on academic preparation and postsecondary success conducted by NCES, the findings revealed that a more rigorous high school curriculum was strongly associated with their postsecondary grade point average, the amount of remedial coursework they took, and with their rates of persistence and attainment. Additionally, a more rigorous high school curriculum was associated with a higher postsecondary GPA, less remedial coursework, and a higher likelihood of persistence in postsecondary education [21].
Work intensity and family responsibilities: Work intensity and family responsibilities also play a key role in postsecondary success for traditional and non-traditional students [22]. Students not only work to support their own financial needs, but often students must work to fulfill their family responsibilities. Balancing the demands of work, family, and study typically results in part-time attendance status, thus slowing their progress to completion and increasing the likelihood of failure to persist [23]. The American Council on Education found that approximately two-thirds (68%) of students that entered a public four-year institution and worked less than 15 hours including those who were not employed completed their degree within 6 years, while only 39% of students who entered a public four-year institution and worked more than 35 hours during their first year earned a degree or certificate. Approximately one-quarter of these students were still enrolled six years later, suggesting these students who attempt to balance a full-time work schedule with other responsibilities need a longer time frame to complete their degree. Public two-year institutions show similar results where students who worked less than 15 hours were more likely to have attained a degree or certificate than students who worked more than 35 hours per week. Furthermore, across all types of institutions, dependent students were more likely than independent students to complete their degree within six years.
Non-Academic Factors: Research has also discussed how non-academic factors such as integration with the institution, isolation, or the lack of a positive support network can play a role in postsecondary success [24]. The American College Testing Program, Inc. (ACT) reported that academic self-confidence was strongly related to retention while presence of a support system was moderately related to retention, amongst many other non-academic factors of retention [25]. Furthermore, a recent study found that students who commute and live off-campus are less likely to persist, while residential students reported making greater numbers of new friends, higher connections to the school, and also reported higher academic achievement rates [26].
To address the issues of postsecondary access and success, federal, state, and local policymakers are exploring different options to bolster educational change.
Federal Level Solutions
In 2001, the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 was reauthorized as part of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB). NCLB represents the largest federal investment in education and supports several federal programs that assist and support the improvement of academic preparation and promotion of lifelong success at all points along educational pipeline. Under Title I of NCLB, Early Reading First and Reading First programs assist states and districts to improve reading instruction and literacy for primary education while the Even Start program offers grants to support local family literacy projects that integrate early childhood education, adult literacy (adult basic and secondary-level education and instruction for English language learners), parenting education, and interactive parent and child literacy activities for low-income families. Policymakers are also heavily investing in Advanced Placement (AP) courses as evidenced by NCLB and state incentives. According to NCLB provisions, states will reimburse low-income individuals for part or all of the costs of AP test fees [27]. In addition to the Advanced Placement Test Fee Program, NCLB provides the Advanced Placement Incentive Program Grants to increase the participation of low-income students in both pre-AP and AP courses and tests. The investment by the federal government into the AP curriculum is an attempt to increase the academic rigor of coursework and to prepare students for postsecondary education.
Title II of NCLB focuses on preparing, training, and recruiting high quality teachers and principals. Title II provides grants to state education agencies (SEAs) and local education agencies (LEAs) in order to increase student academic achievement by increasing the number of highly qualified teachers in the classroom and highly qualified principals and assistant principals in schools. In addition, Title II attempts to hold LEAs and schools accountable for improvements in student academic achievement. Title III of NCLB focuses on language instruction for limited English proficient and immigrant students. Title III provides grants such as the English Language Acquisition State Grants, which provide funds to SEAs and LEAs to improve the education of limited English proficient (LEP) children and youth.
In addition to NCLB, the federal Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technology Education Act provides grants to states to develop career and technical education programs that often offer dual enrollment courses or opportunities to earn postsecondary certificates. Career and technical education with programs such as Tech Prep is a field that has been gaining much interest in an effort to provide students with a relevant education.
