Too few students are graduating from high school college and career-ready. For this dissertation, a qualitative design that included a data analysis was implemented to review a dual enrollment program and the impact of implementing various change ideas to increase enrollment of students in the program. The study was conducted in two phases. Phase…

In 2015, Idaho adopted the nation's first direct admissions system and proactively admitted all high school graduates to a set of public institutions. This reimagination of the admissions process may reduce barriers to students' enrollment and improve access across geographic and socioeconomic contexts by removing many human capital,…

In 2015, Idaho adopted the nation's first direct admissions system and proactively admitted all high school graduates to a set of public institutions. This reimagination of the admissions process may reduce barriers to students' enrollment and improve access across geographic and socioeconomic contexts by removing many human capital,…

Dual enrollment programs have gained popularity as a way for students to earn college credits while still in high school. This professional practice dissertation explored the effectiveness of various strategies to promote dual enrollment to high school students, focusing on increasing enrollment rates among underserved populations and equitable…

The number of students enrolled in Dual Credit programs in the state of Texas continues to grow, however, there are disparities in Black student enrollment rates. The purpose of this study was to identify factors that impeded the enrollment of Black students in Dual Credit programs. This sequential mixed method study consisted of a quantitative…

Career and Technical Education (CTE) is Federally funded, public education that is hands-on and skills-based. The purpose of this study was to identify the barriers that New Hampshire public high school students face when enrolling in a CTE program so that school administrators will be able to address those barriers and potentially increase…

This robust mixed-methods study examines ninth-grade advanced course placement in Arkansas, revealing disparities rooted in race and socioeconomic status. Utilizing a logit analysis for a five-year pooled sample (n = 163,616), we find persistent enrollment gaps for Black ninth-grade students after controlling for prior academic achievement,…

Even as the number of Latina/o students going to college has increased in recent years, Latino male students continue to face barriers in accessing America's institutions of higher education, a topic that remains complex and understudied. Using national survey data from the High School Longitudinal Study of 2009, we sought to understand the role…

This is the executive summary for the report, "College Material: Programs Supporting Postsecondary Education Readiness and Completion in Milwaukee." Milwaukee has been plagued by concerns that its education system is neither serving all youth nor sufficiently growing local talent to sustain the area's economy. This new analysis by the…

In the city of Milwaukee, the vast majority of students do not achieve both high school and college graduation which has been termed as a "completion crisis." This is negatively impacting not only those students but also the region's workforce challenges. Indeed, the area economy could suffer greatly unless metro Milwaukee leaders can…

The dramatic rise in the number of university students holding BTECs [Business and Technology Education Councils] raises important questions about the purpose of the qualification and whether it should be treated by policymakers as part of an academic or vocational pathway. Scott Kelly discusses these issues and makes a number of recommendations…

The College Bound Scholarship (CBS) is designed to inspire and encourage Washington middle school students from low-income families to prepare for and pursue postsecondary education. Postsecondary enrollment rates of College Bound students match or exceed those of non-College Bound Washington high school graduates; however, the postsecondary…

This article reviews findings from the authors' studies of recovery high schools (RHS), including a 1995 program evaluation of a school in New Mexico (Moberg & Thaler, 1995), a 2006-09 descriptive study of 17 recovery high schools (Moberg & Finch, 2008), and presents early findings from a current study of the effectiveness of recovery high…

The total number of Baltimore City Schools (City Schools) graduates who enrolled in college the next fall declined across the Classes of 2007-2014. The percentage of graduates enrolling in college also decreased by more than 7.0 percentage points, from 49.8% to 42.0%. At the same time, the total number of high school graduates increased, as cohort…

Homeless youth and youth in foster care are often unprepared for the transition to adulthood. Given the economic benefits of college, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) was asked to examine the college experiences of these vulnerable youth. GAO examined: (1) college enrollment and completion for foster and homeless youth; (2) the extent to…