Federal TRIO Programs provide six outreach and support programs that are designed to motivate and support students from disadvantaged backgrounds. Since the 1960s, TRIO Programs such as Upward Bound, Talent Search, and Student Support Services have been targeting and assisting low-income, first-generation college students, and students with disabilities to progress through the educational pipeline from middle school to post-baccalaureate programs. In addition, federally-funded Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) provides six-year grants to states and partnerships to provide services at high-poverty middle and high schools. GEAR UP seeks to increase the number of low-income students who are prepared to enter and succeed in postsecondary education by focusing on a cadre of students in the middle grades and following them through the high school years.
Federal student financial aid is offered through various programs such as Pell Grants, Academic Competitiveness Grants (ACG), Stafford and Plus Loans, and the Federal Work-Study program. Educators, students, and families can find important information regarding federal student aid on the Department of Education Student Aid website.
State and Local Level Solutions
States and communities are attempting to raise student achievement and improve postsecondary access and success by creating a streamlined system of education from pre-kindergarten through postsecondary education (commonly referred to as K-16, P-16, K-20 or P-20). The Education Commission of the States reports that 30 states are currently engaged in some kind of P-16 activity [28]. Five states (Florida, Indiana, North Carolina, Ohio and Texas) have passed legislation to establish a P-16 council or initiative, but most are formed voluntarily or through executive order. Most P-16 councils have business and community involvement. P-16 councils are an effective tool for states that want to link education to economic development, often with an emphasis on preparing future workers for high-needs industries. Councils attempt to align secondary curriculum with postsecondary entrance requirements or workforce requirements to provide standards for success at postsecondary institutions and in the workforce. In addition, the American Diploma Project Network (ADP) is a coalition of 30 states dedicated to aligning K–12 curriculum, standards, assessments and accountability policies with the demands of college and work. The ADP joins governors, state superintendents of education, business executives, and college leaders to bring value to the high school diploma by raising the rigor of high school standards, assessments and curriculum, and aligning expectations with the demands of postsecondary education and work.
In addition to statewide alignment strategies, states and communities are providing options to students to address preparation barriers to postsecondary access as well as success concerns. By providing a rigorous curriculum and the opportunity to earn postsecondary credit, high school students earn the ability to learn skills to access and succeed at the postsecondary level. AYPF has identified, summarized, and analyzed schools, programs, and policies that link secondary and postsecondary education to help students take postsecondary-level courses, earn postsecondary credit or work towards technical certification. These programs are termed Secondary –Postsecondary Learning Options (SPLOs) and include:
- Advanced Placement: AP courses are being used as a college-prep tool by allowing high school students to build college-necessary skills as well as to earn college credit. Students earn postsecondary credit based upon their scores on standardized end-of-course exams. Some states, such as Texas, reward students by reimbursing the testing fee if the students earn a score of 3 or higher.
- International Baccalaureate: The International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Programme is a challenging two-year curriculum, primarily aimed at students aged 16 to 19. It leads to a qualification that is widely recognized by the world’s leading universities. The International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO) currently offers their IB Diploma Programme in 1,401 schools worldwide. Each IB school pays an annual fee and is charged by the IBO for student assessment, teacher training, and publications. IB courses offered at high schools in the United States are funded by SEAs, LEAs and donors.
- Dual Enrollment: Includes programs that provide opportunities for high school students to participate in college-level coursework in hopes of earning postsecondary credit. Programs are offered both on campuses of colleges or universities or in high school classrooms. The following is an example of one state’s program:
- Washington State Running Start allows Washington high school juniors and seniors to take college courses on college or university campuses or through distance learning for both high school and college credit. Students do not pay for these courses or for other fees, but are responsible for purchasing books and providing their own transportation to the college campus. Currently, all of Washington’s 34 community and technical colleges as well as four of the six state universities participate in Running Start. In 2005-06, enrollment totaled 16,540 individual students (approximately 10% of the state’s juniors and seniors), an increase of about 3 percent over the previous year. Also in 2005-06, Running Start students earned an average grade point of 3.12 after transferring to the University of Washington [29].
- Tech Prep: Is a planned sequence of study in a technical field that typically provides students the opportunity to earn postsecondary credit toward a technical certificate or diploma. Tech Prep is funded under the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technology Education Act through federal grants to states. One Tech Prep program is described below:
- Miami Valley Tech Prep Consortium (MVTPC) is a collaboration between 58 area high schools and Sinclair Community College in Dayton, Ohio. MVTPC strives to create a seamless career-technical education that begins in the junior year of high school and continues through an associate’s degree and beyond. With 11 career pathways, the emphasis is on teamwork, hands-on learning, work-site experiences, critical thinking, and problem solving. MVTPC graduates outperform peers especially with regard to remediation: only 19% of participants versus 38% for non-participants need remediation in math and only 18% of participants versus 32% for non-participants need remediation in English [30].
- Middle/Early College High Schools: Both middle and early college high schools are located on or near a campus of a postsecondary education institution. Both types of schools supplement their course offerings by enrolling students in college courses for both secondary and postsecondary credit. Middle college high schools graduate students with a high school diploma and some postsecondary credit; early college high schools encourage students to remain for a fifth year to graduate with both a high school diploma and an associate’s degree.
- Middle College High School at LaGuardia Community College, part of the Middle College National Consortium (MCNC), has received numerous accolades since its inception in 1974. The school was founded to help New York City students who were at risk of dropping out by the 10th grade. High school students do college-level work and earn an associate’s degree without having to pay tuition or fees. The success of this program has provided a model for other middle and early college high schools to be developed. A recent study by the National Center for Restructuring Education, Schools, and Teaching (NCREST) on MCNC Early Colleges found that students from a majority of MCNC schools will most likely complete one or two semesters of college credit by the 11th grade and all MCNC Early College students average a 93% college course pass rate [31].
The success of middle/early college high schools has gained the support of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the Carnegie Corporation of New York, the Ford Foundation, and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. By 2008, the Early College High School Initiative will have provided funds to establish more than 170 Early College High Schools.
Further information on specific SPLO programs is also available in an AYPF compendium, The College Ladder: Linking Secondary and Postsecondary Education for Success for All Students. In The College Ladder, AYPF identifies SPLO programs and provides a summary of the impact of each program on variables such as student academic performance, closing the achievement gap, and postsecondary access and success. Overall, SPLOs appear to be helping students prepare for and succeed in postsecondary education. Program elements such as location, faculty preparation, prerequisites, and program length, all contribute to rigorous educational experience for students. In addition, findings showed that for students to be successful, SPLOs need to provide appropriate experiences and supports to their students based on their individual needs. As students enroll in college-level coursework, it is also imperative that articulation agreements regarding the transferability of credits between secondary and postsecondary institutions are established. Furthermore, collaboration between secondary and postsecondary teachers and administrators are needed to connect the two educational systems and allow educators to create a supportive environment for SPLO participants.
As evidenced by SPLOs, more postsecondary pathways are becoming available to potential postsecondary learners. While it is important for policymakers, educators, and researchers to focus on improving postsecondary attendance rates, it is equally important for them to focus on the retention and success of those students as well. Ideally, federal programs and SPLOs would identify and integrate key factors, such as academic and social preparation, into their curriculums to increase postsecondary retention and success. Research still shows that Black and Latino freshman are graduating college at a rate of 41% while Whites complete college at a rate of 59% [32]. To address the issue at the postsecondary level, institutions are taking it upon themselves to assist retention and success barriers by providing mentoring, tutoring, and academic counseling to students. The University of Connecticut uses their Student Support Services (SSS) TRIO program to serve their undergraduates that are defined as academically at-risk, typically based on inadequate high school preparation. SSS conducts a six-week summer program prior to entering the University to ensure students are retained and succeed to graduation. Several of these programs and services exist at universities nationwide. The Academic Advancement Program (AAP) at the University of California, Los Angeles has been using their Freshman Summer Program and Transfer Summer Program in addition to their mentorship, tutoring, and academic counseling services, since 1976 and 1978 respectively, to assist diverse populations who have been historically underserved by higher education.
Other Resources in the Field
Nationally, the American Council on Education and the Lumina Foundation for Education have started a televised college access campaign, KnowHow2Go. KnowHow2Go.com attempts to demystify the process of going to college by providing valuable educational resources that focus on how, instead of why, to go to college. In addition, the National College Access Network (NCAN) strives to improve postsecondary access and success for disadvantaged, underrepresented, and first-generation students by supporting a network of state and local community-based college access programs.
Resources
The College Board
http://www.collegeboard.com/student/testing/ap/about.html
Early College High School Initiative
http://www.earlycolleges.org/Index.html
The Education Trust
http://www2.edtrust.org/edtrust
Education Commission of the States
Federal Student Aid
http://studentaid.ed.gov/PORTALSWebApp/students/english/index.jsp
Manhattan Institute
http://www.manhattan-institute.org/
National Center for Education Statistics
No Child Left Behind Act
http://www.ed.gov/nclb/landing.jhtml?src=pb
U.S Department of Education
[1] Adelman, C. (2006b, March 17). The Toolbox revisited, Paths to degree completion from high school through college. Washington, DC: US Department of Education, p.11.
[2] Social Science Research Council Project Transitions to College: From Theory to Practice. (2005). Questions that matter: Setting the research agenda on access and success in postsecondary education. New York, p. 11.
[3] US Chamber of Commerce, “Technical Education.” Retrieved July 18, 2007 from http://www.uschamber.com/issues/index/education/vocationaltechnicaledact.htm.
[4] US Chamber of Commerce, “Technical Education.” Retrieved July 18, 2007 from http://www.uschamber.com/issues/index/education/vocationaltechnicaledact.htm.
[5] Education Commission of the States, “At-Risk Youth.” Retrieved June 8, 2007 from http://www.ecs.org/html/issue.asp?issueid=13&subissueID=74.
[6] National Center for Education Statistics, “Dropout Rates in the United States: 2004” November 2006. Retrieved February 22, 2007 from http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2007/dropout/FindingsAveragedFreshmanGraduation.asp.
[7] Greene, J.P. & Forster, G. (2003, September). Public high school graduation and college readiness rates in the United States. Retrieved February 15, 2007 from http://www.manhattan-institute.org/html/ewp_03.htm.
[8] The Conference Board, Corporate Voices for Working Families, The Partnership for 21st Century Skills, & The Society for Human Resource Management, “Are They Really Ready To Work? Employers’ Perspectives on the Basic Knowledge and Applied Skills of New Entrants to the 21st Century U.S. Workforce.” 2006. Retrieved July 19, 2007 from http://www.21stcenturyskills.org/documents/FINAL_REPORT_PDF9-29-06.pdf.
[9] National Center for Education Statistics, November 2005. Changes in Patterns of Prices and Financial Aid: Postsecondary Education Descriptive Analysis Report. Retrieved June 8, 2007 from http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2006/2006153.pdf.
[10] National Center for Education Statistics, November 2005. Changes in Patterns of Prices and Financial Aid: Postsecondary Education Descriptive Analysis Report. Retrieved June 8, 2007 from http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2006/2006153.pdf.
[11] Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance (ACSFA). 2002. Empty Promises: The Myth of College Access in America. Washington, DC: ACSFA, June.
[12] Wei, C.C., Li, X., and Berkner, L. (2004). A Decade of Undergraduate Student Aid: 1989–90 to 1999–2000 (NCES 2004–158), tables 7, A-1.6, A-2.6, A-3.6, and A-4.6. Data from U.S. Department of Education, NCES, 1989–90 and 1999–2000 National Postsecondary Student Aid Studies (NPSAS:90 and NPSAS:2000).
[13] National Center for Education Statistics. “Special Analysis 2001,” Condition of Education 2001. Retrieved on June 7, 2007 from http://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/2001/essay/index.asp.
[14] Warburton, E., Bugarin, R., Nunez, A. (NCES - 2001). Bridging the Gap: Academic Preparation and Postsecondary Success of First-Generation Students. Statistical Analysis Report. Postsecondary Education Descriptive Analysis Reports. Retrieved June 14, 2007 from http://eric.ed.gov/ERICDocs/data/ericdocs2sql/content_storage_01/0000019b/80/19/2c/15.pdf.
[15] National Center for Education Statistics. “Special Analysis 2001,” Condition of Education 2001. Retrieved on June 7, 2007 from http://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/2001/essay/index.asp.
[16] U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2005 Mathematics Assessment.
[17] Greene, J.P. & Forster, G. (2003, September). Public high school graduation and college readiness rates in the United States. Retrieved February 15, 2007 from http://www.manhattan-institute.org/html/ewp_03.htm.
[18] U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Postsecondary Education Quick Information System, “Survey on Remedial Education in Higher Education Institutions: Fall 1995,” 1995; and “Survey on Remedial Education in Higher Education Institutions: Fall 2000,” 2001.
[19] National Center for Education Statistics. “Student Effort and Educational Progress,” Condition of Education 2004. Retrieved on June 7, 2007 from http://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/2004/section3/indicator18.asp
[20] Adelman, C. (2006a, February). The Toolbox revisited, Paths to degree completion from high school through college. Washington, D.C: US Department of Education.
[21] Warburton, E., Bugarin, R., Nunez, A. (NCES - 2001). Bridging the Gap: Academic Preparation and Postsecondary Success of First-Generation Students. Statistical Analysis Report. Postsecondary Education Descriptive Analysis Reports. Retrieved June 14, 2007 from http://eric.ed.gov/ERICDocs/data/ericdocs2sql/content_storage_01/0000019b/80/19/2c/15.pdf.
[22] Horn, L. J., and Premo, M. D. (1995). U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. Profile of Undergraduates in U.S. Postsecondary Education Institutions: 1992–93, with an Essay on Undergraduates at Risk (NCES 96–237). Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.
[23] American Council on Education (August 2003). Student Success: Understanding Graduation and Persistence Rates. Retrieved on June 9, 2007 from http://www.acenet.edu/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Home&TEMPLATE=/CM/ContentDisplay.cfm&CONTENTID=6512
[24] Tinto, V. (1987). Leaving college: Rethinking the causes and cures of student attrition. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
[25] American College Testing Program, Inc. (2004). The Role of Academic and Non-Academic Factors in Improving College Retention. Retrieved on June 13, 2007 from http://www.act.org/path/policy/pdf/college_retention.pdf.
[26] Skahill, M.P. The Role of Social Support Network in College Persistence Among Freshman Students. Journal of College Student Retention: Research, Theory and Practice. Volume 4, Number 1 / 2002-2003, pp. 39 – 52.
[27] U.S. Department of Education, Elementary and Secondary Education Act, 2002, Sec. 1704 & Sec. 1705. Retrieved February 8, 2007 from http://www.ed.gov/policy/elsec/leg/esea02/pg14.html.
[28] Education Commission of the States, “P-16 Collaboration in the States: Updated June 2006,” 2006. Retrieved February 21, 2007 from http://www.ecs.org/clearinghouse/69/26/6926.pdf
[29] Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges, “Running Start 2005-06 Annual Progress Report.” Retrieved August 9, 2007 from http://www.sbctc.ctc.edu/docs/education/assess/0506_runningstart_report.pdf.
[30] American Youth Policy Forum, “Secondary-Postsecondary Learning Options: Mott Middle College and Miami Valley Tech Prep.” September 29, 2006. Retrieved August 9, 2007 from http://www.aypf.org/forumbriefs/2006/fb092906.htm.
[31] Kim, J. & Barnett, E., “High School Students’ Participation and Performance in College Coursework: 2005-06 MCNC Early College Students.” (July 2007). National Center for Restructuring Education, Schools, and Teaching (NCREST).
[32] U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, 1995-96 Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Study, Second Follow-Up (BPS: 96/01) in U.S. DOE, NCES, Descriptive Summary of 1995-96 Beginning Postsecondary Students: Six Years Later. Table 7-6 on page 163.
This American Youth Policy issue brief was written by Andrew Satanapong.
The American Youth Policy Forum (AYPF), a nonprofit, nonpartisan professional development organization based in Washington, DC, provides learning opportunities for policy leaders, practitioners, and researchers working on youth and education issues at the national, state, and local levels.
AYPF events and publications are made possible by a consortium of philanthropic foundations: Carnegie Corporation of New York, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, William T. Grant Foundation, James Irvine Foundation, Charles S. Mott Foundation, and others.